Writer's Question

[evanslily]

The UK perspective

I know this post should probably be left well alone now--but I couldn't resist...

It is true that UK published works use the single quotation mark, but I've always been mystified as to why. At school, we were taught to use double quotation marks--and that's the way it's still taught today, if my son's English book is anything to go by.

And speaking as a Brit, I'm not aware that it's ever been acceptable in the UK to write something like

"Come over here", she said.

I've certainly never seen it anyway. I'd immediately correct that to

"Come over here," she said.

Fellow Brits, please shoot me down if I'm wrong...

Lily

 

[snooper]

I am mildly surprised that nobody has mentioned two quirks indulged in by authors.

1) Misplaced question marks, as in "Why," he asked? which drives me mad, and usually results in me reading no further.

2) Stream of consciousness writing. There are a few writers on Lit who can use this technique to excellent effect, but editing it is a nightmare.

 

[palisa]

I know this post should probably be left well alone now--but I couldn't resist...

It is true that UK published works use the single quotation mark, but I've always been mystified as to why. At school, we were taught to use double quotation marks--and that's the way it's still taught today, if my son's English book is anything to go by.

And speaking as a Brit, I'm not aware that it's ever been acceptable in the UK to write something like

"Come over here", she said.

I've certainly never seen it anyway. I'd immediately correct that to

"Come over here," she said.

Fellow Brits, please shoot me down if I'm wrong...

Lily

Not a Brit, but you're right. The difference is best illustrated by starrkers' examples above:

----------------------

Depends on what's happening as to where the punctuation goes.

Generally speaking, the following is the correct way:

"I hate grammar," she muttered.

I heard something about "pedantic editors", so I guessed she'd been rejected.

-----------------

The comma after the end of your quote is logically a part of the sentence quoted: it comes at a natural pause in the speech.

In starrkers' second example, the comma is not related to "pedantic editors," but to the sentence as a whole, which is not a quotation. Illogical Yanks like me put the comma inside the quote; logical Brits do not.