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Of course grammar matters! …and I suppose I could end this post right here. But why grammar matters has, perhaps, changed over the years.

The rules of grammar and syntax exist for reasons of clarification – if we all play by the rules, we should be able to communicate more effectively. Taking the time to use correct grammar also indicates a love and respect for the language.

Now, though, grammatical errors and poor or incorrect syntax are (lamentably) becoming more common – so common, in fact, that readers tend to overlook the errors or simply don’t care.  With the enormous amount of informational, content-style writing around these days, the emphasis seems to be more on a conversational style than correct grammar.

Honestly, I have more faith in my readers’ intelligence than that. Perhaps this is because editors and writers are among my readers; but I know that many of them will not read an article or paragraph if the grammar is wrong and the syntax poor. I am one of these people myself – I have been known to chuck a letter if it has glaring grammatical errors in the first few sentences.

I like to think that correct, effective writing will stand out in the ever-growing sea of poor writing that’s out there.

In short, good grammar and proper syntax are always appropriate. Grammar still matters.

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Remember that wonderful comic strip Calvin and Hobbes? The younger among us may not, but it was a unique and powerful strip in the late 80s and early 90s. The strip’s creator, Bill Watterson, had what I would call a non-conformist approach to comic strip production, and ended up frustrating the syndicate  and himself; he retired from the strip long before his time. Have you ever wondered why a strip so popular never generated mugs, animated cartoons, stuffed animals, pencils, phones, and all that merchandise we love to collect? This was the main source of Watterson’s angst: commercialism. He felt that it would compromise the strip’s integrity and “cheapen” it if its characters were degenerated into merchandise. He apparently saw the lust for stuff going on in the world and just didn’t want to participate. He considered his strip “art,” and therefore wanted to protect its integrity.

So why am I invoking this elusive master of his craft? Watterson comes to mind when I think of someone who produced quality work for the sake of the work; the integrity of the product was one of his primary motivations. I admire that, and I also recognize that such an approach can be terribly difficult in a day and age that heaps financial rewards on “quick and noticeable.”

I don’t know that writing web content is “art.” But I will contend that there is an art to it, as there is to any good writing, and it is the watermark of the individual style that sets good content – content with substance – apart in a saturated market.

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Image by L.A. Fitness Solutions via Flickr

I talk a lot about producing web content with substance – after all, it’s in my tagline – but what does that mean, exactly? What is meant by “substance”?

Simply put, web content with substance is real writing. It’s writing that uses unique syntax, effective word choice, and correct grammar and punctuation. It contrasts strikingly with ineffective web content that has many words but says very little. Here is an example of “hollow” web content, which is my original creation gleaned from various perceptions of this kind of content on the web. It’s followed by a substantial version on the same topic.

Hollow:

How Pilates Can Help You Lose Weight

There are many ways that Pilates can help with weight loss. Weight loss is one of the many benefits of Pilates. It tones muscles and gives you a good workout. It will burn calories each time you do it which is a benefit for those wanting to lose weight.

Substance:

How Pilates Can Help You Lose Weight

Pilates consists of specific exercises and movements that are designed to strengthen core muscle groups.  These muscles are not only stretched and strengthened during a workout; because you use them every day, they continue working between Pilates sessions to improve posture and boost metabolism, thus resulting in weight loss.

The first example does not say much about how Pilates can help with weight loss; it just says that it does, and its sentence structure is cliche, clumsy, and repetitive. This kind of web content may be easily obtained for cheap, but it won’t give your site the kind of unique interest that substantial content will. Readers appreciate real information!

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