One of the biggest takeaways I've gained from reading the book was the "No semicolons. Semicolons indicate relationships that only idiots need defined by punctuation" (Hugo, 80). One of my favorite things to incorporate in poems were my use of semicolons, so when Hugo stated this, I somewhat hated the statement at the moment but I understand that semicolons aren't necessary now. I also liked the quote above, basically reminding the reader that everybody will have hardships when writing, but on the other hand, your day will come.
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| My favorite quote from Richard Hugo. |
I don't necessarily disagree that you should try to minimize your use of semicolons, but I definitely don't think that anyone should forgo them entirely like Hugo suggests. It's important to understand the punctuation you're using in order to use it correctly, but you can still use it. It would be, like, getting sick of commas, being overused, in a sentence, and deciding that no one should use commas anymore. Additionally he says that his rules aren't absolute, but more guidelines that he tries to set for himself in order to better his writing.
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