Wednesday, April 3, 2013

Use a freaking COMMA!

Normally, the first Wednesday of the month is reserved for the IWSG post, but today it will share space with the A to Z Grammar Rules. :) Seriously, what insecure writer amongst us could not use a little grammar pep talk? Well, today is more of a lecture. So if you're feeling tender hearted, maybe skip my post today. Happy April, everyone. :)
 
 
 

(Originally posted in 2011)

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Here's my tiny pet peeve (when not used):

"Place a comma before a conjunction introducing an independent clause" (THE ELEMENTS OF STYLE, page 5).



For example: "The early records of the city have disappeared, and the story of its first years can no longer be reconstructed. The situation is perilous, but there is still one chance of escape" (THE ELEMENTS OF STYLE, page 5).

More explanation: "Two-part sentences of which the second member is introduced by as (in the sense of "because"), for, or, nor or while (in the sense of "and at the same time") likewise require a comma before the conjunction" (THE ELEMENTS OF STYLE, page 5).

Tell the truth. What's your grammar pet peave?

Or are you just an all around happy person, and nothing ever bothers you?

22 comments:

  1. I have so many peeves I get irritated at myself for noticing them all. I am my own peeve because I am so peevish.

    Also, you have won an award on my blog because you are awesome.

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  2. Oh, I know exactly what you mean! Although, it irks me more when people put a comma between a compound verb sentence structure, such as "Derek went to the dance, and discovered his girlfriend cheating on him." *cringes*

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  3. I got an image of you sitting in front of your computer, hands upraised in utter frustration, screaming at the screen "Where's the freaking comma?"

    I'm one of those people that get annoyed at very little in writing where puntuation comes in (except excessive exclamation points in books).

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  4. Hopefully used in place of I/he/she/we hope. They aren't interchangeable. Hopefully is how someone acts. Comma overusage also bugs me, probably because I do it. And...

    I could go on for a while. But I probably shouldn't :)

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  5. There/Their/They're. Or its/it's.

    I cry when I see them. I cry in horror and want to yell at the person because normally it's not an honest typo (like the occasional missing comma or a period when you wanted a question mark).

    I console myself against these horrors with the thought, at least I'm guilty of subtler grammar crimes (to which I'll never confess!)

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  6. Oh I have many. The one that comes to mind, however, is when I see an elipses misused. And I always (ALWAYS) see them misused on billboards!! Grrr!

    Cheers!
    Jen

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  7. I love good grammar like the next person, but more than good grammar, I love good story with a great voice. Give me a good story, and I won't notice much more. I'll overlook the rest, so I'll say I'm a happy-go-lucky kinda girl. I'd rather hold you by the seat of your pants, then worry if I left out a comma or a semi-colon.

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  8. I consider myself to have fairly good grammar, but your posts are making me realize just how much I DON'T know. It'll be exciting to have a refresher course.

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  9. That pesky little comma really does change the meaning of the sentence for the better. I never liked listening to the English teachers in any of the four five schools I went to, (yes, five!) but by the time I was able to enroll in college after my kids were in school, I truly regretted not learning more back then.

    I've bookmarked your blog, Margo. Great tips, and your comma tip is different than mine. *grins*

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  10. I have a lot of them. My favorite pet peeve with commas is people who don't, set off a distinct clause, with a comma, or who use commas to divide clauses, that don't need one. :)

    Standard rule: The pieces of the sentence on either side of the comma set should create a complete clause in themselves.

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  11. Ugh. I May be the culprit you wrote this about. Commas are my enemy. This is my first visit to your blog and I enjoyed it. Please visit us at http://citymusecountrymuse2012.blogspot.com/ and, if you like what you see, sign up to become a member.

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  12. I am usually pretty good with commas, but some instances throw me.

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  13. That's hilarious- I've just had a massive rant directed at me telling me there is NEVER a comma before an "and".
    HA!
    Lx

    Blogging AtoZ @ChickLitLove

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  14. My pet peeve is apostrophes... so I really should have popped in here two days ago shouldn't I? :-)

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  15. This is a lesson I've never learned well. I'm going to try to commit it to memory! Thanks!

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  16. Their, there, they're - effect, affect - and using the word irregardless. There is no such word. :-)
    from The Dugout

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  17. Well, this is the third post on commas I've seen today. I might just not use them anymore!
    No, I'll use them. I promise!
    Heather

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  18. Hi Margo, I am so bad a grammar. It drives my beta's crazy and I have Element of Style, I just don't know how to apply it. I will be back. How do you get grammar to stick?

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  19. Margo -- I'm going through my novel again, before it goes out to a developmental editor, and this is exactely what most of my reading entails. Fix whatever needs to be fixed, and of course, fix the freaking commas. Your blog is such a great resource for a writer who should know all these things, yet whose eyes are blurry from reading so much. Not to mention, I need to slow down when reading and editing, and that's always a challenge. Looking forward to future posts now that I'm a new follower. This is great.
    Silvia @ Silvia Writes

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  20. I don't have any grammar pet peeves because I can be pretty hopeless with it and can never tell if something is right or wrong. Fortunately, I know others who do know and make sure mine is correct.

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  21. I do hate it when people just drop commas wherever they want, like in the middle on a sentence. Augh! Nice series for the A to Z!

    Visiting from IWSG

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  22. The main one is apostrophes for me. Some people will put an apostrophe wherever a word ends in a s! So annoying.

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