When Quotation Marks Should be Avoided
When it comes to punctuation, most people think it doesn’t matter. Most don’t seem to care where they put the marks. They stick commas and colons everywhere. Even quotation marks get put where they shouldn’t. Yes, there is a time when you should avoid quotation marks.
With Quotation Marks
All too often I see people using quotation marks within quotation marks. Drives me crazy. That’s as bad as using a double negative. Never do this. It can be very confusing. ARGH. If you have to, use single quotation marks within the double quotation marks you are using for dialogue.
Like with most members of the punctuation family, you don’t want to just use them wherever you think they might belong. They have a purpose that is extremely useful to the reader.
Just to Emphasis
Don’t go around putting quotation marks everywhere you want the reader’s eyes to go to. That is not what they are used for. There are other appropriate ways to emphasize when writing.
Italics is a standard way to emphasize something in writing. It catches the eye without being confusing. This is your safest bet when it comes to emphasizing something in your manuscript.
