Incoherent GA Authors

[Sagar]

We have understood the problem. Now what's the solution? One may suggest that people who cannot write correct English be barred from posting in GA. But I don't subscribe to this view. For, despite their poor ability in English people may have something interesting to say. Besides, they may find it pressing to share their experiences with the learned readers of this community. My humble suggestion is that you people, who have a good grasp over English provide more editorial support to authors, whom you consider to have something interesting to say. Sorry for my poor English!:pickaxe:

 

 

 

 

[old bob]

I like that

I like that too

[NaperVic]

Compared to the total GA membership, the number of active members who actually post in the forums is small as it is, let's not find more reasons to discourage them and any lurkers.

[old bob]

You have to distinguish stories and posts in forums.

Writing stories is a long term matter. Authors should have time to correct their style and their speelling.

Posting in forums is more a matter of passion or participation and doesn't need to be right edited.

For me, when I post, I always use Babylon translater if I have a difficulty to find the exact term I want to use in english.

Some posters write their comment in a way that's american slang for me. I'm happy of that, because it's an occasion to learn a bit of a strange language .

[jon-jon]

Whoooa! 7 negs (so far). I must have touched a veeerrrry sensitive nerve.

 

I am fully aware that some authors are better than others as are some editors better than others and when I read a story and find the errors are getting in the way of the story, I drop it. But I was (I thought clearly) not referring to the stories (that's a whole 'nother ball game) but to the off the cuff thread replies.

 

I also am fully aware that for many of our members, English is not their first language and I check the writers location when I read the posts. Actually, our non-English-first members generally express themselves much more coherently than many of our native speakers.

 

And, I was not referring to typos and misspellings. I was, I thought, limiting my protest to coherency; the ability to say in an understandable way what it is you are thinking. Typos and misspellings are irritating, but they don't usually interfere with coherence.

 

I just thought, as "authors", that ability to express yourself should be reflected in your posts.

 

Maybe I should have started the thread with the question "What constitutes a qualified GA Author?"

 

Or maybe, I'm just expecting too much.

 

LOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOL

 

see bold.

 

HaHa. You got me. Spelling was never my strong suite but I try; and the dictionary is right in front of me.

Edited September 15, 2010 by jon-jon

[AnytaSunday]

I was, I thought, limiting my protest to coherency; the ability to say in an understanable way what it is you are thinking.

 

Hmmmm... My thoughts are often a tangled web. Somedays, I just have difficulty expressing myself simply and to the point. But rambling helps me get there.

 

Depending on the thread, I don't think this matters much (For example, if I'm jotting down my thoughts on Harry Potter verse Twilight). For more serious topics, I can see how this lack of coherency would be frustrating. It's something to watch out for, I guess.

 

Interesting read.

[MikeL]

"What contitutes a qualified GA Author?"

 

HaHa. You got me. Spelling was never my strong suite but I try; and the dictionary is right in front of me.

Perhaps it's one who is not incontinent.

[ConcreteHeart]

[Kev de Cauchery]

Actualy English is not my first language... my first language is a conglomeration of sarcasm and bullshit

 

LOL~

 

And actually mine are typos and nonsense. =)

 

 

 

[Tiger]

I make plenty of mistakes in my posts on the forums. I think everyone does. It's not meant to be a place where you automatically write perfectly. In fact, it's the opposite. I don't like to mention biblical verses, but one is coming to mind, because it parallels. "Let he who is without sin cast the first stone."

[Sagar]

 

 

What bugs me personally (And I don't see this much or at all at GA) is people posting in nothing but texting shorthand, plus random capitalization thrown in: "LoLz shR, l8Tr" for line after line. That's what I consider incoherent.

 

Sometimes it is required that shorthands be use within a story. Say, for example, if one quotes online direct communication (chatting on the Internet), then it is absolutely necessary to use shorthands to represent the thing truly. But writing an entire story in shorthands is really horrible. I think, very few people, if any, would actually like to do that.

[C James]

Sometimes it is required that shorthands be use within a story. Say, for example, if one quotes online direct communication (chatting on the Internet), then it is absolutely necessary to use shorthands to represent the thing truly. But writing an entire story in shorthands is really horrible. I think, very few people, if any, would actually like to do that.

 

Fully agreed, within a story and as called for by the plot. In the same vein, I use relaxed grammatical standards in dialog (more for some characters than others) and I'll do the same in narration, to a lessor degree, if the story is in first-person I also try to keep vocabulary and vernacular consistent with the character's - or if first person, the narrator's - age and background.

 

What I meant regarding the texting shorthand wasn't for stories, but for forum posts. There it's just annoying when done to excess. I don't actually recall seeing it on GA, but I have seen sites that have it often. It makes me far less likely to return.

[sat8997]

You have a point and for you it is perfectly reasonable. However, I think that my position is diametrically opposite. For me life is too short to miss depth and meaning just because of poor presentation. For me the passion and the content are far more important that the technical correctness. As long as I know what they mean that's fine by me.

 

While I'll agree with Nephy's statement on principle, I'd like to strongly suggest to our 'freshmen' authors that they not forget the technical aspect of writing entirely.

 

Nothing irritates me more than to see twenty or so chapters of a story in eFiction, posted over a three or four month period, where the twentieth chapter has just as many grammatical errors as the first chapter. And the author notes continually state "I've not edited, or even bothered to proofread, let alone do a basic run through spellchecker, but I expect you to heap praise on my awesome writing anyway". Okay

[Prince Duchess]

Were all human.

[Rizan]

I'm sorry; I'm really trying to take you seriously, but my stance is much the same as Chase. You speak of being coherent and using correct grammar, and yet both of your posts within this thread are littered with atrocious grammar. But, I can try my best to ignore it; it's quite hard, being a grammar Nazi and all.

 

I do understand where you are coming from, but if you think it's bad here, try reading some stories on Nifty...talk about horrible. I can not, for the life of me, read a lot of those stories any longer because the bridge between what the writer thought and what I read has long since vanished. Forums are meant to be laid back; posts are not essays and as such, grammar really is not imperative to make an impact. Yes, it betters your argument, but it is not a requirement.

 

You can always do what I do: When in an argument, or a discussion, or anything within the forum, if you find someone using bad grammar, or spelling things incorrectly; let us say the person you are speaking with misspells the word sentence; you could always just instantly discredit them based on their grasp of English.

[Amelia]

Feel free to skip the post if you can't decipher is meaning. Honestly, I think those are pretty few and far between.

[option]

The way I approach forums:

they are a quick communication method, so rules of writing can be relaxed.

 

Grammer & sentence structure isnt so important, though it must still make sense.

Spelling remains important, as does using the correct words.

 

If having a problem putting thoughts into a sentence, try a list or short notes.

[Nephylim]

While I'll agree with Nephy's statement on principle, I'd like to strongly suggest to our 'freshmen' authors that they not forget the technical aspect of writing entirely.

 

Nothing irritates me more than to see twenty or so chapters of a story in eFiction, posted over a three or four month period, where the twentieth chapter has just as many grammatical errors as the first chapter. And the author notes continually state "I've not edited, or even bothered to proofread, let alone do a basic run through spellchecker, but I expect you to heap praise on my awesome writing anyway". Okay

[Mark Arbour]

I make plenty of mistakes in my posts on the forums. I think everyone does. It's not meant to be a place where you automatically write perfectly. In fact, it's the opposite. I don't like to mention biblical verses, but one is coming to mind, because it parallels. "Let he who is without sin cast the first stone."

 

You quoting the bible? I think all of Christianity vomited collectively.

 

 

While I'll agree with Nephy's statement on principle, I'd like to strongly suggest to our 'freshmen' authors that they not forget the technical aspect of writing entirely.

 

Nothing irritates me more than to see twenty or so chapters of a story in eFiction, posted over a three or four month period, where the twentieth chapter has just as many grammatical errors as the first chapter. And the author notes continually state "I've not edited, or even bothered to proofread, let alone do a basic run through spellchecker, but I expect you to heap praise on my awesome writing anyway". Okay

[Myk]

But I digress. I think that Jon Jon has made himself quite clear that a) he was talking about forum posts and not stories and he was not talking about grammar and spelling he was talking about the way that points are put across and people express themselves. He's talking about posts that, although perhaps perfectly gramattical just don't make sense.

 

I was as guilty as anyone in the beginning of misunderstanding but I think he clarified later. Therefore as much as I agree with your post I don't think it addresses the point raised.

 

Although having said that I think that the fact that so many people have misunderstood the thread is somewhat ironic in itself.

I think she nailed it

 

I agree with a lot of what has been said so far. To focus on the actual intent of this thread, that being the coherency of forum posts, I think it is a mixed bag. Yes, the point is communication, which would generally make the process of getting your idea across important. On the other hand though it is a casual form of communication and in many ways I look at it more as a conversation. To that end I purposefully will employ incorrect grammar very often so as to mimic the way I actually speak and for that matter think. The spelling, well that is just my fault. In terms of actually being understood, well I may be shooting myself in the foot there but as many have said, life is too short. I don't care if I don't make sense, neither should you, just move on

 

As to a point that has not been addressed yet (and here I can not help put on my old team member hat), being in the 'author' member grouping has nothing to do with any specific qualifications as you have suggested. The Writer Support Team (WST) does not police and test everyone who wants to be in that group. That group is specifically created for anyone who wants to post stories in the eFiction section of the site. Being in the group allows you to do so, and designates you as someone who has posted something to the site. There is no guarantee of coherency placed upon that member by the staff here, there is simply no way they could be expected to 'vet' everyone of them.

 

Fully agreed, within a story and as called for by the plot. In the same vein, I use relaxed grammatical standards in dialog (more for some characters than others) and I'll do the same in narration, to a lessor degree, if the story is in first-person I also try to keep vocabulary and vernacular consistent with the character's - or if first person, the narrator's - age and background.

 

What I meant regarding the texting shorthand wasn't for stories, but for forum posts. There it's just annoying when done to excess. I don't actually recall seeing it on GA, but I have seen sites that have it often. It makes me far less likely to return.

Well crap, I quoted CJ's post to point out how he uses 'relaxed grammatical standards in dialog', which is what I do in forum posts occasionally. Anyways, I already covered that above, so I won't bore anyone with it again.

 

You quoting the bible? I think all of Christianity vomited collectively.

 

I would accept that as a hypothesis, not an empirical fact.

hahahaha, you are awesome mark!! (I could have used lol there, but didn't want to disturb anyone with that grammatical taboo)

 

Greg

This message has been spell check approved.

[Heart]

There are timess i forget about inserting capital letters since when I was at school we used braille and didn't bother about caps. When starting to type, it's sometimes an effort to remmember to use it. I know when and where to use caps, its just remmembering, but some interesting responses, if the message goes through, thats communication isn't it?

[Phantom]

I think I'm in the same boat as CJames because my typos are horrendous sometimes and other times they're manageable (I'm really notorious with your and you're). That's why when I write a paper, story, etc I always have someone check it over.

 

Though I can articulate well when speaking, me and typing will always have a battle going on lol.

 

 

 

Eric

[Sagar]

There are timess i forget about inserting capital letters since when I was at school we used braille and didn't bother about caps. When starting to type, it's sometimes an effort to remmember to use it. I know when and where to use caps, its just remmembering, but some interesting responses, if the message goes through, thats communication isn't it?

 

Yes. I think you are right. 'Correct grammar' is not, and should not be, the only parameter of a successful communication. At times communication transcends all barriers of language and expression, where a channel for direct connection is established between two hearts through the ineffable means of understanding and feelings. At other times the choicest of words with all its grammatical niceties fail to convey anything as it is often the case with those of our esteemed politicians. At the end what counts is the message that the words convey, if they succeed to touch your heart!

 

 

 

 

[Rilbur]

And yet language is, to quote a professor of linguistics, 'rule governed behavior'. You ignore the rules, and the sentence becomes nonsensical and fails to communicate. You can bend the rules to a degree, but if you go too far, you fail to communicate. And 'too far' varies from person to person.