26Consider the Common Comma
Too often people profess that spelling, grammar, and punctuation don’t really count that much in the world of online writing. “It’s only e-mail,” they proclaim.
Not true. The basic laws of the English language are just as important in an e-mail message as they are in a lofty letter. And what could be more basic than the common comma? Consider the following sentence, sans the helpful comma:
But if you don’t take the time to use commas well your words string together making sentences difficult if not impossible to read understand and respond to.
Used properly, the seemingly simple comma can bring organization to your e-mails and meaning to your messages. Following are six situations is which a comma is called for.
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