Many publishers use a particular house style for their indexes; others refer to The Chicago Manual of Style (15th ed.) for index style and format guidelines. Ryan Indexing will prepare your index according to your needs and specifications. I am happy to discuss these and other style elements with you in more detail; please contact me to discuss your particular indexing project. Style and format elements include:

Page Locators

Inclusive (or continuing) numbers can be set out in full (58–59, 139–143, 232–235) or conflated (58–9, 139–43, 232–35). Conflation styles vary and can be quickly and easily changed using dedicated indexing software (I use Macrex).

Length Limits

Subheading style (indented vs. run-in), page range format, and other style elements can affect overall index length. If your index needs to fit within a particular amount of space, I will work within those limits while still providing a comprehensive and useful index.

Back to top