blathering about punctuation

[pantryslut]

I am amused by the discussion elsewhere on my friendslist about the serial (Oxford, Harvard, whatevs) comma. I have of course a strong personal opinion, but my copyediting and proofreading training has conditioned me to comma and style bilingualism, because my opinion doesn't count for beans in the face of what the client wants, right?

The people I am writing for now use AP and thus abjure the serial comma. I do in fact have to go and edit it out of all my writing before I turn it in.

I am also amused at myself for knowing that some of my loyalty to Chicago style in general (besides the fact that it's better, she mumbled) is because of the alma mater connection. Sort of. Dad was a Turabian fanboy while I was growing up, see.

Comments

[lcohen]

of course it's better!

[pantryslut.livejournal.com]

You're biased too. ;)

[lcohen]

what, just because they pay my salary?? it's not that large a salary ;-) .

(when i was an editor, which i was before i came here, we always used the chicago manual of style.)

[pantryslut.livejournal.com]

One of the few pure joys of working at HAF/OOB was that, despite being a magazine, they went against the journalistic grain and adhered to Chicago style.

[marialuminous.livejournal.com]

The Oxford comma is clearly better. What are the arguments against it?

[pantryslut.livejournal.com]

I don't know. All I know is that AP doesn't use it. (Probably folks think it's cluttered and affected. It may have also saved a little in the way of typesetting speed and cost for newspapers once upon a time?)

Biased!

[lildutchgrrl.livejournal.com]

*mourns the murder of the serial comma* Curses upon AP for its omission! Also upon the NYT Manual of Style and Usage for pluralizing acronyms with apostrophes! *shakes fist at darkening sky*