I am a part time officer for the “grammar and word” police. And I’m not apologizing. Sorry, not sorry.
The reason I’m just part time is the loophole through which you can escape my wrath. You see, I produce several different types of writing. And some of it just begs for bad grammar.
Some, however requires a standard of usage that provides the benefits that only correct grammar, punctuation, and word usage can provide.
In my professional writing of the blog I produce content for, grammar and all that other ‘stuff’ is important. The primary purpose of that blog, from my perspective, is to provide information in a clear and concise way. Bad grammar can hamper that purpose in two ways.
Firstly, the rules of grammar are meant to assure clarity in writing. They are there to assure that what you write is the least ambiguous that it could be. When imparting information, that is a good thing.
Secondly, any grammar faux pas encountered by those who know better is a distraction of the highest degree. The last thing you want your reader to spend their time on while in front of your words is contemplating whether their time is actually being wasted on reading the words of someone who seems not to know the difference between “your” and “you’re” or “here” and “hear.”
But even in that blog, occasion arises to “jaywalk” across the causeways of correctness.
The difference between breaking the laws of the land and breaking the laws of literature is oddly a difference of information. In literature, you may break the rules, so long as two unwritten rules are never broken.
The first of those rules is that the breaking of any other rule must be obvious to both the writer and the reader. If it is understood that a line has been crossed, than all is not yet lost.
The second rule is that it must be “in character.” It either must be in the style of the person whose dialogue we are relaying, or it must be a building block of the character we are introducing.
As writers, it is our job to communicate clearly. And this is easier done if we follow the rules for the most part. Because when we break them, we want to be able to do that secure in the knowledge that it will be obvious to our readers that we did it on purpose.
So the deal is, to break the rules and get away with it, you have to know the rules, and the breaking of them must be for a purpose. If you haven’t adhered to these two stipulations …. ” […] yer busted! Step outta the car an’ putcher hands on toppa yer head.”
