Recently a young writer wished to spell "skillfully" as "skilfully" and I advised against it. She provided no reason for the spelling to her reader. She told me that it is an accepted spelling in the dictionary, so she wanted to use it. Although skilfully is indeed an accepted spelling alternate, it is not commonly used in literature, medical, or scholarly text. I believe that most readers will think skilfully is a misspelling and book editors will mark it as a misspelling. Unless this young writer has a specific reason for the unusual spelling, that is obvious to her reader, I think she should use the standard spelling.

When I intentionally use an unusual word, unique expression, or atypical spelling I make sure that the reason is obvious. An excellent case in point is the current trendy expression: My bad. It is slang and it is used to apologize for a mistake. Example: "Sorry, my bad! I forgot to tell you he called and left a message." This relatively new expression is enjoying huge popularity. Consequently, it is used in a number of TV commercials and TV shows. Actors as young as kindergartners and as old as grand-great grandparents are saying it to the cameras.

Bottom-line Point:  We may use any words, expressions, and unusual spellings we wish if we do so wisely and if our readers can easily understand our reasons and our intentions.

An ellipsis is used to show missing text within quoted material, or a pause within a character's dialogue. The ellipsis is always three dots: "...".  Always three, not two, four, five; three. Style guidelines vary. Some people prefer an ending period if the ellipsis is at the end of a sentence, other guidelines are satisfied with no final period. 

A little history of the em-dash: in the day of the typewriter, an em-dash was represented by double hyphens amounting to the width of a capital "M" from the keyboard. With computers, you can format or insert an em-dash easily and it's used to indicate an interruption within dialogue, or to emphasize a certain phrase. There is never a space before or after an em-dash. 

Examples are always helpful, so let's get to them, shall we? 

(1) Ellipsis and em-dash in dialogue:

"Peter, please, what I meant was..."

"What? What did you mean?" 

Compare the above to this:

"Peter, please, what I meant was--"

"I don't want to hear your excuses. It's too late." 

Can you see how the first example is the first speaker trailing off and the second example has the first speaker being cut off? 

(2) Ellipsis and em-dash as pauses/breaks:

There it was again...that subtle, but creepy scratching.

There it was again--that loud, terrifying scratching. 

(3) Ellipses are great for slowing the reader down within narrative: "They gazed innocently into each other's eyes until hesitantly...gently...they shared their first kiss."  

Within documentation, ellipses are handy for shortening long text. Use the ellipsis to show missing words, whether only a few, or several, even a few sentences. For instance, you find parts of the Gettysburg Address handy for making a point. Use an ellipsis to remove words or phrases you don't want the reader to focus on.  

Special Note #1: A colon can sometimes be used instead of an em-dash. A colon announces to the reader that something special is coming along. The em-dash does the same, but is more dramatic. 

Special Note #2: A hyphen can not be used in place of an em-dash. A hyphen has its own special use to be talked about in a later column. 

This month's recommended grammar book is: The Only Grammar Book You'll Ever Need by Susan Thurman and Larry Shea. 

QUOTH THE EXPERTS:  "WRITE SOME MORE"

With apologies to Mr. Poe            By  Dodie Cross 

Help lies waiting for the wordless, simply open your thesaurus,  

Packed with pages full of meaning that you simply can't ignore:     

Quoth the Experts: "Write some more."

Do you find that you are staring at the screen so often bearing

Endless phrases going nowhere that should morph into a poem?

Then you surely now must cling to and so carefully adhere to

All the rules that you have learned, and lean upon them as before:

Quoth the Experts: "Write some more."

Are you blocked with eyes so bleary, shoulders taut and body weary,

Not equipped to stop the daunting doubts that gallop through your mind?

You must still the mindless chatter that drones on in negative manner,

Lest you miss it when your writer's muse raps softly on your door:

Quoth the Experts:  "Write some more."

Do you find your verbs escaping and your adverbs overtaking

All the sentences out-breaking with your prose that will not work?

Then it's time to take a breather, call upon your inner teacher

And discover what is missing in your verbiage and your lore:

Quoth the Experts:  "Write some more."

Do you close your eyes and fancy all the stories so entrancing,

With your fingers subtly dancing 'cross the keyboard in a song? 

Yet with nothing more forthcoming, and with scarcely little cunning,

You are sure to find your answer if your muse you so implore:

Quoth the Experts:  "Write some more."

Do you lie awake near midnight, with a pencil, pad and bed-light,

Finding words that have more meaning, with a mind aroused and scheming?

Then it's time to leave the confines of your bed and do a stair-climb 

To the window of your soul that can no longer be ignored:

Quoth the Experts: "Write some more." 

Do you fear the end result of editors who want no part of

All your energy and love of the creation that you wrought?

Fear no longer, you are stronger as you write, submit, and ponder

When the mailman might come knocking, knocking on your chamber door:

Quoth the Experts: "Write some more."

Do you find some tasks more pressing, when you ought to be addressing,

All your words that lie distressing, on your screen in disarray?

Let them wait until the morrow, let them wait with tears of sorrow

As you write your prose with rapture, as you've never done before:

 Quoth the Experts:  Write some more.

Do you watch for major pitfalls, reading magazines with tell-alls,

Of life's path that you have chosen, then you're bound to make it big!

Eagerly you write with passion, knowing that your grandest fashion

Will entrance and someday capture one sharp-minded edi-tor:

  Quoth the Experts: "Write some more."

 -----

Dodie has traveled the world writing about life in foreign countries.  Her first book, A Broad Abroad in Thailand: An Expat's Misadventures in the Land of Smiles took first place in the National Indie Excellence Awards for Humor and Silver in ForeWord Magazine's Book of the Year Awards for Memoir.  Also Gold and Silver in TravelersTales Solas Awards for travel excerpts from the book.  Coming in 2010:  A Broad Abroad in Iran: One Strappy-Sandaled Foot Ahead of the Mullahs. 

She's been published in the The Desert Sun, the Seattle Post Intelligencer, and as a guest columnist for the Lake Chelan Mirror in Washington State.  Her essays have appeared in the Monterey Bay Parents Magazine, the University of Texas Literary Magazine, RiverSedge, Expat e-zines: TalesMag.com and Escapeartists.com.  She is a member of the NLAPW, Palm Springs branch, and currently is a columnist for the Palm Springs Writers Guild.   

Audrey Shaffer    Renee Barnes    Kim Richards      Lisa Haselton