About ten minutes ago (around 3:45AM), I read an email from “Bill”, who “had the advantage of a good education in Australia.” Bill noticed a glaring grammatical error on a previous entry. He “whacked me on the knuckles” with his Aussie ruler, and told me how to use an apostrophe correctly.
I know how to use an apostrophe correctly, but didn’t when writing, “Martin Luther King Reminds Writer’s To Dream.” I read that title repeatedly, but never noticed the error. This suggests that any writer can make an obvious mistake, and blanche when someone says, “Good grief fella. Don’t you know how to use apostrophes?”
Bill found my error “alarming” because I lacked an “awareness of …the use of the possessive apostrophe. ” I really do, but I approved the post before editing. My wife has a “24 hour rule”. Give every decision at least 24 hours of contemplation and review before committing.
Now, a misplaced apostrophe is bad enough. Bill caught something else. A “g” at the end of Martin Luther King’s (got that possessive apostrophe correct, right Bill?) name. That was a dumb typo that should have been caught too.
Bill writes, “Please accept that I am equally capable of making errors but I usually take a moment to check the accuracy of what I have written before presenting it to the world. ” He’s right; there’s nothing smart about writing with sophomoric errors that distract my reader.
Here’s the real rub and disappointment. Bill assessed any benefit from my posts and the Echievements Writer’s Community from my title mistakes. He may never read another line because I offended his English grammar sensibilities. That’s disappointing.
I’ve found many grammatical mistakes when reading blogs, Twits, or newsletters. Usually, I overlook them because the content seems useful. This does not lessen the importance of Bill’s reminders to write and edit carefully. However, I will overlook my wife’s 24 hour rule on this post.
Bill’s comment about my joining “…the ‘madding crowd’ who ignore the basics in what appears to be a ”head long rush into mediocrity and compromise” stings. My title error does not necessarily place me, or any writer in a world of “mediocrity and compromise” .
Whether writing a blog, sending an email message, a thank you note, or writing a novel, the content matters. Too many messages are replete with ”mediocrity and compromise” despite grammatical and punctuation errors. It’s (not “its”) the words that kill, not the punctuation. No reference to you, Bill.
“Sorry to be so critical but maybe we should attempt to preserve the English language and its (NOT it’s)quaint idiosyncrasies. ” I agree Bill. Writing demands thoughtful content and careful constructs (syntax, grammar, paragraph structure, etc.). More importantly (not to diminish Bill’s points), words bring messages that change direction, entertain, instruct, or heal. When a punctuation error or grammatical faux pas appears, let the author know, but don’t throw his message out with the typo or the misplaced apostrophe.
Bill, thanks for your message. I have one other “Aussie” acquantance. Maybe you’ll become one too.
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