Writing Standards

In order to use Fluther, you must meet our writing standards. Proper spelling, capitalization, grammar and punctuation are important to us.

All content must:

Use proper English (no txtspk)
Be spelled correctly
Use appropriate punctuation

While these rules may seem strict and arcane, it’s imperative to keeping the level of discourse at the highest quality.

Please give us your very best efforts, and don’t take it personally if you have a question pushed to editing to fix some typos. We’re sticklers.

@Tropical_Willie Yeah I know that about questions, but where does it say that includes answers as well?

It doesn’t Q’s only !

Then why are a lot of answers pulled for writing standards?
And shouldn’t we be given the chance to correct the writing if it is so important in a answer?

You can pitch-a-bitch with MOD’s

I think it’ll be really problematic if every answer has to be recalled for writing standards. The thing with questions is that it’s a lot easier to edit because they are big and everyone is only allowed 3 questions a day. Besides, it’s much more inconvenient for a question to be deleted because it will carry the answer with it away.

Everyone can answer as many times as they want, so it would be really inconvenient if every answer has to be recalled for editing. Imagine having 5 answer to edit at once. And answers can just easily be reproduced if one is modded off. If you have an answer modded, you can write another again without any effect on a thread in general.

[Mod says] In the guidelines, the general rule is quite clear:

”All content must:

Use proper English (no txtspk)
Be spelled correctly
Use appropriate punctuation”

I agree that the later ”don’t take it personally if you have a question pushed” is a bit misleading. I have no idea when these guidelines were written (certainly before my time), but I would guess that the phrasing is a response to user behavior. We don’t get a lot of complaints about answer moderation, probably because having a question pulled can seem very personal. We’re also less aware of guideline violations in the answers, and probably more inclined to let a questionable post stand to avoid disrupting the discussion – so having an answer removed is less noticeable as well as less common.

That said, here’s an excerpt from our top secret moderation handbook that removes all doubt:

”Interpreting the guidelines (answers):

‘Txtspk’ should be removed immediately, and the user sent a warning PM. Misspellings and bad grammar are acceptable to an extent if English is not the user’s first language, and they manage to get their point across; but we do still send PMs to encourage them to use their best effort.”

@SQUEEKY2 ”And shouldn’t we be given the chance to correct the writing if it is so important in a answer?”

Ideally, yes, but Fluther isn’t designed for that. We just don’t have a way to push an answer back to the jelly in question. That’s why we try to walk a very fine line. We do not remove answers with a single typo. When there’s txtspk, though, or multiple errors, that’s clearly in violation of Fluther’s guidelines.

Yup, I was just going to jump in to say “all content” means all content but @longgone said it better and clearer.

I’m happy there is a place on the internet for semi-literate discussion.

It’s arrogant, elitist, petty and demeaning of those adjudged gifted the skills to enforce it. There is only one aspect to it that renders it tolerable. And that is that the “offender” is allowed the “opportunity” for revision of whatever blasphemy involved.

@stanleybmanly Did it ever occur to you that they might decide to mod for verbosity? JK

Nope. I’ve seen no evidence of it. I’ll tell you what I have seen and that’s 7 years of Catholic grade school which affords ME the arrogance to declare that I recognize it when I see it.

Were you held back a year? I only went 6 years to grade school.

Kindergarten through 6th grade.