The Moveee Style Guide

Last Updated: July 30, 2025

This style guide outlines the conventions to be followed by all contributors to The Moveee magazine. Adherence to these guidelines ensures a consistent voice, professional appearance, and clear communication across all our content.

I. General Principles

  • Audience: Our readers are generally informed and curious individuals interested in arts, culture, and social movements. We aim for an accessible yet insightful tone.
  • Tone: Engaging, informative, critical (where appropriate), and passionate. Avoid overly academic jargon or overly casual language.
  • Clarity & Conciseness: Be direct and to the point. Eliminate unnecessary words and phrases.
  • Accuracy: All facts, dates, names, and quotes must be accurate and verifiable.
  • Originality: While we cover existing works, our analysis and commentary should offer fresh perspectives.
  • Inclusivity: Use inclusive language and avoid stereotypes.

II. Punctuation & Grammar

  • Serial Comma (Oxford Comma): Always use a serial comma before the final item in a list (e.g., “red, white, and blue”).
  • En Dash (–): Use for ranges (e.g., “pages 12–15,” “1990–2000”).
  • Em Dash (—): Use for sudden breaks in thought or to set off parenthetical phrases (e.g., “The decision—a controversial one—was announced yesterday.”). No spaces around the em dash.
  • Hyphens (-): Use for compound adjectives (e.g., “well-known author,” “two-thirds majority”).
  • Apostrophes: Use for possessives and contractions. Be careful with “its” (possessive) vs. “it’s” (it is).
  • Quotation Marks: Use double quotation marks for direct quotes. Use single quotation marks for quotes within quotes.
  • Ellipses (…): Use to indicate omitted words from a quote. Use three dots with spaces before and after (e.g., “The quick brown fox … jumped over the lazy dog.”).
  • Capitalization:
    • Sentence initial words.
    • Proper nouns (names of people, places, specific organisations, historical events).
    • Titles of specific publications, films, albums, etc. (see specific sections below).
    • First word of a direct quote.
  • Numbers:
    • Spell out numbers one through nine. Use numerals for 10 and above.
    • Spell out numbers at the beginning of a sentence (e.g., “Twenty-five years ago…”).
    • Use numerals for percentages (e.g., “10%”).
    • Use numerals for ages (e.g., “a 5-year-old child”).

III. Formatting & Typography

  • Font: Main body text should be clear and readable. (Specific font choices will be handled by the design team, but writers should focus on clean formatting).
  • Headings: Use clear, concise headings and subheadings to break up long articles. Follow a hierarchical structure (H1 for main title, H2 for main sections, H3 for subsections).
  • Paragraphs: Keep paragraphs relatively short for readability, especially for online consumption.
  • Bold: Use sparingly for emphasis, typically for key terms or names on their first mention if they are central to the article’s argument.
  • Italics: See specific sections below for usage with titles. Also use for:
    • Words or phrases being emphasised (sparingly).
    • Foreign words not yet assimilated into English.
    • The first instance of a technical term, if defined within the text.

IV. Style Guide for Specific Media Types

A. Books & Published Works

  • Book Titles: Italicise full titles of books, plays, long poems (published as standalone books), and journals/magazines.
    • Example: Ernest Hemingway’s The Old Man and the Sea; Shakespeare’s Hamlet; a feature in The Moveee.
  • Chapters & Short Stories in a Collection: Enclose in double quotation marks.
    • Example: “A Clean, Well-Lighted Place” from Hemingway’s Winner Take Nothing; the essay “The Power of the Image” in Art and Society.
  • Poems (short, not published as standalone books): Enclose in double quotation marks.
    • Example: Robert Frost’s “The Road Not Taken.”
  • Articles in Magazines/Journals: Enclose in double quotation marks.
    • Example: Her article “The Future of AI” published in Wired.

B. Music

  • Album Titles: Italicise full album titles.
    • Example: Beyoncé’s Lemonade; Kendrick Lamar’s To Pimp a Butterfly.
  • Song Titles: Enclose in double quotation marks.
    • Example: “Formation” from Lemonade; “Alright” from To Pimp a Butterfly.
  • Musical Works (classical, long-form): Italicise.
    • Example: Beethoven’s Symphony No. 5; Mozart’s The Marriage of Figaro.

C. Film & Television

  • Film Titles: Italicise full film titles.
    • Example: Christopher Nolan’s Inception; Bong Joon-ho’s Parasite.
  • Television Series Titles: Italicise full television series titles.
    • Example: HBO’s Game of Thrones; Netflix’s The Crown.
  • Episode Titles (of TV series): Enclose in double quotation marks.
    • Example: “The Battle of the Bastards” from Game of Thrones; “Aberfan” from The Crown.
  • Documentary Titles: Italicise.
    • Example: My Octopus Teacher, 13th.

D. Visual Arts (Paintings, Sculptures, etc.)

  • Titles of Individual Artworks: Italicise.
    • Example: Leonardo da Vinci’s Mona Lisa; Auguste Rodin’s The Thinker.
  • Exhibition Titles: Italicise.
    • Example: The Museum of Modern Art’s Henri Matisse: The Cut-Outs.

E. Video Games

  • Game Titles: Italicise.
    • Example: The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild; Cyberpunk 2077.

F. Websites & Social Media

  • Website Names: Italicise.
    • Example: Visit The Moveee‘s website; read the article on The New York Times online.
  • Specific Web Pages/Articles: Enclose in double quotation marks.
    • Example: See “About Us” on The Moveee‘s website.
  • Social Media Platforms: Capitalise as proper nouns, no italics or quotation marks.
    • Example: Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, TikTok.
  • Hashtags: Use as written (e.g., #TheMoveee).

V. Citations & References

  • In-text Citations: For direct quotes or specific data, attribute clearly within the text.
    • Example: As Sarah Jones stated, “The impact was profound.”
    • Example: According to a study by the National Institute of Arts, 75% of respondents agreed.
  • External Links: When referencing online sources, embed hyperlinks directly into relevant text. Do not use full URLs in the body text unless the URL itself is the subject of discussion.
  • Footnotes/Endnotes: Use sparingly and only for additional context or attribution that would disrupt the flow of the main text. Discuss with editor if necessary.

VI. Editorial Process

  • Submissions: All submissions should adhere to this style guide.
  • Editing: Articles will undergo editorial review for clarity, conciseness, accuracy, and adherence to this style guide.
  • Communication: Maintain open communication with your editor regarding any questions about style or content.

This style guide is a living document and may be updated periodically. Please refer to the latest version for the most accurate guidelines.