Is there anyone out there who knows the answer?
Is it:
“Are you leaving this evening, John?” she asked. (small “s”)
OR:
“Are you leaving this evening, John?” She asked. (capital “S”)
The second version separates the two as separate entities and actions. (1. The question. 2. She asked.)
Does anyone know which is correct?
14 Comments on “Quotes and a question mark?”
Pingback: My Homepage
The first.
The first. Definitely.
Do I win something if I get the right answer.
Oh, I guess Mary wins the Porsche because she answered first.
Yes sorry. Mary has won the Porsche. kaye
I vote the first one too.
But what do I know?
Went to a FUN Sisters in Crime meeting yesterday and saw editors from magazine in my latest story will appear—they were grousing in their program about writers who don’t format correctly. I felt as if they looking directly at me.
OOOps- See what I mean!
I meant: I saw editors from magazine in WHICH my latest story will appear!
Hey Ellen,
They would never have published your story if they were looking directly at you. Oh dear, that was an awkward sentence. If they were looking directly…. no wait…… awkward sentence… it’s the sentence’s fault…. that sounded awkward…
Why could it not be the second which sounds so much more emphatic? I like that more, but don’t know contextually which applies
Good question Patricia.
The second one implies two separate actions. “She asked.” would imply that she asked something else or could have walked away and asked anything of anybody (even though the reader knows the truth.) It is a separate sentence and does not make much sense on its own as a sentence. The action of asking in this context is one total action and therefore the question and the fact that she asked needs to be within one sentence. I welcome proof to the contrary as this is one mistake that I see quite often when critiquing. However, as you said, context might change the meaning of the whole. Kaye
Thanks for the explanation. Something to remember.
Pingback: safari bedding
Pingback: keliones
Pingback: Open Office
Pingback: Ares Free Download