Parentheses can be used almost anywhere, but they are rarely seen in fictional dialogue or in quoted speech of any kind. The problem with parentheses in dialogue is that readers may not know exactly how to interpret them. . . .
Most writers and editors learn not to join (or splice) two independent clauses with a comma alone. . . .
There are two different kinds of apostrophes: smart and straight. To use them correctly, it helps to understand how they work. . . .
It’s time for another editing and proofreading quiz! This is the second in a series of workouts that will apply your editing knowledge and proofreading skills to Chicago style.
Okay, now that I’ve introduced myself, let’s talk about that headline up there. If you’re like me and edit or proofread for a living, you’ve probably noticed that something about it isn’t quite right. . . .
When words are left out of a quotation, an ellipsis of three dots (. . .) takes their place. When this works correctly, the reader can skip over the dots and the sentence . . .
At paragraph 6.42, the 17th edition of The Chicago Manual of Style notes that a direct question is sometimes included within a sentence but not enclosed in quotation marks. When such a question comes in the middle of a sentence, it is usually introduced by a comma, and (this is the new part) it
Cheryl Klein is editorial director at Lee & Low Books and the author of The Magic Words: Writing Great Books for Children and Young Adults and the forthcoming picture book Wings.
This month’s workout, “Colons,” is taken from CMOS 17, paragraphs 6.61–67. Advanced editors might tackle the questions cold; learners can study paragraphs 6.61–67 of the Manual before answering the questions.
At paragraph 6.20, the 17th edition of The Chicago Manual of Style notes that the abbreviation etc. (et cetera, literally “and others of the same kind”) and such equivalents as and so forth and and the like are preceded by a comma. In a slight departure from previous editions of CMOS, such expressions are