tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4994072470312639837.post975814895815874154..comments2024-03-26T15:49:05.333-07:00Comments on Criminal Minds: Being Schooled in WritingJosh Stallingshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09913654176433125233noreply@blogger.comBlogger5125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4994072470312639837.post-85334092226255623342019-07-15T10:31:54.990-07:002019-07-15T10:31:54.990-07:00BTW - Anonymous is me Brenda - hit the wrong key!BTW - Anonymous is me Brenda - hit the wrong key!Brenda Chapmannoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4994072470312639837.post-55003394077614183462019-07-15T10:30:41.377-07:002019-07-15T10:30:41.377-07:00Thanks for telling us your experience, Dana. I ag...Thanks for telling us your experience, Dana. I agree that we can absorb a lot of grammar through reading without actually needing to know what items are called. Luckily, we also have editors to help finesse the grammar in our work.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4994072470312639837.post-21804777526276187812019-07-15T07:31:04.109-07:002019-07-15T07:31:04.109-07:00I had no formal training as a writer and went to s...I had no formal training as a writer and went to school during a period when the prevailing wisdom was that we didn't need to be taught all the rules of grammar anymore. (They called it "linguistics.") I was painfully aware of how much I didn't know and had trouble making sense of even Strunk and White because I didn't know the terms like "subjunctive" or "future perfect," and plenty of others.<br /><br />That's why I wrote mt first few novels in first person. I figured any grammatical issues would be attributed to the character and not to me. I've since learned a little grammar--not too many of the terms, though--and have learned to trust my gut about what sounds right by paying attention when I read things that require proper grammar. (Non-fiction, for example.) As Dieter said, above, though, when faced with a choice between grammar and flow, flow always wins.Dana Kinghttps://www.blogger.com/profile/01350344882342624735noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4994072470312639837.post-80082569710833845482019-07-15T07:29:35.528-07:002019-07-15T07:29:35.528-07:00Thanks Dietrich! Yes, important to know the rules ...Thanks Dietrich! Yes, important to know the rules before you break them :-) Brenda Chapmannoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4994072470312639837.post-24116063281012129982019-07-15T06:13:27.368-07:002019-07-15T06:13:27.368-07:00Well said, Brenda. I thought it was important to p...Well said, Brenda. I thought it was important to pour over the grammar texts before I started writing novels as well. And now I often break a lot of those rules for the sake of style and flow.Dietrich Kalteishttps://www.blogger.com/profile/06403361738445161528noreply@blogger.com