Punctuation
Punctuation is one of my favourite aspects of writing because once you know how to use it, you unlock all kinds of cool ways to express ideas and impress people reading your work. Proper use of punctuation is also a great service for readers because it helps them understand, for example, when you’re finishing one idea and moving onto another.
As a teacher of writing, I see all kinds of wacky uses of punctuation, as writers “go by feel” rather than following the rules that govern punctuation placement. I often liken the approach to a chef who sprinkles a little salt on their dish before serving it.
I think writers treat punctuation this way for two related reasons:
- They don’t know where they are supposed to place the punctuation.
- The rules for punctuation all seem really complicated and intimidating.
My goal for this section of the book is to show you that the rules really aren’t that complicated. In fact, most punctuation only has one or two functions — one or two places where it belongs.
I’m going to focus on four pieces of punctuation: commas, colons, semi-colons, and apostrophes. There’s other punctuation out there, but you can always learn about them later, once you know how to use these ones.