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- May 9, 2017
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I'm a grammar nerd. If two independent clauses are being joined, they better be joined by a comma and a coordinating conjunction. If a dependent clause is followed by an independent clause, there better be a comma between them. I know where commas belong, and in my own writing, I tend to employ them with precision. When they're not used correctly (or not used at all), I notice, and I find it distracting.
However...
We also use commas to indicate where the pauses are in a sentence. This is especially significant for dialogue. Sometimes, we might want to place a comma where it's not technically needed to add a pause. We might also want to omit a comma where one technically belongs because we don't mean for the reader to pause there. (When I say "we," I mean writers in general. As a grammar junkie, I don't do it because it makes me sad, but I understand that it is a thing.)
Also, even in published books, commas sometimes just get thrown in or omitted, and there doesn't seem to be any reason at all.
My question is, where are you on the spectrum?
Are you like me? Do you expect commas to be placed with textbook precision?
Do you forgive unnecessary or omitted commas as long as they seem to be intended for effect (pause)?
Or, do you think commas are more of an art than a science, and they should be placed by feeling rather than by understanding grammar?
I'm wondering all this because I'm new to critiquing, and I find myself spending more time adding and omitting commas than anything, and I wonder if this is a waste of time. Am I the only one who cares?
However...
We also use commas to indicate where the pauses are in a sentence. This is especially significant for dialogue. Sometimes, we might want to place a comma where it's not technically needed to add a pause. We might also want to omit a comma where one technically belongs because we don't mean for the reader to pause there. (When I say "we," I mean writers in general. As a grammar junkie, I don't do it because it makes me sad, but I understand that it is a thing.)
Also, even in published books, commas sometimes just get thrown in or omitted, and there doesn't seem to be any reason at all.
My question is, where are you on the spectrum?
Are you like me? Do you expect commas to be placed with textbook precision?
Do you forgive unnecessary or omitted commas as long as they seem to be intended for effect (pause)?
Or, do you think commas are more of an art than a science, and they should be placed by feeling rather than by understanding grammar?
I'm wondering all this because I'm new to critiquing, and I find myself spending more time adding and omitting commas than anything, and I wonder if this is a waste of time. Am I the only one who cares?