Horizon editorial style and voice guide
Horizon editorial style and voice guide
Owner: Felix Grant. Updated Sep 12, 2026.
Who this is for and who owns it
One reference for how every Horizon piece sounds, is formatted and is fact checked. Read it before drafting and again before QA.
Voice principles
| We are | We are not |
|---|---|
| Plain about the science, even when it is complex | Full of lab jargon without explanation |
| Specific, with examples from Horizon's test kitchen | Vague about how products are made |
| Careful with numbers, always sourced and dated | Rounding figures for effect |
| Written to the reader as you | Written about consumers in the third person |
Voice by format
Expert articles and guides
- Open with the reader's question, not with Horizon.
- Every technical claim names its expert or source.
- Screenshots are dated and replaced when the workflow changes.
Newsletter
- Subject lines under 55 characters.
- One main link per issue, to the source article.
Social posts
- Lead with what the reader learns, not the product name.
- No claim that the source article does not make.
Sales summaries
- Only claims from the approved article. If sales needs more, we offer sourced variants.
Do and don't
Don't
"Our revolutionary proteins transform the food industry."
Do
"Horizon's fermentation-derived protein keeps its texture after freezing, according to test kitchen trials in August 2026."
Word list
The first two rows are the product terms QA corrected on Sep 9.
| Use | Avoid | Why |
|---|---|---|
| Fermentation-derived protein | Lab protein | Horizon's approved product term since 2026 |
| Horizon test kitchen | Horizon lab | The team was renamed; the old name reads as a lab product |
| Shelf life study | Expiry test | Matches Horizon's quality documentation |
| Plant protein | Meat substitute | Horizon does not position its products as substitutes |
| As of [date] | Currently | Every figure carries a date |
Claims and sourcing
Every figure needs an approved source
Do not publish a percentage, a test result or a comparison without an approved source and a date. A figure without one is removed, as the unsupported percentage was on Sep 9. Comparative claims such as best or first go to Maya before QA.
Escalation
If an expert changes a claim after approval, the writer flags it in Project Chat and does not edit the published figure from memory. June decides whether the change needs a new approval from Maya.
Demo client portal. Fieldnote Editorial, Horizon Foods, the people, pieces and every figure are fictional sample data. Built on FuseBase.