So?

[Jennie Ann]

I am confused about the usage of commas with "so." This is another topic that may be better addressed in Marla's punctuation sub-forum, but I think this topic may be helpful to a lot of folks. So I'm putting it in the Main Discussion category.

I do not insert a comma after the word "so" every single time it appears at the beginning of a sentence, but I have a good friend of mine, 80 years young, who does.

Example A. So it was time to buy apples.
Example B. So, it was time to buy apples.

In the above example, I do it like Example A. Since I see the word "so" handled in so many different ways, I would love to learn from the collective minds of this forum.

When do you place a comma after "so" at the beginning of a sentence? If you have a rule of thumb that is easy to remember for my inquiring mind, would you please share? Again, as in my previous comma thread, I would love to hear from veteran reporters, scopists, proofreaders, transcriptionists, and students. For the students, do they cover these topics in school?

I have seen the comma used so many different ways with "so." I need a refresher course.

So what say you? So, what say you? Believe it or not, they used to call me "Comma Girl" in another life. LOL

[Kelli Combs (admin)]

I have never put a comma after so. Just looks wrong for some reason. I cannot think of a time where it would be appropriate to put a comma after so.

[Rachel Gard]

I do not put a comma after "so" at the beginning of a sentence. The same for "and" and "but" too at the beginning of the sentence, not to open a can of worms. This is just what I do. Don't know if there's a rule.

[Janet]

Hi Jennie,

I learned it the same way your 80-year-old friend did. I still want to put in the commas after So, But, and And, but I don't. I have taken several seminars, and they stressed that there should not be a comma there. What the instructor did say, though, is that there should always be commas around certain phrases, such as "by the way."

And, by the way, did you see him?
or
And, in fact, did he see you?

Those look right to me, but I know some people would do the following:

And by the way, did you see him?
And in fact, did he see you?

What would you do there?

Janet

[Kelli Combs (admin)]

I agree you should have commas around "by the way" and "in fact." Absolutely.

[Marge Teilhaber (TILE hobber)]

[[ And by the way, did you see him? ]]

yes to the comma because there's a pause when it's spoken and it's like an introductory clause.

[[ And in fact did he see you? ]]

No comma here because it flows, no pause, and no grammatical reason for the comma. It's choppy with the comma. Less is more.

[Mary Jo Cochran]

Myself, in THESE situations, did you HEAR or was there a pause?
If there is a pause, "So (pause),
No pause, "So did you go to ---

[Judy]

My ex-husband insisted there was ALWAYS a comma after "so," so I never have used one and never will use one.

[Kelli Combs (admin)]

Very funny. I can see your reasoning on that one.

[Marge Teilhaber (TILE hobber)]

I often use "so" as a conjunction. If it's between two complete sentences, comma before "so." Never ever use a comma after the word so.

[[ So, it was time to buy apples. ]]

There is no reason to use a comma after "so." There's no pause and no grammatical reason. It's one of the bad examples out there of people who don't know what they're doing so they put commas all over the place to make up for their lack of knowledge. (No comma before "so" here because of the flowing nature of the sentence.)

[Mary Ann Payonk]

I might possibly use a comma after "so" in the middle of a sentence, but rarely at the beginning ... same with "and" and "but." Like Rachel, I don't know about those rules -- or I might have at one time, at the same time I could define a dangling participle, I guess. But punctuation for court reporters is just different. I actually have put a comma after "so" at the beginning of the sentence, but it had little to do with the actual sentence and everything to do with the way the sentence was said. Speaking of those pesky rules, I've heard it said that commas (even dashes) can be used where one would naturally pause when speaking the sentence. And I punctuate a lot for meaning as I'm writing. So if there's a dramatic pause for effect or something, I may possibly put that comma in ... but again, rarely. Like Kelli, though, I can't think of any instance where it would always be appropriate to do so, and it does look wrong to me.

M.A.

[Jennie Ann]

Wow, these are FANTASTIC responses. I love this kind of talk! This is exactly the online dialog that I was hoping for, and you all great.

Janet, I also put commas before and after "in fact" and "in essence" and "by the way."

I am still puzzled with "so," though, at the beginning of a sentence, and now that I have read the variety of responses, I am still on the fence. Sometimes I punctuate on instinct, much like Rachel's thoughts on the comma with "so."

I do put a comma after "so" at the beginning of a sentence when there is a prepositional phrase after it, and like M.A., I tend to put a comma before "so" in the middle of a sentence, but I also may begin a new sentence in certain instances. [If I put a comma after "and" and before "M.A.," would that have been too much in the above sentence in this paragraph?]

Example A. I went to the store to buy apples, so now I can stay healthy.
Example B. I went to the store to buy apples so now I can stay healthy.
Example C. I went to the store to buy apples. So now I can stay healthy.

All three of the above examples look okay to my eye, but I lean towards A and C. That said, I agree with Marge that less is more. Why muddy up the waters?! In fact, I tend to lean more towards Kelli's preference of no comma after "so," with the exception of the prepositional phrase after it. So, in those instances, I do insert a comma after "so" [notice comma before and after "in those instances"].

Mary Jo brings up a very good school of thought about the pauses. The spoken word is not like textbook reading, and we do have to be creative with our punctuation.

A co-worker friend of mine, who today owns a court reporting company in D.C., always comes to my rescue on these topics. I'm always e-mailing him, asking for his advice. He used to be a teacher at a court reporting school in Virginia in his younger years on this very topic.

Here is a recent reply I received from him about punctuation: "Punctuation is your tool to help make the reader understand the document on the first go-through. Many times I have to re-read sentences because of lack of punctuation. That is the test for me, when I read a sentence and have to go back to punctuate it because reading it out loud, though in my mind, I didn’t understand and had to double back. So, it’s always a judgment call, but it’s about readability mostly, I think.

Dag nab it, he put a comma after "so" at the end. LOL

[Mary Ann Payonk]

If I had to make it one sentence, I'd tend to do it this way:

I do put a comma after "so" at the beginning of a sentence when there is a prepositional phrase after it and, like M.A., I tend to put a comma before "so" in the middle of a sentence, but I also may begin a new sentence in certain instances.

I do, I tend, but I may. But with a long sentence like that, I'd make "But I also ..." a new sentence.

M.A.