Improve the Readability of Your Writing
Using the Semicolon
Sometimes you will find that you generate a long sentences whilst writing narrative or descriptions. This can reduce the readability of your work and make it turgid and unappealing. The semicolon is your friend; you can break up long sentences into smaller units whilst retaining the links between the clauses. Writing in short sentences can be tempting, however it can be a destroyer of style; the semicolon helps avoid making your writing seem choppy and childish.The semicolon can be used as a join, it represents a pause somewhere between a comma and a full stop. If you find that you have written a grammatically correct long sentence, stretching over multiple lines, a proofreader might suggest that it be split into smaller sentences. Smaller sentences make the written word more readable. However, you as a writer have the last word and should you decide that a long sentence is about a single subject and you want it to remain as one long sentence, you can use semicolons instead of full stops. Thus grammar, your proofreader, you and the reader are catered for. This also would apply to long sentences suffering from a plethora of commas to separate clauses; swapping some for semicolons keeps the effect but is easier on the eye and potentially less confusing for your readers.
In some sentences, it is necessary to present the reader with a list. Normally, list items are separated by commas, however, with complex lists, a comma may be found within a listed item; the semicolon can then be used to impart a greater clarity.
A semicolon is also required both grammatically and rhetorically before adverbs. When using words such as moreover, nevertheless, however, consequently and so on, i.e. adverbs that imply some sort of reflection about the following idea, a semicolon before them is often needed in place of a comma.
We do a lot of proofreading of manuscripts for authors and we sometimes see the classic error of starting the word after a semicolon with a capital letter; that is wrong. Only words that would normally begin with a capital letter wherever they are found in a sentence should be treated in that way. The word after a semicolon is not the first word of a new sentence, it continues the sentence after a pause.
Introducing the Colon
The colon has had a chequered history. Following its introduction in the 16th century, it all but disappeared in the 19th century. It made a comeback in the 20th century and at the present, its future could be under threat from the dash!
The colon is a versatile punctuation mark and has a dozen or more different valid uses. It is not simply, as many believe, used when you want to create a pause in a sentence without terminating the sentence. That is the job of the full stop. Others believe that it is a heavyweight semi-colon. Nor is it followed by the use of a capital letter unless the subsequent word demands it intrinsically, for example, if it is a proper noun.
The colon generally takes the reader forward, from introduction to main theme, from cause to effect.
12 uses for a colon
Introducing a list in a sentence
Presenting a conclusion
Introducing direct speech
Introducing a question
Between a title and subtitle
After the character name in a stage play (similar to introducing direct speech I suppose)
Linking of contrasting statements
As a substitute for a conjunction
Separating chapter and verse in an ecclesiastical reference and hours:minutes:seconds
To introduce a question
Presenting an explanation
Introducing a quotation
Do you use it in your writing? If not: why not?
In some sentences, it is necessary to present the reader with a list. Normally, list items are separated by commas, however, with complex lists, a comma may be found within a listed item; the semicolon can then be used to impart a greater clarity.
A semicolon is also required both grammatically and rhetorically before adverbs. When using words such as moreover, nevertheless, however, consequently and so on, i.e. adverbs that imply some sort of reflection about the following idea, a semicolon before them is often needed in place of a comma.
We do a lot of proofreading of manuscripts for authors and we sometimes see the classic error of starting the word after a semicolon with a capital letter; that is wrong. Only words that would normally begin with a capital letter wherever they are found in a sentence should be treated in that way. The word after a semicolon is not the first word of a new sentence, it continues the sentence after a pause.
Introducing the Colon
The colon has had a chequered history. Following its introduction in the 16th century, it all but disappeared in the 19th century. It made a comeback in the 20th century and at the present, its future could be under threat from the dash!
The colon is a versatile punctuation mark and has a dozen or more different valid uses. It is not simply, as many believe, used when you want to create a pause in a sentence without terminating the sentence. That is the job of the full stop. Others believe that it is a heavyweight semi-colon. Nor is it followed by the use of a capital letter unless the subsequent word demands it intrinsically, for example, if it is a proper noun.
The colon generally takes the reader forward, from introduction to main theme, from cause to effect.
12 uses for a colon
Introducing a list in a sentence
Presenting a conclusion
Introducing direct speech
Introducing a question
Between a title and subtitle
After the character name in a stage play (similar to introducing direct speech I suppose)
Linking of contrasting statements
As a substitute for a conjunction
Separating chapter and verse in an ecclesiastical reference and hours:minutes:seconds
To introduce a question
Presenting an explanation
Introducing a quotation
Do you use it in your writing? If not: why not?