Hi. My name is Kristen and I’m a dash-aholic.
[All together now: Hi, Kristen.]

Truly, as a writer, I enjoy dash use — specifically, em-dash use — a little too much. I’ve also been accused of comma overuse; I blame my broadcast-journalism training for either/both. When you’re writing copy intended to be read aloud, punctuation that is grammatically proper just isn’t as important as punctuation that helps you read the copy correctly, especially on-air.

Regardless of why I do it, I do tend to employ the em-dash early and often. So I’m careful to reread my copy and make sure I’m using it correctly, which means not using it where commas will work, nor confusing it with the colon, hyphen or en-dash.

Still with me? Good! I know you know this, but let’s just go over the right and proper usage of the em-dash and its little[r] friends.

The em-dash [m-dash].
The longest of the group [the width of a letter M, presumably, hence the name], it looks like this: — , and is typically used to set off a parenthetical aside within a sentence. It can also be used to show the interruption of dialogue.

examples:
Sometimes, writing for money — a talent I’m happy to have — means being too tapped [typed?] out to write for fun.
“I reached in and pulled the spray can out of my pants — ” “With your mom watching?”

The en-dash [n-dash].
The middle child of the dash family [the width of a letter N], it looks like this: – , and is typically used to represent a range of things.

examples:
Please print only pages 7–13 and 21–27.
The bats live under the city’s main bridge March–October.

The hyphen.
The littlest dash of all, it looks like this: – , and is used to connect compounded words or grouped numbers.

examples:
I prefer to work out in a gym with a judgment-free zone.
Please call 555-394-1803 today for your free consultation.

The colon.
While a colon, like an em-dash, can be used to introduce further information into a sentence, a colon indicates the “something more” is an extension of the sentence, rather than a separate notion.

example:
She spent the summer indulging in her favorite pastimes: Godzilla movies; mountain-biking; and triage.

So, now that you’ve got all the dash data — dash away, dash away, dash away, all!!