Q. I am working with some marketing copy for the back cover of a book that has a three-word title with a period after each word. To my reading, it looks awkward in body copy to include all these periods. I might suggest using commas instead of periods to convey there isn’t a full stop at the end of each word. Does this sound reasonable to you?
A. That sounds reasonable, though it could depend on your title. Let’s say that your book has the following title on its cover and title page:
Lather.
Rinse.
Repeat.
Referring to Lather, Rinse, Repeat in the text would keep readers from stumbling while retaining the sense of the title. But let’s say a different (also hypothetical) book had this on its cover and title page:
I.
Don’t.
Care.
Referring to that title as I, Don’t, Care rather than I. Don’t. Care. would ruin the staccato effect of those periods. It would be better, in that case, to embrace the spirit of that title and defy convention.