A difficult part of writing for me is when a single sentence–especially dialogue–contains two tones. It sounds best as a single sentence, but ending with a period, or alternative punctuation, looks wrong. As well as this, using two sentences also looks wrong.
I can’t think of a great example right now, but I know I’ve wanted punctuation that doesn’t exist before. I’ve had moments where it would have been so useful to have a “;!” and a “;?” mark.
Kinda like this sentence?; because it starts off as a question, but I explain it afterwards with a statement.
What we really need is a format option for backwards italics (sartalics) instead of a stupid proprietary font.
I’ve occasionally seen the exclamation mark put inside of parentheses. I interpret it as the writer saying to the reader, “are you seeing this shit?”
Anyway, not sure if that’s what you’re going for here.
I’m only going for a semicolon with tonality. Overall, super simple and straightforward. It uses already existing marks with already established meaning, and provides a useful way to transcribe dialogue.
Why does this not exist;? Something so damned simple!
Edit: It’s not related to (!) or (?). I know, since I quite literally just used these a moment ago somewhere else. It is a little similar, but it’s different.
Why does this not exist;? Something so damned simple!
You don’t really need to link these clauses together, it sounds clunky. A question should probably be independent the vast majority of the time, and when it isn’t it should come last.
Like this: Something so damned simple; why does it not exist? I think it sounds way better and is easier to read. If you need to describe the tone, that could be a sentence that comes before or after. It’s easier to do this in dialogue than in thoughts, but still doable either way.
I think what you’re proposing is unnecessary when you could just rewrite it to flow better. I can guarantee you that there’s probably a better way to structure your sentence than simply inserting a new form of punctuation.
So, for the record, these things come into existence in the first place simply because someone, somewhere, starts using them. Language is something that drifts over time, and punctuation is no exception.
It’s a bit harder to do this digitally though since the glyphs aren’t just marks on paper.
I daresay this would be a revolutionary addition to grammar;! What say you?
¿Perhaps something like this:
?Exactly this. If you know what a semicolon and question mark/exclamation point’s purpose is, then you know how this punctuation works. The best tool is that which requires no manual at all. Occam’s Razor, or something along those lines.
¡It’s immediately, perfectly understandable! :k
I don’t really understand what you mean, do you have examples of how you would use it? Or a scenario where you would need it
I have been posting examples under other comments
Does this cover what you’re asking for, I hope it does?!
Because English needs to be more complex
are you envisioning it as a lighter exlamation, question ??
It’s just an exclamation or question mark combined with the purpose of a semicolon; Not quite ending a sentence, but also changing the tone midway through. It’s situational, but I’d absolutely find it useful.
ok I think I get it. seems as valid as using double question marks or exclamation marks which is kinda common.
Italics
Have you tried handwriting italics? It’s not fun.
Switch from block letters to cursive, or vice versa. Or all capitals. Anything that shows a difference.
