Formatting, Grammar, Punctuation

• Apostrophes: 

  • • Use them to indicate possession: That was Mary's book. But not with pronouns: That was hers. 

    • Remember that it's is not the same as its. It's = it is. Its = something belongs to it.

    • When using the possessive with a plural noun that ends in s, use the apostrophe without an additional s: the students' schedules, the dogs' bowls, the Smiths' family reunion. If it is a singular proper noun that ends in s, DO add the s: Charles's book.

    • When referring to a decade, do not use an apostrophe: It happened in the 1960s. The exception is if it is indicating something that belongs to that decade: That was a 1930's style dress.

• Quotation marks: Use them to enclose exact words taken from a text. If it is at the end of the sentence, put the punctuation (a period, question mark, or exclamation point) inside the quotation mark (exception is when you have a citation after the period). More on including quotations in your writing is under Textual Evidence.

• Commas: Commas are very useful but can often be overused or used in the wrong places.

  • • Use commas to separate items in lists of three or more. The comma that comes after the second-to-last item (before the "and" or "or") is called the Oxford, or serial, comma. There is disagreement on whether it should be used, but is useful for clarity. Be consistent on using or not using it throughout your paper.

    • Use a comma to connect two independent clauses with a coordinating conjunction (FANBOYS: For, And, Nor, But, Or, Yet, So).

    • Use commas to set off a word or phrase that is not essential to the meaning of the sentence: I told my friend, who was next to me, that we needed to go. If the word or phrase is essential to the meaning, do not use commas.

    • Use a comma before or after a quote if the words are telling us who said the words: He said, "Please don't wait for me."

• Capitalization: Make sure you capitalize the words that should be in upper case, and only the ones that should be!

  • • Proper nouns (specific names of people, places, or things) are always capitalized, no matter where they are in a sentence.

    • A family relationship or a title is capitalized when used as a proper noun or as someone's name, but not on its own. 

      • Examples: She is my aunt. My Aunt Eloise came to visit. 

Barack Obama was the president of the United States. I met President Carter when I visited Georgia. 

Note the difference between these two: I told Mother that I didn't want any supper. Please tell my mother that I won't be at supper.

• • • The first word of any sentence should be capitalized.

    • The pronoun "I" is always capitalized.

    • In a title, most words are capitalized. Articles, conjunctions, and prepositions are generally not capitalized unless they are the first word of the title.

• Spelling: Use the spell check, but also be aware that it will not catch words that are spelled correctly but used in the wrong way. If you are using Grammarly, it may spot these errors. Always proofread your work and make sure the words that are there are the ones that should be!

  • • If you mean "They are" you do not want to say "Their," the correct way to spell the contraction is "They're." It is better to spell out the words. It is the same for "You are" - "You're" is correct, "Your" is not.

    • When you are comparing two things, the word to use is "than:" He is taller than I am. If you are talking about a sequence of events, the word to use is "then:" I went to the store and then I went home.