A Great First Resource (Without Feeling Overwhelmed by the Density)

When you hear about copyediting resources, it’s natural to immediately think of The Chicago Manual of Style (CMOS). After all, it’s the most used style guide in the industry. That said, it’s also a dense read—even though it’s essential to know and reference for nearly every project.

The good news is that there are plenty of more approachable resources that follow CMOS while being much easier to work through in smaller, more manageable pieces. One of the first resources I used when I purchased CMOS was The Copyeditor’s Handbook, along with its companion workbook. This text was also the primary assigned reading in my Technical Copyediting course at the University of Colorado Denver.

The Copyeditor’s Handbook takes the rules outlined in CMOS and presents them in a way that’s far less dense—and, frankly, far less overwhelming. We’re talking about a book that’s roughly an inch thick compared to CMOS’s four. That said, it’s not a substitute for the style guide itself, but rather a tool for building familiarity and confidence with the rules before diving deeper into CMOS. It’s been a resource I reread for rule repetition.

Who this is best for: New and early-career editors, students, and writers who want a clearer, more approachable introduction to CMOS without feeling buried in the full style guide right away.

When to use CMOS instead: When you’re working on client projects, resolving intricate style questions, or need to verify a rule with absolute accuracy, CMOS should be your primary reference.