Even the best journalists can get tripped up on proper punctuation. So whether you are an expert or a newbie, here is a short refresher on commas, em-dashes, and quotation marks.
Commas
Insert a comma before the concluding conjunction if an integral element of the series requires a conjunction.
The CEO ate a hearty breakfast of orange juice, toast, and ham and eggs.
Use commas after introductory clauses or phrases, but you can omit them after short introductory phrases, provided no confusion results.
During the presentation he heard whispers and coughing.
Use a comma to introduce a complete one-sentence quotation within a paragraph.
John Smith said, “I’ve never had such a bumper year for business.”
Avoid commas at the start of an indirect or partial quotation.
Smith reports new clients are “coming in from all over.”
Em-dashes
Em-dashes are more emphatic than commas. Use a dash instead of a comma when you want to strongly set off an idea.
They are often used to introduce an abrupt change of thought, while parentheses add information. For example:
Upon firing the company’s non-salaried employees—and canceling the company picnic—the CEO called a meeting with the board.
Upon firing the company’s non-salaried employees (a group of 500, according to recent records), the CEO called a meeting with the board.
Unlike parentheses, be sure to remove other punctuation around em-dashes.
Em-dashes are quite different from en-dashes, which are used to connect items in a series, such as “a Monday-Friday work week.” Think of an en-dash, which is shorter than an em-dash, as a substitute for “to.”
Quotation Marks
If you are writing for a U.S. audience, commas and periods always go within quotation marks. The dash, semicolon, colon, question mark and exclamation point go within the quotation marks when they apply to the quoted matter only. They go outside when they apply to the whole sentence.
If you are writing for a U.K. audience the punctuation goes outside the quotation marks unless it is part of the quote.
