At least until

AshleyEpidemic

AshleyEpidemic

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I'm confused. This is a formation of words I use in speech, but have never used in writing. Where does the comma go?

Here is the excerpt:
Life’s pretty sweet as Bree Tarren gets one step closer to piloting an airship. At least until, she kills her parents’ murderers.

or

Life’s pretty sweet as Bree Tarren gets one step closer to piloting an airship. At least, until she kills her parents’ murderers.
 
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I wouldn't use either, but if you HAVE to have one, I'd chose the second.
 
Chase

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AshleyEpidemic said:
I'm confused. This is a formation of words I use in speech, but have never used in writing. Where does the comma go?

Here is the excerpt:
Life’s pretty sweet as Bree Tarren gets one step closer to piloting an airship. At least until, she kills her parents’ murderers.

or

Life’s pretty sweet as Bree Tarren gets one step closer to piloting an airship. At least, until she kills her parents’ murderers.
Click to expand...

Ashley, the second "sentence" is a fragment which should be attached to the parent sentence. Consider: As Bree Tarren gets one step closer to piloting an airship, life's pretty sweet until she kills her parents' murderers.

If you feel you want a pause for drama after "sweet," you might consider an em-dash: As Bree Tarren gets one step closer to piloting an airship, life's pretty sweet--until she kills her parents' murderers.
 
slhuang

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Chase is right; the second sentence is a fragment.

That said, I could see using fragments like that for voice reasons. If you use the fragment, I don't believe it should have a comma at all:

"Life’s pretty sweet as Bree Tarren gets one step closer to piloting an airship. At least until she kills her parents’ murderers."
 
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Yeah, I don't have a problem with the fragment. You just don't need any commas.
 

ArtsyAmy

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I'm confused about the meaning of the sentence. To me, it says that her life is sweet, then she kills her parents' murderers, and after doing so, life isn't sweet. Does she want to kill her parents' murderers--would that make life sweet for her? Maybe I'm the only one who is confused. :)
 

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AshleyEpidemic said:
I'm confused. This is a formation of words I use in speech, but have never used in writing. Where does the comma go?

Here is the excerpt:
Life’s pretty sweet as Bree Tarren gets one step closer to piloting an airship. At least until, she kills her parents’ murderers.

or

Life’s pretty sweet as Bree Tarren gets one step closer to piloting an airship. At least, until she kills her parents’ murderers.
Click to expand...

The first example is NOT correct. The second one is fine. You could also write it without any comma at all. Depends on whether you want that pause in there.
 
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