Death of the semicolon?

"A pessimist sees the difficulty in every opportunity; an optimist sees the opportunity in every difficulty." - Winston Churchill

Do you know how to use a semicolon? The other week I met a really fascinating entrepreneur at a networking event. I couldn’t wait to take a look at his website. At first glance it was bright and well laid-out with great pictures.

But it was infected with semicolons. Like pin pricks in a balloon, these dots and commas immediately deflated my enthusiasm. Here’s just one example, with a change of context:

• Reach the highest branches; we help you find the best harvesting tools for your orchard.

Them’s the rules

At first I couldn’t work out why this semicolon jarred so much. In a sentence a semicolon should be like the pivot on a balanced see-saw. I went through the checklist:

1. Could each section stand as a sentence in its own right? Yes.

2. Were the sections before and after the semicolon related to each other? Yes.

3. Were the sections similar in length, or the second one shorter? Not really, but maybe at a push.

So what was my problem?

Then realisation dawned – it’s all about the context. Shorter sentences work better on a website. Why? Our attention span is shorter when we read from a screen. Also shorter sentences sound more like real-life conversation. This helps makes up for the sterile, non-human screen environment.

In theory Mr Inspirational Entrepreneur had used the semicolon correctly. But it was making his business sound old-fashioned and pompous.

“But I love semicolons!”

Hey, I’m not the punctuation police. In literature, they can be a thing of elegant beauty. In long reports, they still have their uses. But if you’re determined to use them, first check out the Oatmeal’s brilliant and dinosaur-filled guide to the semicolon.

What about semicolons in lists?

In the past semicolons were used to split up a list such as:

“I recommend you visit the Churchill War Rooms; see the musical Wicked; and indulge in the champagne bar at St Pancras Station.”

However now we have bulleted lists, which are Google-friendly and easier to read. For example:

“I recommend you:

• visit the Churchill War Rooms
• see the musical Wicked
• indulge in the champagne bar at St Pancras Station”

Quick alternatives

Writing for business? Then I would avoid the semicolon. It’s just too easy to get wrong. Here are some friendlier alternatives. Examples by the master writer Winston Churchill:

Dash or hyphen

Use a dash or hyphen to split the sentence. This mimics the pauses in conversation. If your words sound more like natural speech, they automatically sounds friendlier.

"In those days he was wiser than he is now - he used frequently to take my advice." - Winston Churchill

Colons

 Use a colon to split the sentence. Including a colon is like saying “Wait for it… Ta-da!” It’s a great way to let your reader take a pause before leading them to the next thing.

"There are two things that are more difficult than making an after-dinner speech: climbing a wall which is leaning toward you and kissing a girl who is leaning away from you." - Winston Churchill

Full stops

Would it read better as a group of smaller sentences, instead of one long one? Short sentences pack more of a punch. They should certainly be no longer than 15 words.

I am fond of pigs. Dogs look up to us. Cats look down on us. Pigs treat us as equals. - Winston Churchill

Headers

Headers are excellent ways to split up your text. They also give your page some more white space. The more white space there is, the easier a page is to read.

Which do you think is best?

Reach the highest branches – we help you find the best harvesting tools for your orchard.

Reach the highest branches: we help you find the best harvesting tools for your orchard.

Reach the highest branches. We help you find the best harvesting tools for your orchard.

Reach the highest branches

We help you find the best harvesting tools for your orchard.

Reach the highest branches; we help you find the best harvesting tools for your orchard.

Still worried about making a mistake?

I’d be happy to have an obligation-free chat. You have an accountant for your figures, so why not a professional for your words? I can help with Google-friendly web content, social media and brochures. Please get in touch.

P.S. See Churchill’s onesie

For an evocative museum about the Second World War the Churchill War Rooms in London are amazing. You’ll even get to see his red velvet onesie. Yes, seriously.