sloppy grammar

Agreements with those who protest and pedantry comments - so many editors/agents etc moan about grammer and spelling. For god's sake - let us be! The story matters more than the rudiments! Pick us small timers on talent and imagination rather than pragmatic sifting for 'they're' spelt as 'their'. Pathetic!

poo bum will e no the rules be4 u brake m

Butt, we can learn with TIME TURKEY CHASER! Add one letter, move one comma along... and we're in a whole different ball park. Meaning is at the mercy of poor communication... but not any longer with new improved TIME TURKEY CHASER! Suitable for home freezing.

We've got a clever one here - I bet you can Haiku when you masterbate and everything!

hmmm ...

ur...

... yeah

Seriously... the 'learning' aspect is fundamental to any aspect of life and it is a wonderful attitude to have, but poor grammar and poor spelling still WILL and DOES matter to many readers no matter how much creativity or ingenuity is at work. And what IS curious is how the people that pick on folk out of the blue with regard to poor this, that or the other are usually too smug to notice their own mistakes. Accidents waiting to happen, so they are...

a handy best friend is all you need when jerking to the haiku beat

All I'm saying is that surely imagination should mean more than just grammer, spelling etc. No sob story, no arguments or smug attitude - just get the basics right with good imagination and the rest will follow. We really should spend more time encouraging (in a constructive, non-twee way) eachother and less time time trying to out-philosophise eachother.

Well, I s'pose it kind of depends whether you want to get published or not. Or whether you're prepared (or care) that readers might be put off (which many are) by bad grammar, sloppy spelling etc. If you don't care whether you're published and also don't give a toss how many people might be put off, then It doesn't matter at all, of course. If you do, get your act together...

I do care, and I spend a lot of time going through my work checking for basic errors. I'm more concered about the newer writers who may come to ABC looking for guidance and just get arrogance and pomposity.

Please substitute 'you' for 'one' then - my mistake. Genuinely - I wasn't being sarcastic - sorry if I offended you.

I thought language was a tool, not a religion. I thought it was a means of communication, not a straitjacket imposed by the establishment. Americans, we are told, don't speak "English" correctly. They seem to have succeeded in most fields anyway. There are many languages purporting to be "English", all presumably meeting the need for a means of efficiently transmitting information. And what about art? Do we use only those hallowed rules that have been handed down by the previous generation, unable to develop a new concept, a different way of doing things. Sorry, Picasso. Let's face it, English is succesful, as is the christian church, because it is a chamelion, a man for all seasons, capable of change, and yet still a thing of beauty. Please forgive any bad grammar in the above. Aaaaaaaaaaaaaagh!

I have no wish to be a pain in the ass (I just am!) but unfortunately grammar and punctuation ARE important, if for no other reason than in this class-ridden society it has the effect of placing people in certain social groups. I don't personally think this is relevant to 'writing' but many literate and literary people do. Publishers and agents probably fall into this category and may well be dismissive of anybody who doesn't write in a fluent and acceptably literate style. I have been told by teachers that lots of schools no longer teach grammar and pay scant attention to spelling either. Perhaps it's time that ABC had it's own spellcheck and grammar check programmes that can be used on the discussion boards as well as for posting 'work'!

we ought to recognise the fundamental difference between being able to TELL a story and being able to WRITE a story... if someone really wants to be a WRITER then they should knuckle down and learn how to WRITE... if someone just wants to tell stories then they should perhaps tap the oral tradition where an audience rarely hears bad spelling or punctuation

That's a very sad way of looking at story telling. Your attitude seems to blow away all the romance and body of what makes a story important. Maybe you should go into philology if the mechanics and structures of stories fascinate you more that plot and enjoyment?

Regardless of how you spell, punctuate, parse or conjugate (and I'll bet there's a rare lot of little conjugaters out there), what I'd like to know is this: does this site actually help anyone into print or bring them to the direct notice of publishers? Are we just navel gazing? It's great to share experiences with other writers and to see what you are all doing, so I'm not bitching. And, God knows, seeing all those lovely cherries on one's work is certainly encouraging. But...is there anyone out there who can tell me they have benefitted in practical, hard cash terms? I would love to know. Thanks.

Today, the posters outside newsagents in the town are printed with; "Local man gets Life Sentance" Grr.

Their, their Marina -- its okay. (That was a joke, by the way) (Yes, both the incorrect usage of 'their' and the incorrect usage of 'its') :)

I once saw a sign outside a bakery that said: Hot 'pies'... I don't know if they were trying to imply that the pies weren't actually pies.

i once read a CV where the job applicant had attended "Grammer School"....

*enters thread with pedantic expression... *rubs legs *exits

I ain't sayin' a word...

...and y'all know why, dontcha now...?

I'm crap at spelling and my grammar leaves a lot to be desired! (even though I did an A level in the bloody subject). What I like about this site is the fact that you can use words freely and in any style without the classroom atmosphere. If Andrew Pack or any of the other Abc peeps on here had picked me up on my mistakes, I doubt I would have lasted more than a few days!

I wish my grammar was (were?) better because it would help me get my point across better - it's also amazing what difference a comma or a semi colon can make. In the end though the message is the cake and grammer the icing. It might look more appetising, and maybe even tastes a little bit better, but it's unlikely to be a lot more nourishing or palatable than without. It just takes a bit lomger to eat.

Mykle - you want the subjunctive, pal.

Linsi, strictly speaking, don't you mean "A-level"? :) *flinches to avoid impending backhand*

Thanks for the advice dogstar - where can I get it?

I've got all you can handle sweet ;-) Sue.

mykle, i will gladly let you have it

i read a book once that was all one sentence with no puctuation of any kind it was an entire novel very weird subject matter it was pretty good

*throws shoe at Miles* :OP

Grrrrr! Down Boy! Bad dog!