Great Grammar in 7 Steps

As Author Elmore Leonard said, “You are allowed no more than two or three per 100,000 words of prose” (equivalent to a book and a half). In the age of email, some writers have gone mad for exclamation points. You’ve probably seen one-page email messages in which the writer ended every sentence with an exclamation point. Limit yourself to no more than one (if justified) exclamation point per email (or any other type of document, for that matter). Use the exclamation point only to communicate intentional impact, excitement, or alarm. An appropriate use of the exclamation point, for example, would be, “Yikes! I don’t want anyone slapped with that type of punishment.”

For example, “Do not rely on social media as your sole source of information.” Also correct: “Do not rely on social media as your sole source of information,” warned the manager. This is a firm rule of grammar. Periods and commas always—100 percent of the time—go inside the closing quotation mark. Incorrectly placing periods and commas outside the closing quote mark is one of the most common grammar errors. Even Jeopardy,” the television show that celebrates smarts, incorrectly places periods and commas outside closing quotation marks. Semicolons and colons, on the other hand, always go outside the closing quotation mark. Again, no exceptions.
Use gender-neutral alternatives to “he,” “she,” “he/she,” and “he or she” to support respectful interactions with gender-nonbinary colleagues, consumers, and community members. You can, for example, replace “he” or “she” with “one.” You can rewrite, casting your sentence in the plural, using “they.” You can eliminate the offending pronoun altogether. You also can replace the offending pronoun with a noun.


Use possessives (insert an apostrophe) to indicate ownership (or possession). Use the plural to indicate multiples. Correct use of the plural: “Born in the 1970s.” Incorrect use of the possessive: “Born in the 1970’s.” Correct use of the plural: “Adhere to the dos and don’ts of grammar.” In that case, “dos” is plural and therefore takes no apostrophe. “Don’ts” is a contraction, meaning “do not” (plural) and requires an apostrophe.

Go ahead and start your sentence with a coordinating conjunction (“and,” “or,” “nor,” “for,” “but,” “so,” “yet”). The rules of grammar have changed over the years. Once considered bad form, grammarians today agree there is nothing wrong with starting a sentence with “and” or another coordinating conjunction. Doing so helps create a smooth transition from one thought or sentence to another. Caveat: If your immediate supervisor or the big boss frowns on sentences that begin with “and,” find another way to express yourself. Don’t jeopardize your professional standing over a word.