Italics

"Like the exclamation mark, however, italics should be used sparingly for the purpose of emphasis - partly because they are a confession of stylistic failure, and partly because readers glancing at a page of type might unconsciously clock the italicised [British spelling] bit before starting their proper work of beginning in the top left-hand corner."
~Eats, Shoots & Leaves by Lynne Truss


I have been greatly enjoying this book.  Hopefully it will help me become a better writer.  Aside from that, it's just plain hilarious.  However, if I ensured I followed every single punctuation rule 100% in all my informal (blog, Facebook, informal e-mails) it would probably paralyze me.  I think I'll focus on getting it right in my more formal e-mails and writing.