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Subject:Re: Typoz in Resumes From:Mitch Berg <mberg -at- IS -dot- COM> Date:Tue, 25 Feb 1997 10:51:18 -0600
Robert Plamondon wrote:
>
> Carolyn Haley writes:
>
> >Are not spelling, grammar, and punctuation
> >the _base skills_ of the writing/editing trade, required of everyone making
> >a living in that trade?
>
> In fact, they aren't. COMPOSITION is the basic skill of writing. Of the
> three things you list, only grammar is essential to composition. The
> rest are optional. For example, one can create a book through dictation,
> leaving punctuation and spelling to the stenographer.
In broadcast news, especially in Radio, one can "write" a story with
horrendous spelling (as long as the actual words are comprehensible) and
only the most rudimentary punctuation - and the composition can be
counted as good, great, even earthshaking.
In a time crunch, I'd "write" outline stories (really bullet points,
around which I copiously ad-libbed) on the back of an envelope in a
virtually illegible scrawl on my way to the nearest pay phone.
The key? It depends on the medium and the audience. Obviously, in
techcomm spelling and punctuation are important - but the "base skill"
is ability to communicate. I have nearly perfect spelling and good
grammar, but lousy punctuation, especially apostrophe's'. That's what
the CMOS, APSG and my peer reviewers are for...
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