We all have pet peeves. If you're a journalist, perhaps we share a few. Poor grammar is at the top of the list. I have collected some common mistakes—mostly from people I drove insane. I love learning these, and I love sharing. But people take that obsession as self-righteous or annoying. So, I would rather share these blunders with those of like mind, and more importantly, I want to know what you've found so I can annoy even more. Together we can fix the world . . . one comma splice at a time.
Like all students, I began in MLA. But I soon discovered that I would pursue journalism. So, I learned AP. As far as I knew, what the AP said, went. Then, after seven years of news and technical writing, I got a job at a university press. Oh, boy.
The first “error” was when I created an ellipsis with one space preceding, no spaces in between periods, and one space following. The managing editor gave me a shocked "no, no, no," and explained that an ellipsis had spaces in between periods. What?! As soon as she left the room, I grabbed my company-provided Chicago Manual of Style to do a sanity check (and hoping to prove her wrong to save my pride). Low and behold, the ellipsis has spaces in between. Could this be? I have been walking around with a wrong ellipsis for all this time? Since, I have learned a lot about Chicago, and I realized that I have been doing many things wrong. Or have I?
It wasn't until this semester that I took a glance back at the AP's "ellipsis” entry. I assumed I had just got it wrong for seven years. But, no. It said I was right all along. In a panic, I grabbed my MLA, my APA and my Handbook of Technical Writing, among others. Apparently, most go with spaces in between. But AP stands by their compact ellipsis.
Doing a double major in English and Journalism and going from jobs in news to technical writing to book editing and back has turned out to be more than I can handle. I always knew the styles were different, but this incident sprung me into an obsession with finding the differences. And they are so far apart that I am finding myself wanting a style guide for all my styles.
This is horrible. Horrible, horrible. I have enough to do, and now I have learned that I can't rely on myself anymore when I write. What about when I write an e-mail to a professor? A postcard? A letter to my boss? I am lost, and I don't think I can find my way back out. I can't live with being wrong all the time.
You brought up some interesting points. Obviously, I would say what style a writer uses depends on who they are working for and who the target audience is.
I expect I will have to get into the Chicago Manuel Style of writing one of these days -- perhaps much sooner than I think since I plan to write novels. I imagine having APA and Chicago style manuels both sitting on my desk.
Since this is my last semester until the big BA, and all of my English classes are long behind me, I don't expect much need for MLA writing styles (since academic writing is not part of the real world).
(I left a comment a few minutes ago, but I don't think it took. So here it is again in a nutshell.)
You brought up some interesting points. I expect to have a Chicago Manuel (since I plan to write novels)sitting on my desk very soon, next to my APA guide. Obviously, it all depends on who you are working for, what product you are creating, and who your target audience is.
I don't expect to ever have need for an MLA guide since my English classes are way behind me and I am graduating with my BA in journalism in May. I don't see much use for academic term paper writing style in the real world.
3 comments:
Like all students, I began in MLA. But I soon discovered that I would pursue journalism. So, I learned AP. As far as I knew, what the AP said, went. Then, after seven years of news and technical writing, I got a job at a university press. Oh, boy.
The first “error” was when I created an ellipsis with one space preceding, no spaces in between periods, and one space following. The managing editor gave me a shocked "no, no, no," and explained that an ellipsis had spaces in between periods. What?! As soon as she left the room, I grabbed my company-provided Chicago Manual of Style to do a sanity check (and hoping to prove her wrong to save my pride). Low and behold, the ellipsis has spaces in between. Could this be? I have been walking around with a wrong ellipsis for all this time? Since, I have learned a lot about Chicago, and I realized that I have been doing many things wrong. Or have I?
It wasn't until this semester that I took a glance back at the AP's "ellipsis” entry. I assumed I had just got it wrong for seven years. But, no. It said I was right all along. In a panic, I grabbed my MLA, my APA and my Handbook of Technical Writing, among others. Apparently, most go with spaces in between. But AP stands by their compact ellipsis.
Doing a double major in English and Journalism and going from jobs in news to technical writing to book editing and back has turned out to be more than I can handle. I always knew the styles were different, but this incident sprung me into an obsession with finding the differences. And they are so far apart that I am finding myself wanting a style guide for all my styles.
This is horrible. Horrible, horrible. I have enough to do, and now I have learned that I can't rely on myself anymore when I write. What about when I write an e-mail to a professor? A postcard? A letter to my boss? I am lost, and I don't think I can find my way back out. I can't live with being wrong all the time.
You brought up some interesting points. Obviously, I would say what style a writer uses depends on who they are working for and who the target audience is.
I expect I will have to get into the Chicago Manuel Style of writing one of these days -- perhaps much sooner than I think since I plan to write novels. I imagine having APA and Chicago style manuels both sitting on my desk.
Since this is my last semester until the big BA, and all of my English classes are long behind me, I don't expect much need for MLA writing styles (since academic writing is not part of the real world).
Thanks for the narrative. I enjoyed it.
(I left a comment a few minutes ago, but I don't think it took. So here it is again in a nutshell.)
You brought up some interesting points. I expect to have a Chicago Manuel (since I plan to write novels)sitting on my desk very soon, next to my APA guide. Obviously, it all depends on who you are working for, what product you are creating, and who your target audience is.
I don't expect to ever have need for an MLA guide since my English classes are way behind me and I am graduating with my BA in journalism in May. I don't see much use for academic term paper writing style in the real world.
Nice article, I enjoyed your narrative.
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