In this blog posting, I will discuss the final characteristics of successful subheadings, based on an American Society for Indexing webinar given by Fred Leise on September 17, 2014.
Top 10 Characteristics
- collocation
- complete
- differentiable
- good information scent
- audience relevant
- concise
- points to information
- parallel construction
- important word first
- clear relationship to heading
In the last two blog postings, I discussed in detail and gave examples of the first six characteristics: collocation, complete, differentiable, good information scent, audience relevant, and concise. In this blog posting, I will discuss in detail the last four characteristics.
Points to Information
The subheading should point to, but should not repeat information from the text. The second example does not repeat information.
compositional change and improvisation
- as symbols of music acting upon myth, 38-39, 42-46
compositional change and improvisation
- as symbols, 38-39, 42-46
Parallel Construction
Parallel construction is important to consistency and helps the reader find things faster. It aids in index ease of use and clarity and removes some of the barriers readers might find.
Types of parallel construction include form, nouns versus gerunds, nouns versus verbs, and verb tense. The second example in the series shows the corrected parallel construction.
parallel construction: form
health issues
- during WWI, 24
- during World War II, 28
parallel construction: nouns vs. gerunds
gestures
- for changing applications, 18
- for deletion of email, 141
gestures
- for changing applications, 18
- for deleting email, 141
parallel construction: nouns vs. verbs
Clement, Joseph
- confrontation with Babbage, 66-67
- demands compensation, 62-63
Clement, Joseph
- confronts Babbage, 66-67
- demands compensation, 62-63
parallel construction: verb tense
Gorbachev, Mikhail Sergeyevich
- failed to end Afghan conflict, 198
- supports new Union treaty, 107
Gorbachev, Mikhail Sergeyevich
- failed to end Afghan conflict, 198
- supported new Union treaty, 107
Important Word First
In subheadings, the first word listed should always be the most important. The second example shows this characteristic.
Orthodox Christianity
- relationship of church and state in, 187
Orthodox Christianity
- church-state relationship in, 187
Clear Relationship to Heading
The subheading should always have a clear relationship to the main heading. The last example shows the clearest relationship to the heading.
Napoleon
- Russia, 276-280
Napoleon
- in Russia, 276-280
Napoleon
- on Russia, 276-280
Napoleon
- Russia, failed invasion of, 276-280
In the next blog posting, I will discuss common subheading problems. For more information about the services provided by the author of this blog, see the Stellar Searches LLC website, http://www.stellarsearches.com