Writing with a Southern Accent

 

My favorite form of punctuation is the comma.  I also use a lot of dot-dot-dots (also known as "ellipses") to enable me to continue my "run-on" thoughts in a run-on sentence and to, hopefully, keep it from sounding like I'm "running on."

I confess that I don't always use commas and ellipses correctly, but tend to happily and generously sprinkle them in and amongst my writings to slow down my thoughts as I'm writing ... and to give my reader a chance to pause as he or she is reading my babblings. [Did you notice how you slowed down when you got to the "dot-dot-dots?"]

My own rule of thumb about when to use a comma is quite simple: When I finish writing a story, I read it out loud and when I need to take a breath in between phrases, I insert a comma ... or if I really get short of breath while reading, I will add the little dot-dot-dots, instead of a comma. 

My photography website is called "Photography with a Southern Accent," so I suppose that it's possible that my southern accent could carry over to my style of writing, too.  Could that be the reason I use so many commas to slow it down?

By now, I'm sure you're wondering why in the world I spent valuable time babbling on and on about commas and dot-dot-dots, of all things.  To be honest, as I proofread this, I was kind of wondering the same thing!  

But, at least, in the future ... if you ever read one of my stories again ... maybe you can imagine me reading it to you in my slow, southern drawl, slightly pausing for effect after each little comma and dot-dot-dot.