Monday, March 18, 2019

The Great Punctuation Rebellion


 Sometimes I find myself rebelling against writing rules, especially the rules of punctuation.  More specifically, I often rebel against the comma.

For the longest time, I could not write and publish anything that contained a mistake of any kind. I tried many times, but I just couldn’t do it.

After writing almost continuously online since 2008, I began to question the need to stick strictly to the rules for using the comma. For one thing, using a comma to set-off a name within a sentence has become a real sticking point with me.

Most of the time, I don’t feel the need to use a comma before a name AND after the name to set it off while writing so casually on blogs, my website, and such. Sometimes I use the commas, sometimes I don’t. After all, it’s just me talking to friends through these writings.  


When I’m feeling full of myself, I bend the comma rule and only place a comma where I think necessary if I am dealing with a proper name. Other times, I don’t  use the comma at all if I am really writing the way I talk in person.

There are a couple of more instances where I rebel against traditional punctuation rules, but this is #1.

There you have it, my rant for the week.


Do you ever knowingly NOT follow traditional punctuation rules? Do you always follow the rules exactly? Which punctuation rule would you choose to rebel against? 


14 comments:

  1. I had comma use drilled into me during my high school shorthand/business class.
    Fast forward to now. A friend has me proofread her articles for publication in an organization newsletter, because she thinks I do such a good job on grammar. However, a couple of months ago I installed a grammar checker on my Firefox browser which is way too detail-oriented for informal settings. Maybe I'll follow your lead and consciously ignore it.

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    1. Yes, Kathy. I also had comma use and other rules drilled into me during my high school English classes. I also have a grammar checker, sometimes it really gets on my last nerve.

      Thank you so much for visiting and for leaving such a great comment. I appreciate both your visit and your support. Wishing you a wonderful weekend!

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  2. I try to avoid all punctuation when writing poetry then it frees me to not have to make complete sentences. My journal is just for me and not publishing but my blog I try to be accurate. There you have it!

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    1. That's a good idea, Lin. Avoiding all punctuation when writing will free one up to get their thoughts out of their head. We can always go back and punctuate later. Thanks for sharing that helpful feedback.

      Thank you for stopping by. I appreciate your visit and the nice comment. Wishing you a wonderful weekend!

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  3. Hi Dellgirl i am not good at writing at all and i admire the people that can,my GD keeps a journal and does lots of beautiful things in it,hope you have a lovely day my friend xx

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    1. Hey there, Sheryl. Good to see you Thank you for visiting and reading, and especially for commenting on my post. I’m glad you stopped to look at it. That was nice of you.

      I hope you have a wonderful weekend my friend!

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    1. Hey there, Christine. Happy to see you here. I have not mastered poetry either, I just dabble at it. Thank you so much for visiting and commenting on my post. Your visit is a real day brightener.

      Wishing you a wonderful weekend!

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  5. Heck yeah. You yourself pointed out back in 2008 that I used "And" to start a sentence. I don't mind that you did. It made me smile. I knew it was against the rules as well, but it "felt right". Usage of ellipses is rampant with me, but I have tried to calm down on their usage. I think I am not too prone to do the dangling participle thang BUT I will tend to end with a preposition too many times. I am a comma placing fool who needs to be taken aside and forced to repeat the rules about comma usage. I make awe inspiring mistakes with were and was and part of that is my rearing. I am trying hard to curb those mistakes. I love this topic. So glad I got here to read the blog! xx

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    1. Hi there Katie, so good to see you. Thank you for coming by to read and for taking time to comment. That means a lot to me.

      Mannn, back in 2008 I was waaaay up on my "mighty-high-horse" telling you about starting a sentence with "And". Didn't know "my-head-from-a-hole-in-the-ground". Still don't. Glad you didn't "pay-me-no-attention"

      Thanks again for stopping by. Wishing you a great weekend!

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  6. Same here. I've always had trouble with commas and I was trained to be an English teacher at one point. I've always used commas when I think a natural pause in conversation requires it. Pretty much same as you then.

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    1. Thank you so much for visiting and for leaving such a nice comment. I appreciate your visit and your support. I am very grateful for that.

      Wishing you a wonderful weekend!

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  7. Hi Leona, for me, the most important part is to write so readers can understand. When writing online, I mostly prefer being casual and informal. So I don't particularly pay too much attention from a technical standpoint. Now, that I've moved to creating video content, my focus is more on making sure I pronounce my words properly :) Have a blessed week ahead!

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    1. Hey there, AJ. Good to see you, thanks for coming by and for reading. I really appreciate that you took the time to leave a great comment. You definitely DO write in a way that readers can understand. Your work is always so clear and concise.

      Have a wonderful weekend, my friend!

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Have a wonderful wonderful day!