Style Rules

CityStar® has endeavored to make it easy for clients to sign up for Listings in our directories. Prospective clients do not have to spend precious time writing their CityStar® Listing or worry about our Style Rules, since CityStar's editors write all the Listings that appear in our directories.

The Style Rules for CityStar® Listings are that they must contain no ALL CAPS, no exclamation points (!) and no hyperbole. In addition, words that are not proper nouns must not be capitalized.

Hyperbole, (pronounced "high PER bo lee") is defined by Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia, as:

"...meaning excess or exaggeration... a figure of speech in which statements are exaggerated. It may be used to evoke strong feelings or to create a strong impression, but is not meant to be taken literally. Hyperbole is used to create emphasis. It is a literary device often used in poetry, and is frequently encountered in casual speech. It is also a visual technique in which a deliberate exaggeration of a particular part of an image is employed."

In a directory such as CityStar®, hyperbole generally refers to statements such as "Best site on the Internet!" or "World's best pizza." These types of statements cannot be seen as an objective review of the listed website by any reasonable person, and thus, they degrade and devalue the directory itself.

Although it is not required, it is preferred that listings be written in the third person, for example:

Wrong: "We feature prime rib."

Right: "This restaurant features prime rib."

See also: Listings