Quote:
Originally Posted by HarryT
What would you have used in place of the semicolon in the sentence that I wrote, above? A comma? A dash?
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I'd put a period there. I know that grammatically your sentence is correct, and some might cringe at the full stop of a period, but given current modern usage that's what I'd probably use. I've also read that many NY editors don't like using semicolons, or ask that their authors use them sparingly, so that might be adding to my hyper awareness. (I hope to one day be published - if I can get over my fear of submitting, that is!)
It also doesn't help that I often see them used incorrectly. I used to read someone's first drafts, and she could barely figure out where to put a comma. Didn't stop her from adding semicolons everywhere, though.