---
name: No em dashes anywhere
description: Hard rule — never use em dashes (—) in any text I produce for the user, regardless of medium
type: feedback
---

Never use em dashes (`—`, U+2014) in any text written for this user. Applies to ALL outputs, not just papers:
- Paper LaTeX
- README files
- Social media posts (LinkedIn, X, etc.)
- Commit messages
- Webpage copy
- Slack/email drafts
- Even informal chat replies if I'm proposing text for the user to copy

**Why:** The user dislikes em dashes for stylistic reasons and has corrected this multiple times across different mediums (paper, LinkedIn post, README). It is a recurring annoyance that I keep failing on. The previous rule in `feedback_paper_writing_rules.md` was scoped to papers only, which caused me to keep using em dashes in non-paper writing.

**How to apply:** Use these alternatives instead:
- A period (`.`) — for separating two independent clauses
- A comma (`,`) — for inline clauses
- A colon (`:`) — for introducing a definition or expansion
- Parentheses (`(...)`) — for asides
- "such as" / "including" / "i.e." — for examples or clarifications
- A regular hyphen (`-`) is also fine in informal contexts

**Self-check before sending text for the user:** If my output contains any `—` character, replace it before sending.
