Ap General Rules for Writing a Literature

AP General Rules for Writing Literature outlines essential guidelines for students and writers to follow when crafting literary analyses and essays. This resource emphasizes clarity, brevity, and consistency in writing, making it invaluable for high school and college students preparing for AP exams or literature courses. Key topics include proper use of punctuation, capitalization, and titles, along with specific rules for abbreviations and numerals. Designed for aspiring writers and students, this guide serves as a comprehensive reference for effective literary communication.

Key Points

Explains AP style rules for writing literature, focusing on clarity and consistency.
Covers essential punctuation guidelines, including the placement of commas and quotation marks.
Details capitalization rules for titles and proper nouns in literary writing.
Includes specific instructions for using abbreviations and numerals in text.

VISIT WRITINGCENTER.KENNESAW.EDU FOR LOCATIONS & HOURS OR TO MAKE AN APPOINTMENT FOR ONE-ON-ONE ASSISTANCE.

THE KSU WRITING CENTER: NOT BECAUSE YOU CAN’T WRITE . . . BECAUSE YOU DO.

AP STYLE: GENERAL

RULES

WHAT IS IT?

Associated Press (AP) style is used by most newspapers, magazines, and public relations departments in the

United States and serves as the standard for writing in journalism. AP style prioritizes consistency, clarity,

accuracy, and brevity and avoids stereotyping subjects and using offensive language. The Associated Press

Stylebook provides an alphabetized list of over 5,000 guidelines for journalistic writing; although most AP rules

are easily referenced, five key areas require specialized knowledge: abbreviations, capitalization, punctuation,

numerals, and titles.

ABBREVIATIONS

AP specifies rules for abbreviations:

• Do not abbreviate distances and dimensions (inch or mile except for “mph”).

• Generally abbreviate titles when used before a name (Gov. Hardy or Rev. Joyce). However some titles

are not abbreviated (Mayor, professor).

• Abbreviate company, corporation, incorporated, and limited when used after the name of a corporate

entity (Stein Co., Ellison Corp. Frost Inc. Orwell Ltd.).

• Abbreviate dates and numerals to ensure clarity (No. 4, Dec. 8. Months are abbreviated only when

accompanied by a specific day).

• Do not abbreviate the days of the week unless necessary for a table.

• Abbreviate avenue, boulevard, and street only when they are part of a numbered address (267 Oakland

St., 2132 Aspen Blvd., 1045 Laurel Ave.). Drive, Circle, Road, and alley are never abbreviated.

• DO NOT put abbreviations and acronyms in parentheses after the first full usage of the full title or name

(The Society of Lawn Care said that… NOT The Society of Lawn Care (SLC) said that…).

• DO NOT put abbreviations and acronyms in headlines (although sometimes this is unavoidable because

of the length of some state names).

PUNCTUATION

AP style follows most punctuation rules, but the following exceptions are notable:

• Punctuation goes inside the quotation marks in direct quotations (She said, “I bought every AP Style

book.” Her collection includes…).

• Do not place a comma before the conjunction with items in a series (He planted beets, peas and carrots.).

• Semicolons are used to clarify sentences with multiple commas (The big, red horse; small, tabby cat; and

fluffy, bouncy dog were adopted.).

• Use hyphens for compound adjectives except with words that end in -ly or very (cat-collecting system vs.

very effective system).

VISIT WRITINGCENTER.KENNESAW.EDU FOR LOCATIONS & HOURS OR TO MAKE AN APPOINTMENT FOR ONE-ON-ONE ASSISTANCE.

THE KSU WRITING CENTER: NOT BECAUSE YOU CAN’T WRITE . . . BECAUSE YOU DO.

CAPITALIZATION

AP style follows down style capitalization (only the first word of a title and proper nouns are capitalized), but

always refer to the style guide and doublecheck capitalization recommendations. AP follows two broad rules for

capitalization:

• Common names are not capitalized unless part of a proper name (the river vs. the Thames River).

• DO NOT capitalize plural words even when part of a proper name (e.g. Sixth and Seventh streets).

TITLES

AP style follows specific guidelines for titles:

• Capitalize titles when they appear before a person’s name (Sen. Nunn, vs. Sam Nunn, former Georgia

senator). AP does not capitalize or abbreviate “professor” before a name.

• Place titles of books, movies, operas, poems, songs, works of art, and video games in quotation marks.

Do not put quotation marks around websites and titles of journals, holy books, and magazines (e.g. “To

Kill a Mockingbird” vs. Time magazine).

• Don’t use courtesy titles (Mr., Mrs., Miss, and Ms.) except in direct quotations or at the person’s request.

NUMERALS

Write out numbers under ten; otherwise, use numbers except in the following scenarios:

• ages (9 years old, 9-year-old)

• addresses (2735 Forest Rd.)

• dimensions (4 by 4’ planks)—feet and inches should be spelled out.

• money (6 cents, 45 dollars) Amounts under $1 use the numeral and the word cents; amounts over a dollar

use the number with the dollar sign: $45

• dates (May 4)

• highways (Highway 575)

• millions (5 million to 7 million)

• percentages (8%)

• temperature (90 degrees Fahrenheit)

• time (6:50 a.m.)

• Plural numbers are written by adding -s without an apostrophe. (7s, 11s)

• Never begin sentences with numbers unless the sentence starts with the year. (2019 was a great year.)

FURTHER RESOURCES

Always consult the official Associated Press Stylebook for other AP questions and guidelines. The KSU Writing

Center has current AP books available for use, as well as Writing Assistants to help you with AP format.

You Cant Take It With You

Xcel Final Exam With Keys

Wuthering Heights Book Summary

Writing Persuasive Essay

Writing An Objective Summary

Wreck It Ralph Movie Characters

FAQs of Ap General Rules for Writing a Literature

What are the key punctuation rules in AP style?

AP style dictates that punctuation should be placed inside quotation marks in direct quotes. Additionally, it specifies that commas should not be placed before conjunctions in a series. For clarity, semicolons are recommended in sentences with multiple commas, and hyphens are used for compound adjectives, except with words ending in -ly.

How does AP style guide capitalization in writing?

In AP style, only the first word of a title and proper nouns are capitalized. Common names are not capitalized unless they are part of a proper name. Plural words in titles should also remain lowercase, ensuring consistency and clarity in literary writing.

What are the rules for using abbreviations in AP style?

AP style has specific guidelines for abbreviations, such as not abbreviating distances and dimensions unless necessary. Titles are generally abbreviated when used before a name, but certain titles like 'mayor' and 'professor' are not. Additionally, months are abbreviated only when accompanied by a specific day, and acronyms should not be placed in parentheses after their first mention.

What numerals should be written out in AP style?

According to AP style, numbers under ten should be written out, while numerals should be used for numbers ten and above. However, there are exceptions for specific contexts, such as ages, addresses, and monetary amounts, where numerals are always used regardless of size.