Grammar Police

My rant on Grammar Police in Social Networks

I have always found it a bit aggravating to run across the Grammar Police during my adventures on the Social Networking sites I frequent.

First of all, compared to the vast majority of what I have read in status updates and news feeds, the mistakes I make do not come close to warranting the attention of Grammar Cops.  Many of these people, especially the generation coming up behind mine, post words (and I use that term loosely) that are not recognizable as English.

But secondly, and most annoying to me, is that fact that this is social networking.  It is not a college dissertation and type0s are to be expected.  I don’t know anyone that proof reads their tweets, calls in an editor for a Facebook entry, or scrutinizes their Google+ feed.  The fact of the matter is this is Social Networking, it is more about the exchange of ideas and thoughts (and more commonly the way you tell us all that you finished breakfast).  So be happy I didn’t tell you about my last toilet break instead of worrying about my use of punctuation.

Grammar and the Writer

So I can already hear the Grammar Cops saying: “Mr. Flores, you are a Author you should have more respect for the grammar law.”

Well, sorry Officer.  Good grammar is not necessary to be an amazing Author.

I will give you a minute to catch you breaths and pick your jaws up off the floor.

Think about the greatest stories you have ever read.  For me they include many great works by undisputed story telling superstars.  What made those stories good?  Was it the fact that the Author knew the right location for a semicolon?  Or was it the life-like characters, the vivid scenes, the compelling dialogue, and the intertwining plot threads?

If you are any of my English Teachers you probably said the semicolon.  If you are a true fan for reading and story telling, you likely chose the second.

It takes imagination to write a good story.  It takes skillful character building to make them real people.  It takes a skillful world builder to make a planet you have never seen seem like its your favorite vacation spot.  It takes a special talent to develop a plot that does not seem like it was developed at all.  It takes a whole different breed of person to then selflessly hash apart your work to make it reach a publishable word limit.  To remove scenes you are in love with because it doesn’t really move the story forward.  Or to ruthlessly murder your favorite character because his time had come.

The grammar errors can even be put in on purpose, to illustrate a point.  Words may be spelled wrong because as you desperately click away the keys on your keyboard you might miss a letter, or hit the wrong one.  It is part of the writing process.

Grammar Police do have a place

My spelling is not the best, my grammar can always use work.  But, that is why all my stories go though checks by other people.  I even have my own Grammar Cop that looks at my works in progress just to catch grammar mistakes and ignores the prose.  I need them, but when the time is right.

When I have gotten the story just right.  When it is just about to go out to those pesky (but necessary) editors.  I hand my work to my Grammar Cop and she writes me a boat load of infractions.  I pay the fine, fix the mistakes, and send it out.

But when I am on the social networks, writing in forums, or posting on this blog the Grammar Cops can move along.  There is nothing more to see here.