*star* talk

It seems like the use of *asterisks* in writing is all of a sudden popular. I don't know where it comes from or how exactly it caught so that now *everyone* is doing it, but I confess I kind of love it. Is it the written version of the *air quote,* like when you put up your hands and quote a *catch phrase* and/or convey a sense of *irony?* Maybe it is like saying *ahem* on the page. There is an air of *sarcasm* in there, but not in a mean way, it seems more to connote *wit* or, if one is referring to oneself, an added air of *self-deprecation.*

I enjoy new trends in written communication.

And because I am an even bigger nerd, I admit that a small point of style issue with the *asterisks* is keeping me up at night. Do they function like quotation marks in America, or like the colon and semi-colon. Meaning, when using asterisks in conjunction with other punctuation, does that other punctuation fall inside or outside of the asterisks? Because asterisks function so similar to quotation marks, just with a slightly different connotation, I have decided to treat them similarly. Periods, question marks, and exclamation points will fall inside the last asterisk at the end of a sentence, while colons and semi-colons will be placed outside the last asterisk, like so:

1. Today, penelope blogged about punctuation trends, which are clearly *monumental.*

2. Tomorrow at Target, I wish to purchase the following *essentials*: cookies, Strawberry Shortcake band-aids, and perhaps another t-shirt.

Obviously, the rule would be just the opposite in Britain. I may be entirely incorrect, but because the *asterisk* trend is so new and maybe even just a passing phase, we could be waiting a while or even forever on an official grammatical ruling. So, you heard it here first: asterisks=quotation marks when it comes to points of style. I know you're all grateful for my *humanitarian efforts.*