Category Archives: punctuation

January 17, 2014   Rachel   punctuation, Rachel S., voice, writing  
7

The power of the period. Or comma. Or colon. Or …

One of the things I stress most over, when writing, is punctuation. (WAIT, WERE THOSE COMMAS RIGHT, JUST NOW? IS THIS PARENTHETICAL OKAY IF IT’S  ITS OWN SENTENCE? OH GOD, AM I SUPPOSED TO PUT THE PERIOD INSIDE OR OUTSIDE THE PARENTHESES IN THIS SITUATION? I’LL JUST WING IT.)

It’s funny, because most of the time I just view punctuation as a banal necessity to make sure your words aren’t misinterpreted (See: either any and all arguments for the serial comma or this amusing article on Buzzfeed). It’s stressful because there is a generally agreed upon right way to do things and if you don’t know the right way to use a particular punctuation mark there’s the absolute horror of being called out on it at some point and coming up blank. I’m mostly sure I know when and why to use a semi-colon, but please, don’t ask me to explain in front of anyone.

I still remember the day I learned the difference between and em-dash and an en-dash (and to a lesser extent, the hyphen, only included because it’s visually similar) and it changed my world. The em-dash is now, I think, my absolute favorite punctuation, to the point where I actually have to go back and edit some of them out of things I’ve written so as not to overwhelm.

Vulture posted an article by Kathryn Schulz yesterday, “The 5 Best Punctuation Marks in Literature” that I just loved and that really got the wheels turning in my head. Of course, I suppose I’d always been aware of punctuation as a literary device, just as much as anything else, but because it’s something used in even the most ordinary of sentences, it’s never stuck out as particularly powerful to me before. After reading this, however, not only am I convinced, but I’ve started noticing the punctuation in everything I read—and write, which is bound to get distracting eventually, but I’ll cross that bridge when I come to it.

I think my favorite of the examples that Schulz presents are Nabokov’s parenthetical and Dickens’ colon—both are masterful and truly do change the sentiment and takeaway from each passage in which they appear. Reading through the comments, I notice someone lit upon just what I myself had been thinking of as I read—what about the lack of proper punctuation, or heck, punctuation at all to bring home a point or strengthen an emotion? One commenter referenced Molly Bloom’s monologue at the very end of Joyce’s Ulysses and her rushed, hurried, full of sensation, devoid of thought “and yes I said yes I will Yes” has always been one of my favorite closing lines in literature and it couldn’t have been as perfect as it was if there had been even a single comma betwixt the words—I’ll go on record saying that.

What about you? Any particular mark of punctuation just really not do it for you? Elude you in the proper way it’s meant to be used? Do you have any more literary references for its excellent use? I’d love to hear them.

July 03, 2012   John   debate, John, opinion, punctuation, writing  
11

The great semicolon debate

Okay, it’s not that “great” a debate, but there was a fun piece yesterday on the Times website about semicolons, and how the author came to change his long-held antipathy toward semicolons—ingrained at an early age from Kurt Vonnegut—by reading William James. Love the illustration, and if you have time, read the comments—lots of great feedback and citations there.

Personally, I’ve had a negative opinion of semicolons, and as an editor I would regularly strike them from authors’ manuscripts. My feeling, echoed by every copyeditor I ever worked with, was that in kids’ books they stood out like sore thumbs. Indeed, I loved the comment from the sixth-grade teacher, who wrote that when she sees a semicolon in a kid’s paper, it’s invariably plagiarized. It’s just not a device that feels natural to a kid’s way of viewing the world, and as such, should probably be avoided at all costs.

But now that I’m an agent and working on a lot of adult projects, I’m finding that in certain contexts and genres, semicolons not only make sense but fill a vital role. Certainly in nonfiction, I agree with the author that the deft use of a semicolon can suggest a connection that other forms of punctuation—especially my beloved em-dashes—can’t quite pull off.

In fact, I’m wondering if in general, genre and categories provide a better guide for usage, rather than a simple yes/no in all circumstances. Indeed, I found it odd that the author of the piece didn’t acknowledge that his change of heart resulted from reading nonfiction (James) rather than fiction (Vonnegut). But then again, when it comes to style, maybe fiction and non aren’t the apples and oranges I’m making them out to be?

Anyway, Grammar Fans, I’d love to know your thoughts, and where you fall in the debate. Do you ever use semicolons? If so, for all types of writing? Who knows, depending on the response, you might see some more semicolons in my blog posts going forward; or not.

 

July 14, 2011   Stacey   opinion, punctuation, Stacey  
3

The Apostrophe, or Lack Thereof

Some of us have recently weighed in on grammatical changes that have us thinking about the English language and its many quirks (I think about this often while watching my two-year-old identical twins learn new words and meanings, and explaining to my older girls the different meanings of words like trip or lie).

I found this piece on the disappearing apostrophe kind of fun and a bit confusing from a practical perspective. What I get out of it is you can basically pick and choose when to use an apostrophe depending on context and syntax. That’s a stretch, but not a far one. The rules have changed over time, and if you comply with the most current, you’ll wind up with a lot of words that are misleading, or even wrong if you follow them. Like her example of using the word “dos” to refer to something to do versus what it implies or can be construed as, the old software operating system. There is even a silly blog that attempts to abolish the apostrophe completely which I’d disagree with because reading anything without apostrophes (or apostrophe’s!) is a really annoying exercise.

Those of you who indulge in lengthy discussions about grammar will remember the bestseller EATS, SHOOTS, AND LEAVES from 2005. I found an excerpt from the book, which is funny and charming, as well as educational.

There are examples of the misuse of the apostrophe everywhere we look, or maybe they’re just new, trendy ways of using an old grammatical tool. What’s your favorite use, or misuse, of the apostrophe?

June 02, 2011   Jessica   Jessica, pet peeves, punctuation, writing  
6

Peevish on Punctuation

Noreen Malone’s piece in Slate decrying the overuse of the em dash made me smile mostly because I am a flagrant offender. I can also be profligate with commas, semicolons and parenthesis, despite the fact I do know better.  Cognizant that I live in a glass house when it comes to correct punctuation, I am nevertheless weirdly annoyed by the ellipse used in any fashion beside the standard one, namely, as an indicator of text deliberately omitted or an unfinished thought. Back when I was an editor, I worked with an author who used to write me letters that looked like this:

Jessica…I got your edit memo…I am responding to your queries…I should be finished by week’s end…Yours…M…

I always wondered what M was leaving out, what those little dots concealed.  Perhaps the real, unexpurgated note read this way:

Jessica, you thankless taskmistress, I got your edit memo and was, frankly, astounded. I am responding to your queries, which are so numerous and onerous that I am nearly speechless with outrage. Assuming that I work round the clock, exhaust myself utterly and type ‘til my fingers bleed, I should be finished by week’s end. Yours are the most impossible edits that I have ever encountered.  Mad as Hell.

Do you have any punctuation pet peeves?