Page 5 - McMurrey Notes

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McMurrey
DOCUMENT-DESIGN TOOLS:
Lists: bullets, numbers, etc.
Lists are a big help to readers, enabling them to skim through your text faster, see important points, and follow sequential material easily. They also add white space to a page, cutting down on big, thick, dense paragraphs. There exist various types of lists you can use in your writing, including:
1) Bulleted lists. Used to emphasise two or more important items, and when these items are not in any required order. Do not surpass seven items.
2) Numbered lists. Use for items that are in a required order or that must be referred to by number (e.g. instructions to bake a cake). Try to break up the list if the list goes over seven items.
3) In-sentence lists. Standard paragraph format and use either numbers or lowercase letters enclosed in parentheses (also known as ‘( )’). Also called “horizontal lists”.
4) Labeled lists. Applied to long or complex lists. Add a brief identifying label at the beginning of each item (bold or italicise).
5) Nested lists. Sometimes you will be forced to create lists within lists. This involves sublisting items.
6) Two-column lists. These lists contain paired items (technical term or its definition). Also called a “table
in disguise”.
7) Simple lists. Vertical list in which items are not numbered or bulleted. Usually used for equipment or supply lists (no emphasis required by bullet or number).
0What are lists go1od for?
– Enable readers to scan text more readily, see important points and follow stepwise instructions more easily;
– Increase white space in text, reducing long paragraphs and density of text;
– Emphasis: lists should emphasise items;
0Where should list2s be used?
You will eventually begin to incorporate lists in a systematic way once they become a part of your composing practices. You’ll begin to anti- cipate and create them as you compose.
– Sequenced items. Whenever text contains
– Overview lists. Individual sections of technical reports often contain overviews of the subtopics to be covered. Use numbers or lowercase letters in these cases;
– Important points. Text containing 3 or 4 key points about a topic is a good candidate for a bulleted list. If your discussion focuses on: features, characteristics, elements, factors, guidelines, issues or other such elements, that is a sign that you may want to reformat your writing into using bullets; and
– Paired items. Text containing pairs of items (e.g.a term followed by its definition), can be reformatted into a two-column list in which the terms are on the left and their definitons are on the right.
ake reading steps easier; – White space: important side effect of lists.
Remember, do not use too many lists, as well as lists with too many items, as you then lose the advantage of the list altogether.
– Readability: lists m
ation that are in a required order or arrangement (e.g. chronological);
and
segments of inform
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Follow standard guidelines for lists. Regardless of which type of list you create, you must keep some general guidelines in mind. These are standard guidelines for style and format of lists that you will see observed in most published information:
Use the right type of list
Include a lead-in
Avoid using too many lists or lists with too many items
Avoid lists with only one item
Use standard punctuation and capitalisation on list items
Adjust spacing between list items for readability
Use a lead-in to eliminate repetition, but check the grammatical connection between list items and lead-ins
Make the phrasing of list items parallel
Avoid lead articles on list items
Correctly align list items and nested list items to enhance readability
Guidelines for lists