Analyzing your punctuation tendencies

How do you punctuate what you write? I like rhetorical questions, think we use way too many em-dashes, and disdain exclamation points. But how well do I follow my own rules?

One way to analyze punctuation habits is with “just the punctuation,” a fascinating tool that allows you enter any collection of text and X-ray it to see how it looks without words, with only the punctuation revealed.

For example, here’s a recent blog post I wrote about an author who was unprepared during her moment on camera, stripped down to its punctuation only.

‘ , ‘ . , , , . : , – ” – , . ” , , . ‘ , . , . , ” , ” . – – – ‘ . . . : ‘ , – . — — — — . , . , , , . ” ? ” . ‘ , , , . — — — — ‘ , . , ; . , ‘ , . ( ‘ . ) , . , ‘ . , . , , ‘ . , . , . : . , . . ” , ” . ‘ , — — — — . , ; . . . . , ‘ . , – . . . . . , . ‘ , ‘ — — . — — , . ” ? ” . . . , ‘ . ( , ‘ , , ) ; . , , . . , ‘ , . , , . , , . , , ‘ ( , , ) . ‘ , ‘ ‘ ; . , . ‘ , , . . . ‘ , . — — , . ‘ . . ‘ . ‘ , , ‘ . . , ‘ . , , . ” , — — , ! ” ‘ ‘ , , . . ‘ , . ‘ , .

What stands out? Like most authors, I use plenty of commas and periods and the occasional parenthetical (thankfully, all in matched pairs). I probably should use more question marks, and I certainly appear to be fonder of em-dashes than I ought to be. The single exclamation point in this post appears within a quote.

Compare that to the post I wrote about whether ebooks and audiobooks are actually books, and whether consuming them counts as reading:

: ? . , , . , . ” ” ? . , ‘ ‘ , , , , . , . : — — , — — , . . ” ” . . , . ” ” . , , . . , , . ; , , . , ‘ . ( , , ‘ , , — — , . ) , . : ‘ . ( , ” ” , , . ) ‘ . ‘ . , . ” ‘ ” . ‘ ‘ , ‘ . ( ‘ — — ” ‘ ” ? ) . . , ; ‘ ” ” . , . ? . – . ( ) ” – – . ” ( ) – ‘ . ” ‘ – . ” ” . ” ( ) ” ‘ . ” ” ‘ – – . ” ” . ” ( ) ” – ‘ . ” ” ‘ – , – , – . ” ” . ” ( ) ” ‘ . ” ” ‘ – – . ” ” . ” ( ) ” – ‘ . ” ” ‘ – , – , – , . ” ” . ” ( ) ” ‘ . ” ” ‘ – , – , – , – . ” ” . ” ” ” ? . – — — ‘ ” ” . , . , , . ‘ . . , , . ‘ – — — ‘ ‘ ” ” : ” . ” , — — — — . . . , ‘ , . ‘ . , .

Here I was trying to be provocative, so there are lots of quotation marks (around words like “reading”) and more than twice as many questions.

Here’s Chapter 1 of my next book, which is intended to tell authors what to do: to write their business book as a story. It featues plenty of periods and commas, along with a few questions and dashes.

: , . . ‘ , . , ; . ‘ , . ‘ . , & . , . . : ( , ) , , . : ( , ) , . . . , . , , ” ” . . . . ” ” ‘ . ( ‘ ) . : ( , ) , . ‘ : : ? , , ? ? , . ‘ . , , , . . ‘ , , ‘ . ? ‘ . – – , . : – . , , , . , , . ‘ , ‘ . : . – . ‘ . . . . , . ‘ . , . , , ” . ” , ” ” – . ‘ . , ‘ ‘ . – . – ( ) , – . . ” ” . , , ‘ # . ? , , . . , $ . ‘ . : , . ‘ . , ‘ . ‘ . , . – , ‘ – . . . . , , , . , , % , % . , . , , . ‘ , ‘ – ‘ , , . , , , . . ‘ ” . ” ‘ . ‘ , . . ? , . . . , , . ‘ ” , ” . ; . . ? . – ‘ . , ? , ‘ , ‘ . . , , , . ( , . ) . ? ‘ . . ; . , , , – . : , , . , . ‘ . ( . ) . ? ‘ , . . : . , ‘ , . . . . , , , . ( , . ) . ? , . . . . ” , ” , . ‘ ‘ , . ( , . ) , ‘ , ‘ . , ‘ , , , ” . ” ( ‘ ) , ‘ . . – – – – – . : . : ” . ‘ , . ” : ” . ‘ , ‘ . ” , , . , . ( ” , ” , , , . ) ” , . ” ‘ . ” ” . . , . / , ‘ . : : ” , ‘ . , [ ] . : , , , . . ” : ( , ) ‘ , . . : ” – , . . . . – – . ” : , . . : ” , , . . . . , . . ” , , : ( . . , ) , . . ‘ . ? . . ‘ , , . . ‘ ‘ . , , . ‘ ? , ‘ . . ( , ‘ , ‘ ‘ . ‘ , , ‘ . ) , . . , , – ‘ , , ‘ . ‘ . ‘ , ‘ , ‘ . % : , . , , ‘ . ‘ ‘ . , , . : ? ‘ , , : . , , . ‘ . , . , , ‘ , . . . ‘ : : : , , . , , . . . . , , . , , . . , . . , , ‘ – , . , ‘ ‘ . ? , . , , – , . – – . . , . . ‘ , . , ‘ . – , . ‘ . . . . ( ) . – ” ” . , ‘ ‘ . . . , ‘ . , ‘ . ” ” , , ‘ . , ‘ . ; . ‘ . . ‘ ( , ) , ‘ : ” . ” ‘ ( , ) , : ” ‘ ‘ ‘ , . ‘ , ‘ . ” , . ‘ : , . ‘ . ‘ , , , – . . . ‘ . ‘ , – . , % . ‘ , . . . . , . ‘ . ‘ , ‘ . – – . , ‘ ( ‘ , ) . , . ‘ . , ‘ , ‘ . . . , , , , , ‘ , . ‘ . , ‘ . , , . ‘ , , , ‘ , , ‘ . , , . , , ” , ” ( ) . ‘ , , , . ‘ , ‘ . , , . – – , , , , , , . ‘ ‘ – , . , , , , , ( – ) . ‘ . . ‘ , – . ‘ , , . – ‘ . . – – ‘ . , . , . – : , , – , , . . : , .

Compare that to Chapter 21 in the same book, on book promotion:

: . – ” – . ” , , ‘ . , , : . . , . , , , . ” . ” ‘ , . ‘ , . . , . ‘ , , – ” ” . . – – , . , . , . ‘ , . , , , , , ( ) . , . . . . , . , ‘ . , , & , , – – . , , . . – . ‘ . ‘ . , . , . ‘ . . . : ( ) . . ‘ , , . , ( , . ) . – , , ” , ” ‘ . , , . . , , . ‘ . . . , . . . , . ‘ . . ! . ‘ , , , . ? , ‘ . ” ‘ , , ” . . . . . , . – – , . – : % % % % , % % % % % % % % % % ‘ % % % % % % % % % % : . , – – : % % / % % / % % / % % % % % % / % % , % % % % / % % % % : . , – . – – $ , , – $ , ( – ) . – : ( = ) ( = ) – ( = ) $ , $ , $ , $ % % % $ , % % % $ , % % % : . , – ‘ , . , , , . . . , . ( , ‘ ‘ ) , . . , , : . . ( , , , , , ) ? . . ? . . ? . . ? . . , ? ‘ ‘ : : . : ? : ‘ , , , , . : . : , , ‘ ‘ . , , , , , . ‘ . , ‘ : ‘ ? ? . ‘ : . – – . , ‘ . , . , . ‘ , ‘ ‘ . ‘ . . . ( ) . . . : , ‘ , , . . . ‘ ‘ . – , ‘ % ‘ , . . ‘ . . ‘ ‘ . . ‘ ‘ : . ” , ” , ‘ . , , . ‘ . , , . . ” ‘ ? ” . ” ? ? ” , – , ‘ . , , . ” , ” . ” , , ‘ . ‘ , ‘ , . ‘ ” , . , . . , . , , , . ‘ ‘ ‘ ‘ . ‘ ” ? ” ‘ , ” ? ” ‘ , ” ? ” . ( ) . ‘ . : : , , . . ‘ , . . ‘ . , . . . , , , . ( ) , , . ; . , – . , , , . , . . ( , ‘ . ) . ” , , ” . , , ” . ” . , , , , , , , , , , , , . ( – ‘ . ) . . , . . , . , . , . , – . . , . , ‘ . , . , , , , , , . : . , – , , ‘ , . , . $ , ; ‘ , , . ‘ : . ‘ , ‘ . ” ” , ‘ . , – , , , . – ( , ” ” ) . , . , , . , , . , , . , ‘ . – – . ‘ – ” ” – . , : . , : % . ‘ . , , . , ‘ . , . , . ‘ ‘ , , . , , . , . , . , . , , , , , – , . , ‘ . ‘ : ( , ) . ” ” , , , : , , , , , , , , , . . , ‘ . . ( ) , . . ‘ , . ‘ . . , , . , , – . ‘ , : . ‘ , . – , . – , . , ” ” , – . , ” ” . , . ‘ , , , ! ( , ) , , , – – – – . , , , . , . , . – , . , , . ‘ , , , , , , . , . , . , , . . ‘ . . , , , , ‘ . , ‘ , , , . ‘ ? . . ‘ . : , , , , . , , , . – , . . . ‘ ; . . – ‘ . , ” , . ” ‘ – , . . ‘ , . ‘ . : ‘ , . , , , : ( , ) . , . ” ‘ – – , ” , ” ‘ . ” , . ‘ : , . , , ‘ . ‘ , . , . , , , . . . . . , . ‘ . , ‘ . ‘ . ‘ , . . ‘ , ; , ( – ) . . – : . . ” ” ‘ , ‘ ‘ . ‘ , . , ‘ . , . , , . ‘ $ , , . ‘ , , ‘ . , . , ‘ . $ , – – $ , . , ‘ , , . , ‘ . , ‘ . . ‘ , ‘ , . , ‘ . ‘ . , , . . – . ‘ , , ‘ . – – . ‘ . . , . , ‘ . . , $ , . ‘ , , . ‘ : , , , , ‘ . ‘ ‘ . ‘ – . ‘ . : , , , , . . : , , . , ; . ; . . – – ‘ . ; ‘ , , .

Clearly, there’s a lot more math and and money involved in book promotion than in the simple declarative question of how to write the book. I also allowed myself two exclamation points, one in a heading and one that appears in a book title I was citing.

Relative incidence of punctuation is another tool for writing analysis

As an author, do you over- or underuse particular types of punctuation? I took a look at this through the lens of relative incidence of different punctuation marks. Here’s how it looks for three books I was involved with: Outside In, which I edited, Empowered, which I cowrote, and my next book, for which I am the sole author. Relative incidence shows how frequently each punctuation mark appears per 100 periods. You can easily find these numbers in your own writing by loading it into Microsoft Word, pulling up the search sidebar, searching for each punctuation mark, and noting the number of matches.

At least as far as these books are concerned, the number of commas and periods are about equal. You can see that I’m twice as likely to use a semicolon as the authors of Outside In, about equally likely to use a question mark (six to seven times per 100 uses of a period). I’m very wary of exclamation points; for a nonfiction book, I’d say that more than one exclamation point per hundred periods is excessive. I’m fonder of parentheticals than some authors. When I edited Outside In, it was my judgment that the em-dashes had gotten out of control; even after editing, there were still almost twice as many as in my typical writing.

Try this on your own prose

“Just the punctuation” is a great tool to use on your own prose to see if you’ve developed some unexpected habits. And relative punctuation incidence is also revealing.

Try it out and let me know what you discover.