Lewis Thomas On Comma Use

The older I get the less I like commas.

In fact, I think proper comma use is simply fewer commas.

They are distracting unless they are absolutely necessary.

The paragraph below proves the point. No explanation needed.

Via Brain Pickings:

He makes his case for commas in a nearly comma-free paragraph, adorned by precisely four exquisitely pinned specimens:

The commas are the most useful and usable of all the stops. It is highly important to put them in place as you go along. If you try to come back after doing a paragraph and stick them in the various spots that tempt you you will discover that they tend to swarm like minnows into all sorts of crevices whose existence you hadn’t realized and before you know it the whole long sentence becomes immobilized and lashed up squirming in commas. Better to use them sparingly, and with affection, precisely when the need for each one arises, nicely, by itself.

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