Arlene Miller's Blog, page 34

Bite Size Book Reviews for Word and Grammar Lovers: Part 1

I know it won’t surprise you when I tell you I am a reader. And if you read this blog post, chances are you love to read as well. I read both fiction and nonfiction, but generally prefer books that entertain me rather than tax my brain.  Do I read other writers’ grammar books? Sometimes. I have read my share of “humorous” grammar and punctuation books. books about writing, and books about words. This blog post tells you about some of those books — some I liked, some I didn’t — and next week I will tell you about the others. 

Between You & Me: Confessions of a Comma Queen – Mary Norris –  Ms. Morris has great credentials. She began working at The New Yorker in 1978. Her book got a fair amount of publicity, and I was sure I would love it. What could be more fun than commas! I see that I gave it three stars on Goodreads, and I remember not being impressed. I thought I would enjoy this book more than I did. According to my short review on Goodreads, I found it tedious and I skimmed through parts. Cleverly written, but I didn’t really enjoy it. It does have four stars on Amazon. To each “their” own.

Eats, Shoots & Leaves: The Zero Tolerance Approach to Punctuation – Lynne Truss – I am not sure I had even heard about this famous book when I saw Ms. Truss on the CSpan book channel (does that still exist?). She really impressed me during that interview.  I was excited about the book. Great title, but she was much more impressive, in my opinion, than the book was, not that I remember it well. I tend to forget books and movies immediately unless I am really impressed.

The Transitive Vampire: A Handbook of Grammar for the Innocent, the Eager and the Doomed – Karen Elizabeth Gordon – Another “humorous” grammar book that falls into the pile of “I don’t really remember it, but it didn’t live up to its great title.” It was a gift to me from another word person, and I had heard of it, so I was anxious to read it. Meh!

Woe Is I:The Grammarphobe’s Guide to Better English in Plain English – Patricia T. O’Conner – Okay. Even though I don’t remember its specifics, I gave it 5 stars and a short but good review;  I said that I learned a few new things. Recommended.

The Gregg Reference Manual: A Manual of Style, Grammar, Usage, and Formatting – William A. Sabin – When people ask me a grammar question, I sometimes look online to see what I can find. I also head to this book. I use this book to guide my own grammar books. I have an old, spiral bound edition. I don’t know where I got it, but I love it. If you need a grammar book that is more “referency” than mine — and more comprehensive — try Gregg. Highly Recommended.

Grammar Girl – Don’t get Mignon Fogarty, known as The Grammar Girl, confused with me, The Grammar Diva. Mignon is far more famous than I, having appeared on Oprah (I think) and the Today Show, among many others. She has been around (even though she is younger) the grammar world longer than I. She has several books, her Quick and Dirty Tricks the most well-known. It is like mine in its size and coverage of grammar. She also has a famous podcast (I don’t know if she is doing it any longer) and a website with lots of sponsors and things besides  grammar on it. And she really knows her stuff! I often refer to her book (I own one) when I have a question about something fairly obscure. Sometimes it is there. Most times, it isn’t because it isn’t really a think anyone writes about. Recommended (even though I consider her my main competition). 

Chicago Manual of Style – The first time I laid eyes on this tome was in college, since I was a journalism major. The other tome we had was Words Into Type, which covered more graphically oriented issues. I probably still have the same copy of the Chicago Manual. Well, maybe I have a newer copy. Of course, it is the leading style manual of editors. I will say that it is a style guide and not really a grammar book; that said, I don’t know if I have ever been able to find one thing I was looking for in that index.  I just don’t like that book. There are other style guides (AP, MLA, etc.), and if you are working for someone, they may ask you to use a certain one. But the Chicago Manual is the gold standard. Yuck.

Wordstruck!: The Fun and Fascination of Language  – Susanna Janssen – I must admit I have read only half of my signed copy of this book. It was written by a local (Mendocino County, I believe)  author, who is a a foreign language instructor. I heard her speak at my writing club. She is wonderful!  And so is the book. She overlaps some of my topics when I speak, namely, word trivia. But she also delves into cultures, since that is her speciality. You will learn a lot and be very entertained. Highly Recommended.

My books – Well, you don’t think I would neglect my very own books, of which there are now about a dozen: Two basic grammar books (one with two editions), two workbooks, a confusing words book, a book of blog posts, a short grammar guidebook, a lesson plan book, a collection of three of my books…did I forget anything? Well, I do also have a novel and a self-publishing how-to book. I took that one off the market when things at Amazon changed so much. You can find my books at Amazon and all other online bookstores, and you can order them from any brick and mortar bookstore. Some libraries have it, as well as my local indie bookstore Copperfield’s. You can take a look at them on Amazon, where I have some good reviews and some….not so good, as do most books. Unfortunately, it isn’t so easy to get any reviews these days. And some of the best words about my books come from people who have blurbs on my covers and who send me nice e-mails. My books are also available in PDF form on a teacher site, Teachers Pay Teachers, where my reviews are much more excellent! My big workbook and yellow reference book are being used by many schools. 

 

Stay tuned. Next week: more great — and not so great — books.

 

 
 
 
 

Bite Size Book Reviews for Word/Grammar Lovers: Part 1

I know it won’t surprise you when I tell you I am a reader. And if you read this blog post, chances are you love to read as well. I read both fiction and nonfiction, but generally prefer books that entertain me rather than tax my brain.  Do I read other writers’ grammar books? Sometimes. I have read my share of “humorous” grammar and punctuation books. books about writing, and books about words. This blog post tells you about some of those books — some I liked, some I didn’t — and next week I will tell you about the others. 

Between You & Me: Confessions of a Comma Queen – Mary Norris –  Ms. Morris has great credentials. She began working at The New Yorker in 1978. Her book got a fair amount of publicity, and I was sure I would love it. What could be more fun than commas! I see that I gave it three stars on Goodreads, and I remember not being impressed. I thought I would enjoy this book more than I did. According to my short review on Goodreads, I found it tedious and I skimmed through parts. Cleverly written, but I didn’t really enjoy it. It does have four stars on Amazon. To each “their” own.

Eats, Shoots & Leaves: The Zero Tolerance Approach to Punctuation – Lynne Truss – I am not sure I had even heard about this famous book when I saw Ms. Truss on the CSpan book channel (does that still exist?). She really impressed me during that interview.  I was excited about the book. Great title, but she was much more impressive, in my opinion, than the book was, not that I remember it well. I tend to forget books and movies immediately unless I am really impressed.

The Transitive Vampire: A Handbook of Grammar for the Innocent, the Eager and the Doomed – Karen Elizabeth Gordon – Another “humorous” grammar book that falls into the pile of “I don’t really remember it, but it didn’t live up to its great title.” It was a gift to me from another word person, and I had heard of it, so I was anxious to read it. Meh!

Woe Is I:The Grammarphobe’s Guide to Better English in Plain English – Patricia T. O’Conner – Okay. Even though I don’t remember its specifics, I gave it 5 stars and a short but good review;  I said that I learned a few new things. Recommended.

The Gregg Reference Manual: A Manual of Style, Grammar, Usage, and Formatting – William A. Sabin – When people ask me a grammar question, I sometimes look online to see what I can find. I also head to this book. I use this book to guide my own grammar books. I have an old, spiral bound edition. I don’t know where I got it, but I love it. If you need a grammar book that is more “referency” than mine — and more comprehensive — try Gregg. Highly Recommended.

Grammar Girl – Don’t get Mignon Fogarty, known as The Grammar Girl, confused with me, The Grammar Diva. Mignon is far more famous than I, having appeared on Oprah (I think) and the Today Show, among many others. She has been around (even though she is younger) the grammar world longer than I. She has several books, her Quick and Dirty Tricks the most well-known. It is like mine in its size and coverage of grammar. She also has a famous podcast (I don’t know if she is doing it any longer) and a website with lots of sponsors and things besides  grammar on it. And she really knows her stuff! I often refer to her book (I own one) when I have a question about something fairly obscure. Sometimes it is there. Most times, it isn’t because it isn’t really a think anyone writes about. Recommended (even though I consider her my main competition). 

Chicago Manual of Style – The first time I laid eyes on this tome was in college, since I was a journalism major. The other tome we had was Words Into Type, which covered more graphically oriented issues. I probably still have the same copy of the Chicago Manual. Well, maybe I have a newer copy. Of course, it is the leading style manual of editors. I will say that it is a style guide and not really a grammar book; that said, I don’t know if I have ever been able to find one thing I was looking for in that index.  I just don’t like that book. There are other style guides (AP, MLA, etc.), and if you are working for someone, they may ask you to use a certain one. But the Chicago Manual is the gold standard. Yuck.

Wordstruck!: The Fun and Fascination of Language  – Susanna Janssen – I must admit I have read only half of my signed copy of this book. It was written by a local (Mendocino County, I believe)  author, who is a a foreign language instructor. I heard her speak at my writing club. She is wonderful!  And so is the book. She overlaps some of my topics when I speak, namely, word trivia. But she also delves into cultures, since that is her speciality. You will learn a lot and be very entertained. Highly Recommended.

My books – Well, you don’t think I would neglect my very own books, of which there are now about a dozen: Two basic grammar books (one with two editions), two workbooks, a confusing words book, a book of blog posts, a short grammar guidebook, a lesson plan book, a collection of three of my books…did I forget anything? Well, I do also have a novel and a self-publishing how-to book. I took that one off the market when things at Amazon changed so much. You can find my books at Amazon and all other online bookstores, and you can order them from any brick and mortar bookstore. Some libraries have it, as well as my local indie bookstore Copperfield’s. You can take a look at them on Amazon, where I have some good reviews and some….not so good, as do most books. Unfortunately, it isn’t so easy to get any reviews these days. And some of the best words about my books come from people who have blurbs on my covers and who send me nice e-mails. My books are also available in PDF form on a teacher site, Teachers Pay Teachers, where my reviews are much more excellent! My big workbook and yellow reference book are being used by many schools. 

 

Stay tuned. Next week: more great — and not so great — books.

 

 
 
 
 

“Lay Lady Lay” – Or Is It “Lie”?

What if Bob Dylan had sung “Lie Lady Lie”? Or Eric Clapton had sung “Lie Down Sally”? Or the Backstreet Boys had sung “Lie Down Beside Me”?  Well, they

Image by Gerd Altmann from Pixabay

would have been grammatically correct. And maybe if we had first heard the songs that way, they wouldn’t sound so weird. Did the songwriters know they were making a grammatical error? Did they care? Did they think about it and use what sounded better? 

Who knows? But after reading this blog post, you will know which to use, and not only in the present tense, but in the past and present perfect tenses as well. Not that anyone uses lie in the present perfect . . .

The main distinction between lie and lay is that lie is intransitive in grammar speak, and lay is transitive. So lie does not take a direct object (a receiver of the action), but lay does. In other words, you must lay something. Here are some examples of correct uses of lay and lie. Note that animals and things can also lie, not just people:

I think I will lie down.
She is lying in the sun.
The dog always lies on that blanket.
I like to collect the shells that lie on the beach.
Lay your head on my shoulder. (Lay what? Lay your head.)
You can lay your purse on the table. (Lay what? Lay your purse.)
Every time he comes over he lays himself on the hammock. (Lays what? – who? in this case – Lays himself.)
Lay those books on my desk. (Lay what? Lay those books.)

So you get the idea. You don’t lay down. You lie down. 

It gets a little trickier in the past tense:

The past tense of lie is lay.
The past tense of lay is laid, which makes more sense.

Here are some examples of correct past tense:

Yesterday, I lay on the sofa all day.  (not laid)
She visited last week, and lay out in the sun most of the time.  (not laid)
He laid the cookies on the table.
I laid the pumpkin on the floor, so we could carve it. 

The present perfect tense is the one with the helping verb has or have. 

The present perfect (also called past participle) of lie is lain — the one no one knows what to do with!
The present perfect (also called past participle) of lay is laid, just like the past tense: easy.

Here are some examples of correct perfect tenses:

I have lain out in the sun all day and have a sunburn.
Those rocks have lain in that pile for months.
Soon she will have lain in that bath so long, she will look like a prune.
I have laid all my cards on the table.
We have laid tile before, so we can help you.

So . . .

It is lie, lay, have lain

It is lay, laid, have laid

 

Be sure to catch my “ditty of the day” on social media if you follow me – every day I post on Twitter, Pinterest, LinkedIn, and Facebook (personal and business). I change it up every month. This month I have been posting a comma rule every day. Next month I will be posting words that begin with — oh, I don’t want to give it away!

 

Me, Myself, and I Revisited

Someone mentioned to me recently that they were being driven crazy by the incorrect use of the pronoun myself. So, when I was looking for a topic for this week’s post . . .

This post is an old one that was run a few years ago, but I have edited it and rewritten parts of it to reflect my improved mastery of grammar

Grammar Wives’ Tales: Rules You Can Break

Image by Gerd Altmann from Pixabay

You can’t end a sentence with a preposition.

You can’t begin a sentence with a conjunction.

You can’t split an infinitive.

Yes, you can.

Yes, you can.

Yes, you can.

I don’t know whether you would really want to call them wives’ tales, but there are some grammar “rules” that are going by the wayside. But lest you think that now anything goes . . . these rules are few and far between.

I will begin with this caveat: Yes, a few “rules” have become less strict. However, bending the rules applies mostly to those who are writing fiction or creative nonfiction. And bending the rules always applies to those who know the rules. Moreover, if I were writing a business letter asking for a job, or a letter applying to college, I would take the conservative route and not bend the rules.

Most grammar and punctuation rules you wouldn’t think of breaking: 

You wouldn’t leave off the ending quotes in a quotation because you felt like it – She said, “It is nice out today.

You wouldn’t write using a misplaced modifier –  Reading a book by the window, the cat stretched.

You wouldn’t put a colon at the end of a question – What are you doing:

You wouldn’t use the wrong verb form (unless where appropriate in dialog) – He work yesterday.  I seen a ghost last night.

You wouldn’t leave out the comma in a date: I was born on March 3 1986.

You wouldn’t begin a sentence with a lowercase letter. three dogs sat on the porch.

But there are some rules that are flexible if you bend them for a reason.

You can end a sentence with a preposition. Sometimes it sounds awkward not to: Whom is the gift for? For whom is the gift?
You can start a sentence with a conjunction if you think it makes sense to: He heard a noise in the closet. And then he carefully opened the door. 
You can split an infinitive, although they are generally split by adverbs, and adverbs are out of style: He asked me to slowly shut the door.
You can use or not use the Oxford (series) comma. However, be consistent in its use in the same piece of writing: I have applies, pears, and peaches. I have apples, pears and peaches. (I always use it and advise others to use it too.)
You can take some liberty with your use of commas – sometimes: Of course, I want to go with you. Of course I want to go with you.  He told us sadly that he had lost his job. He told us, sadly, that he had lost his job. (used here for emphasis)
You can take some liberty in your use of the ellipsis, which is supposed to be used to either indicate trailing off at the end of the sentence or indicate missing words. However, you can sometimes use it to slow down tempo. She saw him  . . . she slowly approached him . . . she tried to speak to him. You could use periods or dashes, but ellipses seem to work here. 
You can sometimes use sentence fragments for effect. They are often used in promotional writing. She prepared a special cake for him, which took her all day to make. So much effort for nothing.
Run on sentences – or comma splices – are a different story. Many writers use them. I don’t, and I won’t. Oh, maybe for fiction I would in the right circumstances. She spilled all the jellybeans, she tried to pick them up, she ended up hiding them under the rug. Please remember that you can’t really connect sentences with then; it is not a conjunction and results in a comma splice (that hardly anyone will notice).  She spilled all the jellybeans, then she tried to pick them up.
You can (and probably should at this point) use the singular they. I have up to this point refused, but using he or she instead sometimes isn’t even accurate anymore. The best way to deal with the singular they is to rewrite the sentence to avoid the issue, which generally can be done easily: Everyone should bring his or her towel. Everyone should bring their towel (singular they; I still don’t like it). Everyone should bring a towel. (easy workaround)

You might wonder why I haven’t had much Grammar Diva News lately. It’s because I haven’t had much Grammar Diva news lately! I have a draft written of my latest book (memoir) and plans to write a business-writing book next year. However, I am in the midst of selling my house and moving cross country (to be near my daughter), so I haven’t had the time or the brainpower to do much except my blog posts! When I am settled, I will be back to work in ernest again!

 

 

My Life in Social Media

This post could also be called “Why I Haven’t Written Anything Lately,”  “My Day on Social Media,” or “My Marketing Plan.”

Image by Pixelkult from Pixabay

“Why I Haven’t Written Anything Lately”: By that, I mean books. I keep writing blog posts! I have a first draft of a dating memoir that I wrote for NaNoWriMo  (National Novel Writing Month) last November. But I am preparing to move across the country sometime in the next couple of months, so I have had too much on my mind to work on that book. I do hope to have it done this calendar year. And next year I hope to write and publish my business writing book.

“My Day on Social Media”: Being a Virgo, I am very scheduled, and I do the exact same thing every morning. That is when I get my social media “work” done. I suppose it is really a mixture of work and not-work, but I consider any social media done by a business person as work. So, this post is actually about my social media routine every morning, which is pretty much….

“My Marketing Plan”: Marketing is a tricky thing. There is so much you can do, it can overwhelm a writer so that we do nothing at all. But there is, of course, a happy medium. And when I read anything about the marketing tasks a writer should do, I am either doing it now or have done it in the past. Right now, my marketing plan consists of Amazon advertising (which seems to be working pretty well) and social media. By social media, I don’t mean posting pictures of my book covers and begging you to buy them. In fact, I do very little of that at all, mostly because I don’t think of it. I do share my blog posts every week, but I don’t push my books very often except when I have a new one. I think of social media as more of a way to get my name and what I do out there. So I connect with as many people as I can on social media for that reason — on both business and personal sites.

If you are a writer — or any other type of business person — or if you are just curious, here is my morning routine. I have to admit, I check my e-mail, my book sales, and Facebook at other times during the day, depending on how busy I am, but I always do this particular routine in the morning. I don’t use all social media (who can?), and I don’t even know most of the new ones — or how to best use the ones I do use. I am sure I could be using them better, but I am a creature of habit and tend to just keep doing the same thing rather than taking time out for a learning curve.

And I have been called — this very week — a Facebook Rockstar!

I am up and at my computer at 7:30. But I wake up much earlier. I have been trying to meditate lately, and I do that at 5:30, so I am done in time to stream my favorite comedy/political show on my phone at 6:00. I watch and drink coffee from 6 to 7:30 when I take the phone (to keep watching) and the coffee to my computer.

First and foremost, I check my book sales: Amazon and Ingram, where most of my book sales, but not all, occur. I track those on a calendar two or three times a day. Then I go to Amazon advertising to see how it is going: the ratio of what I am spending to what I am selling. I have been advertising my top three selling books on Amazon steadily for the past several months.

Then I check my bank balances, both personal (I like to keep my checkbook balanced) and business. If I have business expenditures or if anyone has deposited sales into the account, I note that in my “books,” which because I am technologically-limited, consists of a Word Doc with In and Out lists. Hey, it works for me, but does turn out to be quite a bit of work at tax time!

That done, I check the e-mail that is linked to my website; that is where any blog post comments will come in. Generally, there isn’t much there that can’t be immediately deleted, although you know I always answer the blog post comments.

I then go to Twitter. I really do wish I knew how to use Twitter better! On Twitter, I write my Word of the Day, or Tip or the Day, or whatever I am doing that month. This month it is Comma Rule of the Day; last month it was Commonly Misspelled Words. After I write it and share it on Twitter, I copy it and share it on LinkedIn, Pinterest, and Facebook (both personal and business pages). I used to put it on Google+, but that is now gone. While I am on the Facebook personal page, I check the birthdays and wish friends I actually know a happy birthday. While I am on my business page, I check the previous day’s postings to see the likes and comments. Here, you can find out who has liked a comment but hasn’t yet liked your page. You can then invite them to like your page with just a click.

Now I go back to Twitter to find interesting things to post on my Facebook pages — either business or personal, depending on the post. Most of these posts are memes or photos that I save and then put on Facebook for my friends’ and followers’ amusement. I also “like” and Retweet some of the posts I find. I look at my general Twitter feed, and then I search for “grammar,” “books,” “reading,” and “coffee.” Those are my topics of choice.

Next I go to my regular e-mail, of which I have two addresses. One used to be personal and the other business, but they are now kind of mixed together. Most of the e-mails I delete (I am sure you can relate); some I save for later. Later never seems to come, and the list of e-mails gets longer (and things get lost and deleted). I tell myself that soon I will take a few hours to go through them. I rarely do. It is too confusing to know which to keep and why to keep them and file them in yet another folder. 

After the e-mail is taken care of, I go to Facebook, my social media “home.” I post those Twitter things I saved, some of them on my personal page and others on my business page. Then I look at my personal page timeline

to see what’s new. I share things, a lot of them political. I am always happy when people share grammar-type things with me and post them on my timeline. 

Almost done, but not quite. I then take the memes and pictures from Twitter and save them to my photos on the computer (which links to my phone photos). In the evening, while I am on my exercise bike (but this is a whole other “routine”), I share those to Instagram and go through Instagram liking things.

Then I rest.

Now you know why I am not writing much lately, what my marketing plan is, and what I do on social media — every day.

Next week: Back to grammar!

 

 

Linguistics 101: Odd Driving Regionalisms and Slang in the USA

A guest post by Sarah Hollenbeck of The Zebra. We think you will really enjoy it!

“Careful, there’s a chughole on that feeder coming off The 101!” Huh? If you’re wondering what on earth that sentence means, you are about to find out! We’ve compiled some of the strangest, most unique slang for everyday driving terms used in the United States.

Starting with Harvard’s 2003 Dialect Study, we scoured the web for the strangest regionalisms we could find related to driving. Using Google Trends — and even the Oxford Dictionary — we’ve put together a collection of the most bizarre synonyms, phrases, and lexicon used across the country.

Driving is something that ties people together across the nation. But how they describe driving and the names for certain road features varies greatly by region. The Zebra took a deep dive into the linguistics of driving and the different versions of car language that exist and how they affect people who aren’t familiar with these terms. For example, the grassy area between the sidewalk and the street is called the “Devil’s Strip.” And while this phrase was coined during WWII, those outside of Ohio have probably never heard of this unique turn of phrase.
 
We also took a look at the popularity of the phrase at its origin point. You might be surprised to learn that the aforementioned “Devil’s Strip” is only used by .06% of Ohio drivers. However the term “Feeder Road,” used to describe the road that runs parallel to a major highway with entry and exit points, is used by .71% of Texans everyday. But no matter where you are within the country, familiarizing yourself with these terms can help you be a more informed and safe driver and can assist you in properly conveying directions to others.
 

There are a lot of linguistics that go into giving someone directions, especially if they are from a foreign place or are lost. Studies have found that people give and receive directions differently based on where they are from. But luckily, there are a few science-backed formulas that will help you communicate more effectively, no matter whom you talk to. Check out those formulas and all the most unique driving terms found across the country in our visuals. Just click here !

 
The Zebra is your one-stop destination for all your car and home insurance needs, comparing hundreds of quotes to get you the best deal possible.

 

 
 

The Comma Quiz

Image by Jose R. Cabello from Pixabay

After six weeks of comma posts, you are now ready for the quiz! Ready, Set, Go! (Answers are at the end if you scroll down.)

 

Insert commas in the following sentences where necessary. No other punctuation marks need to be added. Some sentences may be fine without any commas.

1.My sister and her friends are coming to visit.

2.  I love the song “Forget You.”

3. Bob was usually a quiet man; however he screamed upon entering the room.

4. It is a cold rainy day.

5. This book which is written by William Golding is my favorite.

6. The book that is on top of the table is next on my reading list.

7. I decided not to cook dinner and went to the movies instead.

8. I was born on August 10 1980 in Lincoln Nebraska.

9. The only four ingredients in this recipe are sugar vanilla eggs and flour.

10. I did not do very well on the test however so I failed the course.

11. Yes Elaine the party is at my house.

12. My address is 1487 Markham Place Boston Massachusetts 01987.

13. She was wearing a bright blue dress.

14. I don’t like to cook and by the way I don’t like to bake either.

15. After reading new ideas popped into my head.

16. Under the chair in my bedroom sat the cat I had been looking for.

17. John J. Chatham Jr. is the mayor of Sunshine Nevada.

18. I have all genres of novels e.g. science fiction romance mystery and thriller.

19. Don’t wait for me because I might be late.

20. Although I want to go I think I have other plans for that day.

21. The letter was written in May 2000.

22. Why you don’t move out of that rat-infested apartment I will never understand.

23. The point of the matter is is she hiding something.

24. Out of 450 75 are over 80. 

25. I think he is coming too.

26. My brother just started working at Haven Plastics Inc.

27. Helen Gonzalez Ph.D. is speaking at our conference.

28. Of course I will support whatever you want to do.

29. Is she going to run for secretary of the association is the question.

30. “I am planning a party next month” she said “but I don’t know which weekend.”

Scroll down for the answers . . . .

 

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ANSWERS:

1.My sister and her friends are coming to visit. (No commas)

2.  I love the song “Forget You.” (No commas)

3. Bob was usually a quiet man; however, he screamed upon entering the room.

4. It is a cold, rainy day.

5. This book, which is written by William Golding, is my favorite.

6. The book that is on top of the table is next on my reading list. (No commas)

7. I decided not to cook dinner and went to the movies instead. (No commas)

8. I was born on August 10, 1980, in Lincoln, Nebraska.

9. The only four ingredients in this recipe are sugar, vanilla, eggs, and flour. (The comma after eggs is optional.)

10. I did not do very well on the test, however, so I failed the course.

11. Yes, Elaine, the party is at my house.

12. My address is 1487 Markham Place, Boston, Massachusetts 01987.

13. She was wearing a bright blue dress. (No commas)

14. I don’t like to cook, and, by the way, I don’t like to bake either.

15. After reading, new ideas popped into my head. (Confusing without comma)

16. Under the chair in my bedroom sat the cat I had been looking for. (No commas)

17. John J. Chatham, Jr., is the mayor of Sunshine, Nevada. (The comma after Jr. is optional)

18. I have all genres of novels, e.g., science fiction, romance, mystery, and thriller. (The comma after mystery is optional.)

19. Don’t wait for me unless you want to be late. (No comma)

20. Although I want to go, I think I have other plans for that day.

21. The letter was written in May 2000. (No commas)

22. Why you don’t move out of that rat-infested apartment, I will never understand.

23. The point of the matter is, is she hiding something.

24. Out of 450, 75 are over 90 years old. 

25. I think he is coming too. (No comma needed)

26.My brother just started working at Haven Plastics, Inc. (Use a comma unless the company doesn’t use one in its name.)

27. Helen Gonzalez, Ph.D., is speaking at our conference.

28. Of course I will support whatever you want to do. (A comma after of course is optional.)

29. Is she going to run for secretary of the association, is the question.

30. “I am planning a party next month,” she said, “but I don’t know which weekend.”

 

Commas Part 6: When NOT to Use a Comma

Some people love commas; they sprinkle them like salt over their words. They put a comma wherever they might pause or take a breath. Other people hate commas, finding them unnecessary intrusions and feeling that they make the page look messy.

But there is somewhere in between, as we have seen in the past five posts about comma rules: Part 1, Part 2, Part 3, Part 4, and Part 5.

It is just as important to know where commas do not belong as where they do belong. And sometimes there is a gray area when it is up to you whether or not you want to use a comma. Yup — sometimes there is no correct “answer.”

Gray Areas

The issue of whether or not to put in a comma sometimes arises in a simple sentence, but more often it arises in a more complex and longer sentence.

Here is an example of a simple gray area:

Of course I will go with you. (It is really up to you whether or not to put a comma after of course.)

Here is a more complicated example of a gray area:

Monsters and ogres and make-believe animals and princes and princess — they are all here in this magical book, full of fantasy and mystery.

“I want to be both a doctor and a pilot when I grow up, ” said the little girl, without a second thought.

The commas placed before the final phrase in those sentences is really optional. The sentences are clear with or without the commas, and there is no rule for them.

When You Do Not Use a Comma

There are places where it is just plain incorrect to put a comma. In face, there are quite a few of those places.

1.  Do not use a comma before a conjunction (for, and, nor, but, or, yet, so) if the words that follow the conjunction do not make a complete sentence.

She is going to the baseball game and might then go to a dance class.
She is going to the baseball game, and she might then go to a dance class.

In the second sentence above, the words following and make a complete sentence. The words in the first sentence do not.

2. Do not use a comma before or after parentheses unless there would be a comma there if there were no parentheses.

Please turn to Chapter 5 (“The History of Paris”) in your textbook.
Please turn to Chapter 5 (“The History of Paris”), which begins on page 600 of your textbook.

Both of those sentences are correct.

3. Do not put a comma between the subject and verb of a sentence unless there are words, a phrase, or a clause set off in commas between the subject and the verb. These sentences are all correct:

My mother and her sisters are traveling to Europe together.
My mother, along with her sisters, is traveling to Europe this summer.
Louise, Anna, and Maria are all sisters.
Lucas, my boyfriend, is really cute!

4. Do not put a comma between a verb and its object.

He is baking a cake for his sister. (yes)
He is baking, a cake for his sister. (no)

5. Do not put a comma between an adjective and the noun it modifies.

This is an old, textbook that I am selling. (incorrect)
This very pretty, dress belongs to my sister.
The old, torn book is going into the trash. (There is often a comma between two adjectives that both describe the noun, but no comma between the last adjective and the noun.)

6. Do not put a comma between a noun or verb and a prepositional phrase that follows it. These sentences should not have commas!

Please don’t put your feet, on the sofa.
I am baking a cake, from my grandmother’s recipe book.

7. Do not use a comma — even if there is a rule that tells you to use one — if it causes confusion! Here is a sentence that uses an Oxford comma where the comma makes the sentence confusing:

Alison, my sister, and I went out to lunch.

That sentence could be read two ways with the commas that are there. Alison could be your sister; therefore, two people went out to lunch. Or three people went out to lunch: Alison, your sister, and you. Leave out the Oxford comma if you mean that three people went. If Alison is your sister, the sentence is correct as it stands.

Alison, my sister and I went out to lunch. (Three people went out to lunch.)

Next Week: The Comma Quiz – To Comma or Not to Comma

 

Commas Part 5: The Light at the End of the Tunnel

Yes, there is an end to comma rules! This is the last post in our series of comma rules. But stay tuned because next week’s post is — When NOT to Use a Comma.

The previous posts in this series are Five Common Uses for Commas, Commas with Introductory Elements, Commas with Interrupters, and More Rules for Commas.

Here we go. Yet more rules for using commas:

Afterthoughts – Use a comma before an afterthought at the end of a sentence. Sometimes the comma seems optional, and you can leave it out. Your choice.

I am going to France this July, I believe.
Several people cannot make the meeting, I’m afraid.
You can ride with me of course.
He isn’t coming with us after all.

Contrasting Expressions – Use a comma in contrasting expressions; they usually begin with but, not, or rather than.

I like pizza, but not with anchovies
She has an older sister and a younger brother, not the other way around.
Seafood, rather than beef, is what I usually eat.
Here today, gone tomorrow. (Not technically a sentence, but … you get the idea. It’s like “garbage in, garbage out.”)

When OR begins an explanation rather than a choice – Sometimes or  is used to begin an explanation rather than a choice. In such cases, use a comma.

She is in the high school IB program. or the college preparatory program.
Are you in the IB program or the vocational program?

To Separate Two of the Same Words Used Consecutively – This rarely happens and should probably be avoided. You can always rewrite a sentence in which you find yourself with two of the same words in a row. If you don’t, however, separate the words with a comma.

As she explained it, it seemed a bit complicated to me. 
If that is what the situation is, is she going to be able to deal with it?

To Clarify a Sentence in Which a Word Seems to Be Left Out – Sometimes a word is omitted from a sentence (often the word that). Usually the sentence is still clear. However, if it is not, use a comma where that word should be.

The reason for my hesitation is, my brother is coming to visit.
I know they are best friends. (I know that they are best friends, but it is still clear written without that.)
The pencils are in the box over here; the pens, over there.

Unusual Word Order – Sometimes a sentence is written with the words in an unusual order. There is nothing wrong with that, but a comma can make the sentence clearer.

Why she doesn’t like chocolate, I will never understand.

Emphasis – You can use a comma to emphasize something, but I would not overdo it.

I agree, wholeheartedly, with your decision to move.
She, herself, has gotten that entire concert together.

Long Question at the Beginning of a Sentence – If you begin a sentence with a long question, you can use either a comma or a question mark after it. Both examples are correct.

How are you going to move all that furniture by yourself, is my question.
How are you going to move all that furniture by yourself? is my question.

Series of Questions in a Sentence – Once again, you can use either commas or question marks if you have a series of questions in a sentence. However, sometimes the implication is a little different, depending on which you choose.

Who is going to set up the room? deliver the food? greet the guests?
Who is going to set up the room, deliver the food, greet the guests? (This sentence seems to imply that one person will do all three things.)

Clearing up Confusion –  Sometimes we say there are two comma rules: (1) Don’t use a comma unless you have a reason to. (2) Use a comma anywhere not using one would be confusing to the reader! So, wherever something might confuse a reader, a comma may help.

After eating ants invaded our blanket.  After eating ants? After eating, ants invaded our blanket.
The two dogs were white with black spots, and brown with white feet.

There you have it! I am sure we could think of more comma rules if we really tried, but pretty much all comma uses fit somewhere into the rules that have been presented in the past five posts. Next week: When NOT to use a comma.