Semicolons Redux

The other day, someone left a comment on a previous post about semicolons. Woot! My first comment! As it turned out, it wasn't just any comment; it was a comment from the illustrious Craig Conley, proprietor of what might well be the überming of semicolon-related sites. I'm truly humbled. I hadn't seen it before, but A Semicolon's Dream Journal is absolutely worth a look if you're at all into semicolons. The Strange Dreams section of Craig's blog is fascinating, too, but I digress.

Craig made the observation that "people often talk about punctuation breaking ideas apart, but they rarely mention the power of punctuation to accelerate the flow of ideas. Quick sentences are a vital part of what makes a good book a 'page turner'!" Although I can't say I've ever had a book published, I know how important it is to keep sentences compact. In another lifetime, I was fortunate enough to see my first try at a technical article published in a computer magazine, and I remember the editor's delight at not having to do a lot of weeding on my copy. So I couldn't agree more: quick sentences are vital. I'm planning more discussion on this subject by and by, because I think it lies at the heart of effective writing, blogwise or otherwise. I just want to get through a few more of those basic grammar-related points first—start at the beginning, and all that.

For some exquisite examples of semicolons in action, don't miss Craig's post regarding the perfect use of a semicolon from Mackenzie Carignan's blog.