RE: A grammatical question
August 18, 2016 at 12:59 am
(This post was last modified: August 18, 2016 at 1:04 am by wiploc.)
Hijack okay? Since this grammar thread seems to have run its course but for the wisecracking, I just wrote this:
And I'm wondering about the punctuation at the end. "?)." I never saw that before. Can anybody tell me whether it's good or bad, and what to do about it if it's bad?
Having asked the question, I'll now try to answer it myself:
If it's bad, then I have to recast the sentence somehow to avoid the problem. But if it's good it's distracting. That is, a lot of people will assume it is bad, and I should avoid causing them to have distracting thoughts about grammar when I want them to be involved in the story. So I should recast the sentence to avoid inciting misguided grammarians. Conclusion: Either way, I should recast.
But I'm still curious: Is it actually wrong?
Quote:Salt, and the sound of surf; I was near the ocean or some big lake. Cold dark and silent; it was night, well before dawn, before the morning birds riot. The smell of damp soil, predator scat, evergreens, blood (I assumed it was mine), and urine (also mine?).
And I'm wondering about the punctuation at the end. "?)." I never saw that before. Can anybody tell me whether it's good or bad, and what to do about it if it's bad?
Having asked the question, I'll now try to answer it myself:
If it's bad, then I have to recast the sentence somehow to avoid the problem. But if it's good it's distracting. That is, a lot of people will assume it is bad, and I should avoid causing them to have distracting thoughts about grammar when I want them to be involved in the story. So I should recast the sentence to avoid inciting misguided grammarians. Conclusion: Either way, I should recast.
But I'm still curious: Is it actually wrong?
