Happy Punctuation Day: A Quick Review

Today is National Punctuation Day. Even though I have known the date for weeks, somehow this day has, once again, snuck up on me. I simply can not let such a day pass by without honoring it with some discussion of punctuation here on writedreamsweat.com. I'm going to keep things simple and share some quick rules and tricks for just a couple punctuation marks. (Come on, we all know when to use a period, right? Right???)

Question Marks
Question marks are pretty simple when we are writing a straightforward question. "How are you?" Simple. What about an indirect question?

"I wonder if she went to the gym." This is a statement. I see people use question marks in that usage all the time. Although a question is tied in, the sentence is not actually asking a question. It's actually stating the act of wonder.

Semicolons
Just remember that semicolons join two COMPLETE clauses that could stand alone. In my experience editing, the semicolon is probably the most commonly misused punctuation mark. My advice—don't use it unless you are 100 percent sure you know how to properly use. An improperly placed semicolon screams incompetence as a writer. I'll tell you now that most CEOs and business professionals do not know how to use this punctuation mark. I guess that's why they need editors by their side.

Three things to remember:
A semicolon must be used with two complete clauses.
Use a semicolon to indicate that information is related.
Use a semicolon as a style choice to add variety to your writing.

Colons
I'll say it right away: when you use a colon in a sentence, it is only used after statements that are complete sentences.

Please make note of the previous sentence. A colon is too often used incorrectly to introduce a series of items. The following example is incorrect.

"The items on the table are: plates, napkins, fruit, and yogurt."

"The items on the table are" is NOT a complete sentence. That example does not need a colon (or any punctuation mark) at all. If you really want to use a colon, try adding "the following." That phrase makes the introductory phrase a complete sentence and makes the usage correct.

Space
One thing I love about Chapter 4 in Grammar Girl's "Quick and Dirty Tips for Better Writing" is that she officially recommends to use—wait for it—one space after a period. If you don't already do this, make the change now. Using two spaces is outdated. (Its usage started to accommodate typewriter spacing. Find more info in my post "Double Spaces—Wrong?" back in 2009.)

Some other articles to check out:
"What's Your Punctuation Mark?"

"Celebrate National Punctuation Day by checking out the big punctuation fails"

"6 Common Punctuation Mistakes That Drive Us Crazy"

"16 Unfortunate Misuses of Punctuation"