Punctuation choices…
I learned something new a few weeks ago from editor Bobbie Christmas’s newsletter—rather the official name of something I haven’t liked for a long time. Consider: Judy’s the section head, Bill’s the IT guy. I never have liked that construction. Now I have a name for it: the comma splice. I’ll accept a conjunction or a semicolon in place of that comma, but a comma splice stops me in my tracks when I’m reading or reviewing. And too many authors are using it. Maybe they think it’s cool; it’s not!
Punctuation doesn’t have to be a worry for traditionally published authors. The following isn’t bad advice: “Write the book the way it should be written, then give it to somebody to put in the commas and ****.”—Elmore Leonard. (Note: If you know Leonard’s prose, you can fill in the asterisks.) Traditional publishers provide editing services to guarantee “good grammar and punctuation” consistently in their products. Self-published authors should also find a good editor. Many authors consider grammar and punctuation a matter of style. In particular, there are stylistic choices to be made, but I don’t consider comma splices one of them.
Whether self- or traditionally publishing a book, punctuation choices can be made that aren’t as flagrant as comma splices. Other readers, writers, and editors might not agree with your choices, though. Those that affect your voice are worth fighting for; those that are basically equivalent and amount to a roll of the dice must bow to consistency within the publisher’s book universe.
I mentioned semicolon as an option in the above example. Consider: Judy’s the section head; Bill’s the IT guy. That’s a correct choice, although Kurt Vonnegut would have wanted to lynch you for choosing it—he hated semicolons. But it’s a valid choice, because semicolons can be used to join two complete sentences into a single written sentence when the two are closely related. I’m sure Vonnegut would have chosen the following: Judy’s the section head, and Bill’s the IT guy. Or: Judy’s the section head. Bill’s the IT guy. Both are okay, but maybe not as strong? To me the second takes me back to Dick, Jane, and Spot. (Why is Dick always first? Alphabetical order is trumped here my female/male order in order to be politically correct—one instance I care about it, because I’m a bit old-fashioned.) These are all stylistic choices the writer can and has to make. Sorry, Kurt.
Another semicolon use that’s okay is when we have two sentences where the second begins with a conjunctive adverb: Derek wanted to kill the SOB; however, he had no gun. However, nevertheless, instead, moreover, and so forth are conjunctive adverbs. But another stylistic choice comes into play here: I don’t like an abundance of adverbs, stylistic or otherwise. I’d just write: Derek wanted to kill the SOB, but he had no gun. Think of the poor speed reader. “However” or “nevertheless” and so forth would slow down such a reader (I’m one of them); the use of the simple opposing conjunction “but” doesn’t do that.
The use of a semicolon to separate items in a list when those items contain commas is a must. Geordie purchased several items: fishing line, which he could use to trip his alarms; the alarms themselves, which would send their RF warnings to his cellphone; and a night scope to spot the intruder when he tripped the line. Think about how confusing that example would be if you replaced the semicolons with commas. Again, sorry, Kurt.
I can’t resist commenting on the Oxford comma here. It’s inspired many an erudite albeit intense debate among authors and editors. Many of them consider it a stylistic choice. Sometimes it is. But there are places it must be used to avoid confusion. While I might be a bit pedantic in preferring Little, Brown, and Company to Little, Brown and Company (the second version is the way that publisher writes their name), I’ve seen too many times that an author creates confusion by not recognizing that extra comma must be used, and s/he can create complete chaos if semicolons are also needed. Because we can use the Oxford comma all the time and be correct, why not use it all the time?
And a final note on where to find all these punctuation rules. You can strictly follow Leonard’s advice or try to follow editorial standards as you write. That’s a choice too. Many publishers and their editors follow The Chicago Manual of Style, which Bobbie Christmas recommends. Some author organizations insist on its use if the publisher wants to join as a corporate member. It’s a bit much to expect authors to own a copy; it’s very expensive. The dutiful author might need a second mortgage to buy it! Obviously it’s also inconvenient to dash off to the library where it’s on the reference shelf when you have some doubts.
My reference work is The NY Times Manual of Style and Usage. It’s much less expensive and up-to-date with current English usage, and not a mildewed old tome like the Chicago Manual that purists refer to as the bible for writing choices. (I’ve had discussions with Bobbie about this. She is not my editor, by the way, just an internet friend.)
If a publisher’s editor, or any editor I hire, opts for something else, I just follow Leonard’s advice, unless it affects my voice, which means I think my choice is better. Editors love to impose their wills; they often want authors to write like they do. MFA programs and critique groups do that too. Writers can bow to their expertise and still create their own voices, but when they have good stylistic reasons for making their choices out of a list of acceptable ones, they should defend them. On the other hand, when you find a great editor, cherish them! They can help you follow Leonard’s advice to produce a product that’s readable and attractive to publishers and readers alike.
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Comments are always welcome.
Son of Thunder. #2 in the “Esther Brookstone Art Detective Series,” this sequel to Rembrandt’s Angel has Esther Brookstone, now retired from Scotland Yard, obsessed with finding St. John the Divine’s tomb, using directions left by the Renaissance artist Sandro Botticelli. Esther’s search, the disciple’s missionary travels, and Botticelli’s trip to the Middle East make for three travel stories that all come together in one surprising climax.
Esther’s paramour, Interpol agent Bastiann van Coevorden, has problems with arms dealers, but he multitasks by trying to keep Esther focused and out of danger. The reader can also learn how their romance progresses, as well as travel back in time to discover a bit about Esther’s past with MI6 during the Cold War.
It might seem like The Da Vinci Code, but the historical references here are confirmed as true and a product of my extensive research. History, archaeology, romance, religion, and art make for a tasty stew in this moving, moralistic mystery/thriller novel soon to be published by Penmore Press. While it can be read independently from the first book, you can learn more about Esther and Bastiann in Rembrandt’s Angel, available in print and ebook formats at Amazon and from the publisher, and in ebook format at Smashwords and the latter’s affiliated retailers (iBooks, B&N, Kobo, etc.) and lenders (Overdrive, etc.). Son of Thunder will be available at the same places.
Both are entertaining stories for your fall reading.
Around the world and to the stars! In libris libertas!
