A comma is normally placed before a coordinating conjunction (and, but, or, so, yet) that joins two independent subject-verb clauses—that is, clauses that could stand on their own as complete sentences. . . .
In editing formal prose, we fix nonstandard English without hesitation. But in editing creative works, we often need to throw out the stylebook so a narrator or character in a novel or play can abuse grammar to good effect. . . .
It’s time for another editing and proofreading quiz! Once again, we test your knowledge of some of the finer points of Chicago style.
If you cite your sources in your thesis or dissertation (or class paper) using numbered notes, you will usually have the option of using footnotes. . . .
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. . . .
This workout once again returns to the usage glossary under paragraph 5.254 of CMOS 18. This time we’re focusing on words beginning with the letters n as in “nauseous” through p as in “proven.”
Janet Burroway is the author of plays, poems, children’s books, a memoir, and eight novels, most recently Bridge of Sand. Her book Writing Fiction (10th ed., University of Chicago Press, 2019) is the most widely used creative writing text in America. . . .
Most writers and editors learn not to join (or splice) two independent clauses with a comma alone. . . .
If you cite your sources in your thesis or dissertation (or class paper) using numbered notes, you may have the option of using endnotes rather than footnotes. . . .
This workout returns to the usage glossary under paragraph 5.254 of CMOS 18. This time we’re focusing on words beginning with the letters l as in “literally” and m as in “might.”
