Answer -- Indicating Titles in Text

[melayneseahawk]

saavikam77 asked:

How do you designate titles (of novels, newspaper articles, etc.) in text? (with examples from Stargate SG-1 and Harry Potter)

When naming specific titles in the text of a story, it's best to use the academic styles. But, there's also a stylistic component.

Comments

[spectralbovine]

Hermione was already in the Great Hall when Harry walked in, eating breakfast and reading a copy of The Daily Prophet propped up against a jug of juice.
I thought there was a rule about not include the "The" in the name of a newspaper, either capitalized or italicized.

[melayneseahawk]

Actually, the "The" should always be capitalized and included in italics unless it makes the sentence awkward.

So:

Henry James' Turn of the Screw

that great Henry James novel, The Turn of the Screw

Thanks for reading!

[saavikam77]

Yes!! Thank you so much for answering my question! :D Writing so much fic in the Superman Returns universe keeps my head spinning about how to deal with article titles, and now I know I have to go back and capitalize and italicize all those 'the's in front of Daily Planet.

Out of curiosity, how would I deal with the paper's name if I just refer to it as the Planet? Would I still include 'The' in front of it? Or is that all a stylistic choice? *ponders*

[spectralbovine]

now I know I have to go back and capitalize and italicize all those 'the's in front of Daily Planet.
That depends on whether "The" is part of the official name or not. I've seen differing reports on including the "The." I prefer to omit it and use my own "the," which I guess technically leads to the use of an abbreviated version of the name, which is still italicized anyway.

Out of curiosity, how would I deal with the paper's name if I just refer to it as the Planet? Would I still include 'The' in front of it? Or is that all a stylistic choice? *ponders*
No, you wouldn't include it since "The Planet" is not the official name.

[melayneseahawk]

Not exactly. The "The" should be included unless it disrupts the sentence (see above response).

[saavikam77]

Awesome! I just looked it up, and saw that the version of the Planet that I usually feature in fic has no 'The' in its official title, so I guess that means I don't have to go back and change all those after all! \O/

Thanks so much!