The ATA Chronicle - July/August 2022 - 20

Features
When writing QuickTips, keep
these six features in mind:
1. Simple: Write for a fiveminute
read.
2. Explanations: If
needed, add brief and
clear explanations.
For example: " Use
sobrevivientes (vs.
supervivientes) and
supervivencia (vs.
sobrevivencia) for
consistency in our content
and because of usage in
the United States. "
Figure 3: This first edition of QuickTips shows style and terminology issues from
recent jobs in a simple format, as well as sections from the traditional style guide.
3. References: Support
decisions with reliable
sources that your style is
based on. For example,
we use the Diccionario de
cáncer del NCI, Cosnautas,
Fundéu, or consult
with experts. Establish
an order of priority
for these sources so
translators can use them
to confirm their choices.
Don't copy paragraphs
with rules or definitions
if translators have
access to the referenced
material. Otherwise,
include a screenshot (see
Visuals below).
4. Visuals: Use an easyto-follow
format (see
Figures 3 and 4). You can
add a few highlights in
yellow, crossed-out text
in red, and occasional
screenshots to grab
attention or reinforce
messages. Don't use
fancy symbols so you can
work across platforms
without format problems.
Figure 4: A recent edition of QuickTips shared on Teams, a collaboration
platform, provides access to live updates on style and terminology.
20 The ATA Chronicle | July/August 2022
5. Examples: Include
examples from recent
jobs to demonstrate
how to apply tips. If
possible, do this during
the quality assurance
review so you can copy
and paste. For example:
" Hay casi 17 millones de
sobrevivientes de cáncer
en los Estados Unidos. "
6. Searchable: Tips should
be easy to find. Save them
in a single document
so content is fully
searchable.
Frequency and Format
Any time is a good time to
work on QuickTips. Simply
open the document in your
favorite application and
write tips with the features
mentioned above. Based on
your needs, you can share
these tips monthly, weekly,
daily, or immediately. In
our case, we started with
monthly emails and now
share tips live. Pick an
application that works best
for your team (SharePoint,
Teams, OneNote, Google
Docs, project management
tools such as Trello or
Monday, etc.). Regardless
of the chosen application,
save all QuickTips in a
single document. Besides
serving as a backup, you
can make global changes,
spellcheck, and even create
a more polished version
of QuickTips at the end of
the year.
QuickTips versus
Traditional Style Guide
While we created these tips
to deliver fast guidance, we
ended up with an unexpected
bonus: making progress on
a more targeted style guide.
For example, we recently had
questions about the use of
articles preceding common
drug names. First, we
addressed these immediately
through QuickTips, then
www.atanet.org

https://www.cancer.gov/espanol/publicaciones/diccionarios/diccionario-cancer https://www.cancer.gov/espanol/publicaciones/diccionarios/diccionario-cancer http://www.cosnautas.com/en https://www.fundeu.es/ http://www.atanet.org

The ATA Chronicle - July/August 2022

Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of The ATA Chronicle - July/August 2022