Edelman Shanghai Edited by Kevin & Lizzy

“The contract should’ve been signed a week ago; it

was signed today” (the semicolon replaces “but”).

The semicolon is less blunt that “but,” which would

make the late signing appear to be a bigger problem.

Semicolons exist somewhere between periods and commas. Use them to indicate a greater separation of thought and information than the brief pause of a comma, but less separation than the full stop demanded by a period.

OPIC of the WEEK: Semicolons

T When is a semicolon better than separate sentences?

How?

When you want to strengthen the logical connection between the two clauses by taking out the full stop that a period inserts between them.

When reading a sentence out loud, you take a breath between two sentences separated by a period. When you see the semicolon, you only briefly pause before continuing. The two clauses flow together.

When you want to indicate a contrast between two clauses, but also soften the more direct emphasis that a coordinating conjunction would imply.

By acting as the conjunction “but,” the semicolon can show the contrast all on its own. For brevity or for style, this is sometimes preferable to “but” or “however.”

CHEAT SHEET 1. Keyword, NOT key word. Similarly, it’s website, NOT web site and newswire, NOT news wire.

2. World-class or world-renowned, NEVER global-class, globally famous

3. Remember that it is “xx percent of something”; for example, “100% of readers find these writing tips useful.”

4. Don’t forget the “ly” suffix on adverbs: environmentally friendly and mutually beneficial. But don’t go crazy with that “ly” and write “mutually beneficially” (known to slip out from even the normally conscientious). 5. When giving advice, as opposed to saying, “Suggest the client…” Use “Edelman suggests” or “we suggest.”

6. We receive massages from a masseuse or masseur, not a massagist.

7. When writing about coverage received or stores opened, “As of now” or “To date” are preferable to “Up to now.”

8. Actions are ongoing, NOT on-going.

Using regular semicolons “The clients are not coming to the meeting anymore; they signed with Ogilvy after

being wowed by the flawless grammar in the pitch” (Instead of: “The clients are not

coming to the meeting anymore because they signed…”).

Taking out the “because” implies the connection without spelling it out. Making two

separate sentences unnecessarily breaks up the thought—in this case, like a sigh.

Using semicolons as super commas To clarify a series: When series contain many long items or when the items

themslves contain material set off by commas, use semicolons, not commas.

To clarify a conjunction: If a sentence has extensive punctuation in one or

more of its clauses, i.e., many commas, use a semicolon before the

coordinating conjunction (and, but, or) instead of a comma.

Note: Place semicolons outside quotation marks and use commas instead of semicolons before abbreviations like i.e., e.g., like this.

And, etc Rules of thumb, but not golden rules Is it long term or long-term? Both are correct, but in different situations. “Long term” is used when describing the noun “term” with the adjective “long,” whereas “long-term” is used when the entire phrase describes something. Examples:

We are planning for the long term.

This is a long-term plan.

When hyphenates like “long-term” are in titles, remember that AP style dictates that the second word is NEVER capitalized. As only the first word in any title is capitalized in British style, the second word should never be capitalized in our writing.

Weekly Writing Tips

Weekly tips and reminders to keep everyone’s writing style fluid and efficient, as well as up-to-date with the latest Edelman guidelines, changes in AP rules, and commonly occurring office errors.

Issue 2.1 January 13, 2011

Source: TheOatmeal.com

Business bingo

Try to avoid using more words when fewer will do – the added verbiage will only confuse your audience.