A Tiny Comma Trick for Thursday

Happy Thursday, everyone! Today, I'm bringing you a little trick that'll help you keep your commas straight. I'm not talking about the format; this is about where to put those little boogers in your sentences. So grab your pens and notebooks and let's get going!

Commas are a major problem for a lot of authors. Where the heck do they go? Why do they go there?

Here are three common comma issues and how to keep them straight.

A comma to separate two independent clauses joined by and, but, or, so, etc...

If the first part of the segment is a complete sentence, and the second part of the segment is a complete sentence, use a comma. An easy way to check:

Gail went to the store, and she bought everything she needed for dinner.

Separate it:

Gail went to the store. She bought everything she needed for dinner.

Correct.

Gail went to the store, and bought everything she needed for dinner.

Separate it:

Gail went to the store. Bought everything she needed for dinner.

Incorrect.

See how easy that was to check? Now you know.

A comma used to offset a clause.

If you can take the piece out of the sentence and everything still makes sense, surround it with comma love. Example:

I strolled down the boardwalk, my shoelaces slapping at the wood, until I got to the candy shop.

Take out what's inside the commas and see if it makes sense.

I strolled down the boardwalk until I got to the candy shop.

Correct.

I strolled down the boardwalk, to meet Adam, who'd invited me to dinner.

Take out the commas.

I strolled down the boardwalk who'd invited me to dinner.

Incorrect.

Last, but not least, commas for introductory or unneeded words.

If you can remove the word and the sentence still make sense, it gets commas. Last, First, then, too, okay, etc... Example:

Today, I'm bringing you a little trick that'll help you keep your commas straight.

Remove the introductory word.

I'm bringing you a little trick that'll help you keep your commas straight.

Correct.

I wanted to go to the store, too!

Remove the unneeded word.

I wanted to go to the store!

Correct.

I hope that helps.

Did you know these quick tips? Do you struggle with commas?

Well, that's all for today, folks! Until next time, WRITE ON!

Jo

PoSSeSSive S

Happy Hump-day, everyone! Snow in Georgia again and all the kiddies are out of school. I have to say, I'm more than ready for spring so I can get back to a normal schedule. This weather and being sick last month has really thrown me off. Anyway, enough about all that. Let's move on to today's post about the possessive S. Grab your pens and notebooks and let's get going!

If you aren't familiar with INDIE Books Gone Wild, allow me to share a bit of information with you. Every now and then, one of us posts on that blog about grammar, punctuation, or other little tidbits we find frequent errors revolving around. Before we get to the good stuff here, pop on over there and check out Tia's post on the Apostrophe. Yeah, it matters. Go read that sucker.

Now, I'm a Chicago Manual of Style lady. I have a copy of the 15th edition, and I follow it to the letter when doing an edit. Of course, this causes some of my clients to have small hernias when they don't agree with my edits or they have a style guide that's different from mine (which is totally fine, they should go with what feels right to them). I try to be very clear on our About Us page over on IBGW and state that I use the book I own as a reference. So, today's discussion will be the rules from that style guide.

When you show possession of a singular noun (not the demonic kind), the rule says you add an apostrophe and an S to the end of the word (section 7.17). Examples:

• Dora's shoes.
• Kitten's playground.
• Lola's necklace.

But what if those words end in S?

Well, here's where we get into a bit of a pickle. When choosing names, one usually avoids the ones ending in S so they don't have this conundrum. If you happen to select one that ends in S, how do you handle it? This is where the general guides don't agree.

If you're showing possession of a collective, like a family or group whose names or title of the collective end in S, the solution is easy, you add an apostrophe to the end. Examples:

• The Huss' house (this is the Huss family).
• The Picketts' son (this is the Picketts family).
• Those kittens' meows (more than one kitten).
• These dogs' leashes (more than one dog).

However, if you have a character who's named Cleatus, how do you show possession?

In section 7.18, page 282 of The Chicago Manual of Style 15th Edition, it states: The general rule covers most proper names, including names ending in s, x, or z, in both their singular and plural forms, as well as letters and numbers. This means writing the name and adding an apostrophe with another S at the end. Examples:

• I saw Cleatus's sneakers over there.
• We went to the mall to get Kriss's new purse.
• I can listen for hours to Venheis's violin.

Now, this is the way it's written out in the guideline. I think, when reading, it keeps me from thinking there's more than one Cleatus who owns sneakers I saw over there, and makes the possessive name read more easily.

All this is great! But...

Yeah, you knew there was a but. *grin*

In section 7.23, there's a suggestion for an alternative usage by simply adding the apostrophe to the end of the name. While easier to remember and apply, I think it reads with a clunky timbre. But, try it both ways and see what works for you. This goes back to Tia's post I mentioned above, where she talks about Strunk and White.

Before we wrap this post on possessive S up, I'd like to remind you of another rule of possession you may not be familiar with. Section 7.24 talks about more than one noun. When mutually exclusive, both nouns get an apostrophe S. If both are owning the same item, only the second named gets the punctuation. Examples:

• My daughter-in-law and son's house.
• Our niece and nephew's car.
• or
• My ex daughter-in-law's and son's houses.
• Our niece's and nephew's cars.

Seems a lot of stress rests on the S.

How can you avoid this when writing fiction? Easy: Choose names that don't end in S when you're making your list.

I hope you all enjoyed our little lesson for today. If you have questions, comments, or otherwise, feel free to pop them into the comments section.

Well, that's all for today, folks! Until next time, WRITE ON!

Jo

Parentheses, Brackets, Braces, and Slashes

Happy Wednesday, good people of the blogosphere! Today is the last post in my series on punctuation. I know, you're all very upset about it; but, let me reassure you that I have some great posts for tomorrow, Friday, and Monday. They're reviews of a few Indie books I've read: Chasing Memories, The Disappearing Girl, and The White Aura. So make sure you come on back for that! Grab your pens and notebooks and let's get going!

As always, my information comes from The Chicago Manual of Style 15th Edition. If you use a different style guide, you may have different standards. Just remember, consistency is key!

Parentheses

These little boogers are used to set aside text which isn't relative to the rest of the sentence. Often used by writers to insert a thought or quip that's totally off the subject by the character that we're seeing life through. In a more scholarly application, they're used for citations. You may combine them with em dashes. Writers of fiction tend to avoid the use of parentheses, choosing to use an em dash instead.

Brackets

Square Brackets
If you're quoting something written by someone else, and wish to add your two cents to the quote, you need square brackets. If you're translating, the original word is sometimes put in line with square brackets around it. When you want to set something off inside parentheses, you don't use another set of parentheses, you use square brackets.

Angle Brackets and Braces
These are for html programming and are used to tell a typesetter how you want your manuscript to look. While we don't do this much nowadays because of computers, way back when we used typewriters, it was a necessity. Please don't use them to set off an e-mail address or your URL. It'll cause you headaches at some point.

Slashes

Can be used to replace "or," "and," "through," or "a" between words or numbers to signify alternatives. It's also used in URLs rather heavily. When quoting poetry, slashes indicate line breaks. Remember, there's a difference between a slash and a backslash. Examples:
cat/dog
http://
She had an outgoing/friendly personality.
He wanted a black/blue/red car.
We were looking for a 1992/93 model car, but we'll take a 2005/6 edition if it's an SUV. **Replaced an en dash**
Please go to: c:\dos\windows\user

I hope you learned something today you didn't know before.

Well, that's all for today folks! Until next time, WRITE ON!

Jo

Comma Part 3

Happy Tuesday, good people of the blogosphere! Today brings us to the third and last post of my series on commas. It falls into the bracket of punctuation posts I've been running here on the blog as well. This post will cover a few more uses of that tiny punctuation mark that gives us all so many headaches. To be honest, there are many more uses for the comma than I covered over these three posts. Know them all and, above all else, use good judgment when placing them. A comma can stilt the flow of your text if used too often. Grab those pens and notebooks and let's get going!

As always, I'll be using The Chicago Manual of Style 15th Edition as a guide. If you're an editor, I know you have a style guide lying around. This is mine.

If you missed the first two comma posts, check them out here:
Part 1
Part 2

Three more ways to use a comma:

When there are two or more adjectives preceding a noun. If you're describing something and need more than two adjectives that could be joined by "and" without disrupting the description, they get a comma between. Remember, a comma denotes a pause and also something left out. Examples:

She wore a big, blue, floppy hat to the beach.
He had swollen, hairy toes.
She went to the only traditional Catholic church in town.

Commas are also used to separate homonyms. If you have more than one instance of a word and a pause is needed between them because they mean different things, they get a comma. Examples:
They walked in, in groups of six.
If whatever it is, is a good thing, it's okay.

You should use commas when writing dates, names (personal with a place), and addresses. Unless the date is written in the day-month-year style. Examples:
We're leaving for Las Vegas July 26, 2013, and won't return until the end of August. **No commas if no year**
We're leaving for Las Vegan July 26 and won't return until the end of August.
I gasped when he told me his birthday was 18 May 1988. **Day-month-year**
Gina Sultack, of Wisconson, was late for her interview. **Unless the place is integral to the sentence**
Hebert of Lafayette.
She lived at 442 Lincoln Place, Slate, NC 01234.

I hope these three posts have helped you all in some small way. I'll be back tomorrow with more punctuation!

Well, that's all for today, folks! Until next time, WRITE ON!

Jo

Comma Part 2

Happy Monday, good people of the blogosphere! Today, we continue with our section on punctuation with Comma Part 2. If you missed part 1, check it out here: Comma Part 1. Without further ado, grab those pens and notebooks and let's get going!

We already went over using commas in a list (Oxford commas), introductory phrases and words, and with direct addresses. Part 2 will go over clauses. Dependent, independent, and relative. As with my other posts on punctuation, we'll be referencing The Chicago Manual of Style, 15th Edition.

Dependent Clauses:
If you mix up a sentence and put the end before the beginning, it needs a comma (like in the sentence I just gave you). If you were to put the beginning first, it would need no comma. Example: A sentence needs a comma if you mix it up and put the end before the beginning. *Note that the subject/pronoun had to be moved as well. The key here is: If one won't make sense without the other, it's a dependent clause.

When the dependent clause comes after the main idea, no comma is needed; as you can see in the example above.

Two conjunctions together get a comma, but not between conjunctions.

If you're having trouble deciding where to put a comma, or don't know if one should be used, speak the words aloud and see where you pause naturally.

Independent Clauses:
Now here's where it gets a little tricky. If you use a conjunction like and, but, or, so, yet, etc., the comma usually goes before the conjunction. If the two independent clauses are short and related, no comma is needed. Remember to use good judgment here. Examples: Hera ran away, and Zeus gave chase. Hera ran away and Zeus gave chase. Hera ran away. Zeus gave chase. There are three ways to write that sentence. When in doubt, split them out!

Relative Clauses:
There are two kinds of relative clauses: restrictive and nonrestrictive. One is essential to the meaning of the sentence and gets no commas. The other is fluff and gets commas. Anything you can remove from a sentence and not impact the idea is nonrestrictive. Examples: I prepared a report about the impact of waste on the environment that's due tomorrow. I prepared a waste impact report, involving the environment, that's due tomorrow.

As you can see from the examples above, there are a ton of different ways to construct a sentence. Good writers use many different styles to keep the flow and break up monotony.

Join me tomorrow for my last post on commas for this series. While there's a ton of information on this tiny piece of punctuation, I won't go into them all; just the most important ones!

Well, that's all for today, folks! Until next time, WRITE ON!

Jo

Comma Part 1

Happy Friday, good people of the blogosphere! I'm sure you're all looking forward to the weekend, like I am. Welcome to the first of three posts on the comma. This little piece of punctuation gets its own three posts because there's a ton of information and I don't want to overwhelm you. If you use a comma every time you join two independent clauses with the word "and" you're in for a treat. So, grab your pens and notebooks and let's get going!

I'm just gonna be frank with you here for a moment. If I'm reading a book and there's a comma every other line, I end up putting it down. A comma indicates a pause. My brain reads it as a pause and too many will have me banging my head on the desk before long. When you're writing, try to mix up your sentences a bit. Too many commas does not a good story make. As with all the posts on punctuation, we'll be following the rules outlined in The Chicago Manual of Style, 15th Edition.

Commas

The primary use of this little piece of punctuation is to indicate a small break. Overuse will kill your story and make it difficult to read. You need a comma when there's a list, a direct address, or an introductory phrase. These are the three uses we'll be focusing on today. More uses of the comma will come later.

There are two ways to punctuate a list with commas. I'll give examples:
She debated with me over whether I should buy the green, white, or blue striped hat.
He went to the store for eggs, milk and bread.

In the first example, we've separated the items in the list with commas and used a comma before the conjunction. This is recommended by CMS. In the second example, we've omitted the last comma. Either way is correct as long as the style is used consistently. You may omit commas if every item is joined by a conjunction or if the last item is joined by an ampersand.

When using a direct address, commas go on either side of the name. Examples:
She looked up from her notebook. "Hey, Mom, what's for dinner tonight?"
As the speaker approached the podium, he could be heard talking to the attractive blonde. "You said your name was Myra? I have to say, Myra, I look forward to getting to know you."

Introductory phrases and words get commas unless the phrase is an introductory adverbial or participial phrase immediately preceding the verb it modifies. Words like: Oh (unless spoken), Ah, Well, Okay, Yes, and No get commas.

Examples:
Introductory phrases -
After looking through the book, she dropped her head into her hands.
Peeking out from behind his mother's skirts was the boy we'd been searching for.
Introductory words -
Yes, we can go to the park today.
Okay, I'll see what I can do about that.
No, we won't be donating to your charity this year.

Keep in mind that it's perfectly okay to use two independent clauses with a conjunction and omit the comma. As long as the two clauses aren't particularly long, leaving the comma out is a good idea. It changes up your writing and keeps the reader engaged in the words on the page.

We'll go into more with another comma post Monday.

Well, that's all for today, folks! Until next time, WRITE ON!

Jo

The Period

Happy Thursday, good people of the blogosphere! I know what you're all thinking: Oh, how can she come up with something about the period I don't know? Strap on in and find out after you grab your pens and notebooks so we can get to it!

Everyone learns what a period means when they begin learning to write. It's finality, the end, and appears on the backside of a sentence. When you forget a period, your sentences bleed together like zebra running from a hungry lion. Can you imagine a story devoid of periods?

Did you know there's more than one use for a period?

As with every post on punctuation I'm going to be doing, this one uses information from The Chicago Manual of Style, 15th Edition.

Periods

While a period indicates you've come to the end of a declarative sentence, it can also be used to indicate something left out. Think about it. When you're abbreviating something, you put a period at the end. When you write, etc., there's a period on the end. Your period should always appear inside quotation marks (single or double), inside parentheses or brackets when they contain a complete sentence unless inside another complete sentence, and put three together to indicate a trailing off of speech (called an ellipsis).

Colons can replace periods when introducing an inline list or when something is being described.

When not to use a period:
At the end of a heading, subheading, running head, signatures, or addresses (to name a few). If your subhead is in line with the text, a period is necessary to separate the subhead from the text. Never in a vertical list. These lists should be preceded by an opening statement and a colon. Line items don't get periods.

Abbreviations
When using a period in an abbreviation, it always goes directly after the last letter and all other punctuation rules apply as though the abbreviation is a complete word.

But did you know you can also put periods on the end of incomplete sentences and it be okay? If you're writing in colloquial style (a style more similar to spoken language), it's perfectly acceptable. It's also okay to use before block quotations unless the quote is introduced by a word that indicates "this is because" or tells you to look out for what's next. In those cases, a colon is appropriate.

Maybe you already knew all this; maybe you didn't. Either way, I do hope you pay close attention to the periods in your life and how they affect you.

Well, that's all for today, folks! Until next time, WRITE ON!

Jo

Dashing Dashes and How to Use Them

Happy Hump-Day, good people of the blogosphere! I bet you think you know all there is to know about dashes. Well, I'm here to tell you, you may not know as much as you think. This is a post you don't want to miss! So, grab those pens and notebooks and let's get going!

There are so many ways to use hyphens and dashes. This post is going by the rules outlined in The Chicago Manual of Style 15th Edition. First, I'm gonna show you what each one of the five looks like, then we'll go into how they're used.

Hyphens, en dashes, and em dashes are the most commonly used.

Hyphens

Hyphens are used to separate numbers or group numbers, in compound words, names, and for word division.

A little known use of the hyphen is in dialogue when referencing American Sign Language.

Examples of hyphen use:
Would you believe she wore a box-hat to the party?
Please call 1-800-888-8888 to find out more.
My book's ISBN is 978-1477489031.
My niece can sign A-P-P-L-I-C-A-T-I-O-N very quickly.

Going into names and compound words is best left for another day. It's a whole section in and of itself.

En dashes

It literally means "between" or "up to and including." It's used in dates or times or in place of a hyphen when one of the elements of a compound adjective is open. Some people would use a slash, but an en dash works as well. It can also be used to separate a college name from the city if there are more than two in the state with the same name. There are no spaces with en dashes unless indicating something is ongoing.

Examples of en dash use:
I went to Columbus for four years, 1995–1999, loving every minute of it.
My life has been long (1977– ) and I can't wait to have more fun. *Note the space after the en dash.
He went to the University of Tennessee–Chattanooga, not the University of Tennessee–Knoxville.
We went to Mexico as non–Spanish–speaking people.

Em dashes

This one is for setting off elements in novels. Some people use parentheses, commas, or colons to do this; but an em dash works as well. It will also separate a subject from a pronoun, indicates a break in speech when someone is cut off (unlike when someone trails off—those are indicated by an ellipsis), or replaces a comma. You can use them with other fun punctuation as well—like exclamation points!—as a tool to set off the phrase.

Examples of em dash use:
Should I—can I?—go to the party tonight?
"I was thinking we should—" I cut her off with a lift of my hand. "No. Probably not a good idea because she'll be there."
When the old man walked up—and he was walking really slowly—we showed him the way to his seat.

2-em & 3-em dashes

2-em dashes are used to represent something left out. The rule here is: If it replaces a part of a word, don't leave space on either side; but if it replaces a whole word, leave space. A 2-en dash is most commonly used to block out profanity. Oftentimes, these are shown by using four hyphens.

3-em dashes are used in bibliography to indicate this name is the same name as the one before, but it's a different title or work. These are shown by using six hyphens.

Examples:
2-em: She let loose with many words like —– and they blew my mind.
3-em: ——, Yassa. Jo Michaels: CreateSpace, 2012.

I hope this helps straighten some of the confusion out. I find these errors quite a bit when editing.

Well, that's all for today, folks! Until next time, WRITE ON!

Jo

Semicolons

Happy Friday, good people of the blogosphere! Ah, thoughts of the weekend bring us so much joy! As the title of today's post suggests, I'll be talking about semicolons. If you struggle with this most interesting piece of punctuation and have a hard time knowing when to use it and when to leave it out, follow along. Grab those pens and notebooks because here we go!

Let's start with the definition:
sem·i·co·lon  /ˈsemiˌkōlən/: Noun - A punctuation mark (;) indicating a pause, typically between two main clauses, that is more pronounced than that indicated by a comma.

A semicolon is used to join two independent but related clauses. While this can also be done with a comma, the semicolon is more often used when one is using a conjunctive adverb (however, incidentally, otherwise, etc...) or transitional phrase (even so, as a result, matter of fact, etc...). Smaller coordinating conjunctions are the ones most often used with a comma (and, but, so, etc...).

Now an example:
I went out last night and have a hangover; I can't go to work today.

There are many ways to write these two statements using either a semicolon, periods, commas, or no punctuation at all. Let's break it down:
I went out last night and have a hangover, so I can't go to work today.
I went out last night and have a hangover. I can't go to work today.
I went out last night and have a hangover; as a result, I can't go to work today.
I can't go to work today because I went out last night and have a hangover.

I always remembered it as: If two sentences can rely on one another to further understanding, you can join them with a semicolon.

Semicolons are helpful in preventing stilted flow in your writing, adding interest, and creating variety. I can't tell you how many books I've read where the author uses periods too often and it results in short, choppy sentences that make my brain stumble along over the words. I usually don't read more than a chapter or two before I get frustrated and throw the book down.

Punctuation isn't scary if you take the time to learn about it. If you're a writer, this is me begging you to read all you can get your hands on about punctuation and grammar; it does matter.

Well, that's all for today, folks! Until next time, WRITE ON!

Jo