Overuse of bullet points
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- I collaborate with someone who insists on making every sentence (or two) in a business document into a bullet point, by prefacing it with a bullet.
- This is typically done across a multi-page document, which is divided into sections with section headings.
- Points which I consider real bullets then get a second level in the bullet point hierarchy. Numbering for 'bullet points' is almost never used.
- This is done for clarity, but I think this looks terrible, takes up space and makes things less clear.
- Are there any style references which explicitly discuss this practice? I'm looking for an objective discussion for why this a bad idea.
- Thanks for your help!
This post was sourced from https://writers.stackexchange.com/q/7719. It is licensed under CC BY-SA 3.0.
1 answer
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- Your co-writer is a pain in the tuchus.
- I am sorry you have to put up with this annoying quirk of writing.
- That being said, I found two references so far:
The Oxford Dictionaries:
Bullet points are visually attractive and make it easy for a reader to locate important information. Nevertheless, try to use them sparingly: too many bullet-pointed sections in the same document will mean that their impact is lost.
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And this one:
How do I properly use bullet points in APA style? You don’t. The Publication Manual demonstrates two ways of making lists in your writing. All lists should be double-spaced. For a complete explanation, look in the Publication Manual under “Seriation” on pages 115-117.
(As a side note, SE really really doesn't want me to stack bullets.)
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