Punctuation in Midjourney v5

Understanding Punctuation in Midjourney

When working with Midjourney, it is crucial to use punctuation effectively. While using punctuation the way you learned in school is generally recommended, there are specific guidelines to keep in mind when troubleshooting or resolving issues.

The only punctuation that Midjourney recognizes are

• double-hyphens (--),
• double-colons (::),
• and spaces.

Double-hyphens, also known as em dashes, delimit parameters.

Double-colons delimit integers, both positive and negative, for weights.

Spaces are used to separate tokens. Anything else that isn't one of these three is considered noise and is not functional.

Noise as a Tool for Sculpting Images

Even though noise may not have any functional purpose in Midjourney's processing, it can be a fascinating tool for sculpting images. For example, using brackets [ ], curly braces { }, forward slashes / /, semicolons ; ;, or parentheses ( ) may not affect Midjourney's processing, but they can be used to create interesting prompt structures that generate unique ideas.

The Importance of Commas

Midjourney does not recognize commas, hyphens, or brackets. However, since humans use them, it is recommended that you use them in your prompts. Commas can be especially helpful in understanding token grouping and improving prompt readability. Therefore, while Midjourney does not recognize the comma, it is still recommended that you use it to create well-correlated prompts.

The Role of Hyphenation

Although Midjourney does not recognize hyphens, they can be useful when troubleshooting to increase the relationship between tokens. For instance, writing "Brass-antique-candlestick" instead of "Antique brass candlestick" may improve the prompt's effectiveness.