Punctuation is a big topic. Perhaps you could outline some of your concerns so we can focus on what's giving you problems.JackF wrote:Marv and Harold,
Ditto Glenn, now maybe you can throw in some lessons on punctuation.
Jack.
P.S. I had to edit this post twice after sending.
Briefly, it goes like this...
Punctuation is very important for the reader (especially the fast reader). People read in thoughts, not words, and the punctuation provides the clues that outline and segment the thoughts.
Every sentence should end with some punctuation - period, question mark, exclamation point. While informal English allows for the occasional non-sentence, the majority of what you write should consist of recognizable sentences organized into paragraphs.
To keep things simple, forget the semicolon and colon for now. Once you've conquered the worst offenses you can turn your attention to these subtleties.
Even professional writers argue about the use of the comma. They're needed, even in informal English. The subject is way too large to address here (plus I'm no expert). We can deal with individual problems but a comprehensive review is best pursued with a good text on English usage.