2. Understanding
Punctuation
The low-down, no-good, rotten cowboy walked into
the saloon. He moved his eyes left to right. He
surveyed the room before he walked toward the people
at the bar.
“Barkeep, get me some Tequila”!
The barkeep quickly retrieved the drink for the
stranger. …
Jan.
29, 2012
Journalism 101 2
3. Punctuation Placement
Most people would not think too much about the
previous slide, but there is a mistake in the author’s
writing:
“Barkeep, get me some Tequila”!
As a former journalist, I cringe every time I see a
simple mistake like this. Can you tell what my cause
of pain is?
Jan.
29, 2012
Journalism 101 3
4. The Answer is …
“Barkeep, get me some Tequila”!
In the sentence above, the exclamation point is
outside the quotation mark. Yet, this simple
error is easy to correct and easier to remember:
“Barkeep, get me some Tequila!”
If the end punctuation is outside the mark, it is
wrong. You must insert it before the mark.
Jan.
29, 2012
Journalism 101 4