Punctuation

[warooa]

Very good . . . as one watching and reading all this I'd like to give my thanks to all for their "tutorial advice" on all things punctuation and grammar etc.

As one who had a bog-standard public school education, which I must add was fantastic but I never rely applied myself to things that wound my head in knots as a teenager . . I now copy and paste bits of tutelage such as those contained in this thread onto a word document, as my 40 something brain tells me I need to apply myself (better late than never).

I therefore agree that, though it may seem pernickity to some, we need to set ouselves the highest standards in any chosen pursuit. As a writer this means impeccable grammar.

Cheers, Marty (the one sitting at the front of the class ever-attentive . . . not the one chewing up spitballs down the back )

[Stephen Whiteside]

Terry, I would agree that there is often more than one 'right' way to punctuate, but if the poet doesn't have much idea, it becomes pretty clear over the course of the whole poem.

[David Campbell]

No, Bill, I wouldn't say "horse hooves". If I had one horse I'd write "horse's hooves" and if I had more than one horse with problems I'd write "horses' hooves". The placement of the apostrophe conveys the necessary information.

Interesting point, John, but I would have defined it as a "breakfast of the poets" (in the non-cannibalistic sense!), just as "horse's hooves" means "the hooves of the horse". If you start introducing the idea of "with" and leaving out the apostrophe, does writing "teachers holidays" refer to "holidays with teachers"?

No, Terry, it's unlikely that a brilliant poem will miss out because of an errant apostrophe, although a multiplicity of such errors could be significant because it smacks of carelessness. As Stephen says, there are basic rules that can be learned and the ABPA scoresheet for written competitions does give a weighting for spelling, grammar and punctuation. Some judges will pay less attention to that aspect than others, but I simply find it disappointing if an elementary mistake leads to ambiguity when it comes to meaning. And in bush verse we're usually telling a story, so confusing or misleading the reader can only detract from the poem.

All the best for that man flu, Mal!

Cheers
David

[Terry]

Marty, Stephen & David.

Being serious for a change, I think most of us agree in principal with what David and others have said.

Nothing wrong with tossing around a few ideas and observations though, if only to stimulate a bit of discussion on a subject we obviously all love.

Pretty boring though if we all agreed on everything; be hardly worth having a Forum would it

Terry

[william williams]

Thank you David you have explained how the difference is in the use of an apostrophe


bill Williams the old battler

[Glenny Palmer]

I even checked to see if my funeral notice was in the paper.

The best thing for man flu...or any flu, is Olive Leaf. The taste is sooo disgusting that that in itself is testament to its efficacy. No pharmacy on the planet would ever get a 2nd bottle sold if it didn't work! (There's capsules for cowards.) And as soon as you feel that tickle in the throat...or sore throat etc, hook into it & it will pull the bug up with a jolt.

Cheeeers......(hope your nearly over it by now Mal. Poor you.)

[Terry]

G/day Mal,
I seem to remember I owe you a couple of beers, perhaps a scotch or two might be more appropriate at the moment.

Hope you get on top of it sooner rather than later mate.

Cheers Terry

[Bob Pacey]

Ah ya a bloody woosh Mal, wack a couple of panadols washed down with some rum and cola and wooska the flu is on the run.

I had a mate who swore by sticking some vics vaporub on his finger and sticking it up his nose cleared the sinus all the way down to his you know what !


Cheers Mate.

Bob

[manfredvijars]

Apostrophes?

"You know you're crap"
"You know your crap"


....

[Glenny Palmer]

........only on the ABPA... will you start with 'Punctuation'...pop over into 'Judging'...wrestle with the 'Man Flu'...and end up with...'Crap.'.........