Serial comma toast. Adding a serial comma removes this ambiguity. Writers who normally avoid the serial comma often use one in these circumstances, although sometimes re-ordering the elements of such a list can help as well. In some circumstances using the serial comma can create ambiguity. If the book dedication above is changed to the serial comma after "Ayn Rand" creates ambiguity about the writer's mother because it uses punctuation identical to that used for an appositive phrase, leaving it unclear whether this is a list of three entities (1, my mother; 2, Ayn Rand; and 3, God) or of only two
The Chicago Manual of Style an interposed comma. If the author's name is used in the text, only the date of publication need be cited parenthetically (with or without the page number). In-text citations are usually placed just inside a mark of punctuation. An exception to this rule is for block quotations, where the citation is placed outside the punctuation. The full citation for the source is then included in a references section at the end of the material. As publication dates are prominent in this style, the reference entry places the publication date "following" the author(s) name. Using notes and bibliography style, the sourced