Comma Splices

Comma splices occur when a writer joins two independent sentences with a comma instead of separating them with a period or coordinating conjunction. When you have two independent clauses, a comma is not strong enough to glue them together.

Example: Bad Education is a fascinating movie on HBO, it is a true story. [both the phrase before and after the comma can stand alone as complete sentences].

There are three ways to fix a comma splice. You can add a conjunction, change the comma to a semicolon, or make each independent clause its own sentence.

Fix #1: Add a Conjunction

Add a conjunction immediately after the comma. With most comma splices, the conjunction you’ll want to add is probably and, but, or so.

The show Tales from the Loop on Amazon is new, and it reminds me a lot of Black Mirror.

Fix #2: Change the Comma to a Semicolon

I am Not Okay With This on Netflix is a coming-of-age comedy-drama; it was created by the producers of Stranger Things and based on a graphic novel.

Fix #3: Make Separate Sentences

The Times of Bill Cunningham is an interesting documentary about the bicycle-riding NYT style photographer. He is famous for his “On the Street” column.

When writing this post, we referenced this blog post by our client, Grammarly.