I was recently referred to an article on Digg about software documentation. The subject of the article wasn't nearly as interesting, however, as the posted comments to it. People online LOVE to use poor grammar as evidence that someone's argument is fallacious. It amazes me how venomously folks will attack each other on bulletin boards and in chat rooms for the smallest typo, or, god forbid, error.
I am a raving grammarian, it's true, but I can't help but think this stigma, this...treating a misuse of "you're" as equivalent to showing up to school on the short bus, is the reason that those who aren't great writers will feel shame and hide their lack of skill as if they were track marks.
Folks, not knowing grammar isn't the sin that it seems to be. Is it a skill that most people should be better at? I think so, but not being very good at writing isn't something to be ashamed of, it's something to work on.
The moment you decide to face your shortcomings is the moment they lose power over you. Don't run from your writing issues; face them. Seek out answers and practice as much as possible. If you need someone to bolster you through the process or to give you the answers you can't find, that's when you call me.
--Rachel Carroll Whalley, Seattle-based Business Writing Coach
www.writewithmeaning.com
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