The Selves

Selfies have become not only the rage, they're now the norm. Selfies are pictures that are taken of your own self by your own self. While they used to be single-person images, they've grown to include clusters of people. Although that would qualify them to be called "groupies", they're not. That's something completely different.

But as you can see from the opening sentences, the matter of how to use and when to use "yourself" compared with "theirself" or "themself" (complete with spellcheck's squiggly red underscore) can become problematic. Sometimes it's easier to go the long way around and just say "they did it on their own" or "they did it to their own self," which, admittedly, becomes a bit cumbersome. All that work to say something simple about "them."

So here's the skinny from Dictionary.com.

About "Theirself"

According to Dictionary.com, "theirself is the nonstandard variant of (what else?) "themself." Its usage comes from 13th Century Middle England and is an informal usage, i.e., spoken by the common folk; not necessarily proper English. Have we spent enough time on this part of the exercise?

Checking the Sources

It's useful to check the guidelines about use and usage before jumping into the middle of the ocean. After all, you want to know you'll have good footing or an easy way to swim. In this regard, I did a bit of research for you who (like me) were wondering about this and gaining way more gray (which way to spell that, with an "e" or an "a"?) hair than you deserve. With a search string that queried the principles of usage between the two words (themselves compared with theirselves), an avalanche hit me.

These words are considered reflective pronouns. Writing Explained (WE) tells us not only do these reflective pronouns talk about what's being done, they also emphasize who is doing it. (Hint: According to Stack Exchange, it means the speaker is doing it to their own self. A bit like self flagellation, e.g., he was flogging himself.) EX: The class took theirselves to the bistro. Who did this? The class. what did they do? They took themselves, and no one else. (Maybe it was a private party.) One example WE gives is the classic "Please CC myself and Donna on the email." That was one of the grammar lessons from Third Grade. The speaker comes last in the enumeration. Fortunately, that phrasing is noted as being "nontraditional" (ahem) and the correct phrasing (called more graceful) is provided, "Please CC Donna and me on the email."

Now, I'm starting to get confused about which word to use, them or their. So let's just plow (did you know that the "plough" version of this word is British?) through all of this themming and theiring (not real words).

"Theirselves" is more typically spoken and is definitely not correct when written. Okay. Just don't use it. And if you don't speak it, you're less inclined to get confused about what to do when it needs to be (hint: never) written.

Them and Themselves

Grammar Girl is a major guru. She's a member of the American Copy Editors Society (did anyone know such a society exists?) and dutifully stays up to date on all things grammar. She even tracks what AP and Chicago Manual of Style have to say about proper usage. Apparently, this subject has been plaguing the brains of others. But the two monsters of style are at odds. Where AP says, with caution, it's okay to use "themself" but you may want to rephrase your sentence. Why? Because "themself" is considered that naughty of naughties, nonstandard, i.e., incorrect. However, guru Grammar Girl tells us "themselves" is okey-doke.

As for the Tangents

As for all those tangents that (ahem) arose, we'll deal with them on an item by item basis over the coming months.

Resources:

• Themselves or Theirselves – Which is Correct?
  
• ‘Themself’ or ‘Themselves’?
  
• American Copy Editors Society
  
• The Chicago Manual of Style Online
  
• The Chicago Manual of Style Online New Questions and Answers
  
• “them”, “themselves,” or “their selves”?
  

Sponsored Links:

• The Associated Press Stylebook 2017: and Briefing on Media Law
  
• PHR/SPHR Certification
  
• In a Word - CCJP digital subscription
  

First Impressions

I love this blurb from an American Management Association promotional email. It highlights the reasons why using a proofreading and copy editing service is so important:

Troubleshoot Writing Errors That Make You Look Bad

Every time you send an email or submit a report, you are being judged on your writing skills. Business writing errors (even simple grammatical mistakes) can complicate your message, confuse your readers, cost you money, diminish your professional image, and hold you back in your career.

There are many instances when the writer's message attempts to convey the level of expertise they have to offer. Were it not for the grammatical and spelling errors in their written message (the ones that the reader is willing to overlook because the logic is very sound), the advances the author could be realizing could dramatically increase. It's a heartbreaking situation.

For example, it may be possible that the author of this content wasn't able to afford the time for an additional copy edit before publishing it. Or maybe they were simply so motivated to get the content published, were pressed for time, and had a lot of confidence in what existed that they felt there was no need for an additional read-through.

Cash – obviously if you can make a sale that’s revenue for your company. One example of this would be a facility that sells monthly memberships.

Attention and Trust – now they’re lots of businesses that need this. For example: I’m going to watch channel 6 news tonight. Well, I’m not paying them cash. I’m giving them attention and trust, in which they can figure out how to make money through advertising.

Referral – Does your service or product work better when your friends use it too? Krispy Kreme uses the revenue of referral. Everytime they open up a new location, employees start giving away thousands of donuts. The people most likely show up for a free hot donut are those who have heard the legend of Krispy Kreme and are delighted that the company is finally in town. These people spread the word. They tell their friends and even bring them into a store.

Imagine the fan's disappointment when they read this excerpt and sincerely want to recommend the author to colleagues:

"The problem with this approach is if you think everyone that breaths is your ideal customer chances are you’ll spend money in the wrong media channels and time at the wrong events or on the wrong platforms, wasting your greatest resources of time and money."

or here when they find the stupendous advice that's laced with a few problems with the use of articles, such as:

"The typical bland response for many is to say . . . “I’m in the cleaning business, I’m an consultant, I’m a plumbing contractor or I’m a account specialist.”"

Then there are the writers who allow their spell checker to dominate their proofreading. Unfortunately, the spell checker is simply an automated system that doesn't really pay attention to context. So the printed version of the speech may sound right but it talks about the person who "lead" the throngs or the one who "new" all of the facts. And there's the classic where the reporter wrote about their interview with a South African artist who shared with comfort she derives from going back to the "crawl" to escape from the rigors of touring and being in the entertainment industry.

A grammatical issue makes the speaker seem to be in charge but the copy editor is wincing when they read this sentence: "Let's look at it another way. Do you care to listen to people whom you dislike?"

It's a good idea to use at least a proofreader for a quick review of the copy before it's published. Yes, the pressures of being first to speak are there. Yes, there are other issues happening that are demanding your attention and attempting to tear you away from that precious item to be pushed out to the world (literally).

Perhaps life would be better if instead of a one-time, gig-style service, a retained copy editor (or just a proofreading service) would be the answer. No doubt a reduced, continuous service rate could be worked out that would provide a more satisfactory result for all involved. After all, the real goal of the writing is reaching a destination that represents success for the writer / speaker. So it just makes sense to have the end result be an enduring positive first impression.

Sponsored Links:

• First Impressions: What You Don't Know About How Others See You
  
• Self-Publishing Books 101: A Step-by-Step Guide to Publishing Your Book in Multiple Formats (Author 101 Series) (Volume 1)
  
• Hypnotic Writing: How to Seduce and Persuade Customers with Only Your Words
  

Proofreading and Attention to Detail - Spam or Scam

Many times documents are created but the finishing touches aren't added. Most of the time the reason for the lack of attention to detail is because the writing is simply a reminder to self or a quick note to a friend. Those are instances when the errant misspelling or incorrect punctuation can be forgiven. Additionally, the circulation is negligible, if any at all.

But there are communications such as business letters, proposals, articles and blog posts intended for generating new business, and even term papers (not to mention books), that demand attention to detail. The typos, misused words, and so on, detract from one's credibility.

Lately a large amount of spam and scam mail has been reaching my mailboxes. Much of it presents itself as emanating from a legitimate source. Well, that comes into question when reading the message starts. Here is one example. I've added proofreader comments as we move through the text so that all of us can benefit from this exercise. Please also note that this post is made with the assumption that the name of the person at the end of the message is fictitious although the intent of the message becomes clear by the end.

Sent: Sunday, June 25, 2017 11:38 PM
Subject: <<<< [brackets should not precede the content of the subject line]From U.S. Department of the Treasury [The name of the agency sending the message will not be in the subject line. The subject line denotes what the message is about.]

Attention:

Your credit payment file have been [should read "has been"] added and opened,[This should be a period followed by a space to start the new sentence. ]We received an email from Mr Fred Atkinson [titles that are abbreviations such as "Mr.", "Ms.", "Mrs.", or "Dr." are followed by a period to show they are abbreviations.] today that you had an accident and died in the act.. [only one period at the end of a sentence.]
Mr [title] Fred Atkinson claim [should read "claims"] to be your lawyer and he is ready to claim your funds related to your compensation funds of $500,000.00 (five hundred thousand United State Dollars [the amount should be initial capitals; the name of the nation is plural]) that has been with us for three months now which you refuse to claim. he has also agreed to pay the fund release charges of US$460 [consistency of reference].

So we write to confirm if you are DEAD OR ALIVE, [punctuation] if [first word of a sentence is capitalized] you fail to reply back within 48hrs [space between number and word; "hrs" should be spelled out], We [improper use of a pronoun as a proper noun] will assume that what Mr Fred Atkinson said about you is right so we have no other alternative than to believe that you are truly dead according to Mr Fred Atkinson . [no space between last word of the sentence and the closing punctuation]

After 48hrs of no response from you, We [improper use of pronoun] will start the transfer and the delivery of your funds to your next of kin account which he claim to be [parenthetical phrase should be set off by a comma; end of sentence should be closed with a period]

IF YOU ARE STILL ALIVE, YOU ARE ADVICE [wrong word] TO GET INTOUCH [should be two words] WITH US BY A REPLY ON [should be "by"; unclear] MAIL OR GIVE US A CALL AS FAST AS YOU CAN..my cell phone. [numerous errors: One period followed by a space; first word of a new sentence is capitalized; reference has changed from "plural pronoun to singular] +1 484-305-9864[end a sentence with a period before starting a new paragraph.]

Take note that Mr Fred Atkinson has agreed to pay for THE RELEASE CHARGES, if you refuse [punctuation; new sentence] to get back to us, am afraid [missing pronoun; improper verb] we shall give him the go ahead with the release chareges [spelling] payment and then the fund transfer will be made to his Name and Account [no initial caps].

NOTE: He has drop is ["dropped his"?] account details and his home address for delivery of the funds into his International [no initial cap] ATM card and he promise [tense] to make the neccessary [spelling] payment.We are writing to confirm if all he said was [tense] true because he want [tense] us to start the transfer ASAP [should be spelled out].

You are to send a scan [tense] copy of your driver's licence [this is the British spelling of the word that is used by an American government agency] or national ID [abbreviation improper] for proper confirmation.Please ,get back to us as soon as possible to know if we are to get Mr Fred Atkinson Arrested [lower case] for trying to claim your fund illegally.note that you have been given just 48hrs to get back to us .

fill the Information Below. [incorrect use of capitals]
Name:
Country:
House Address:
Occupation:
Phone Number:

We await your swift response in regard to this news we received from Mr.Fred Atkinson

U.S. Department of the Treasury
Sanusi Kayode.

In addition to the numerous composition errors, Mr. Kayode does not provide his title. His email message did not contain a reply address. And he does not indicate which Treasury office location is where he is located. The Treasury Department has at least one office in each state.

There are a number of ways to contact the Treasury Department by phone. Mr. Kayode's phone number doesn't seem to match any of the ones listed.

The Treasury Department also has a division that can be contacted to learn whether it is holding unclaimed federal funds for individuals. Their website can be searched. It should also be noted that each state has a department for unclaimed funds.

Incidentally, a lawyer does not have a right to a client's (current or past) unclaimed property. To claim the property would be a form of unjust enrichment. It isn't clear why Mr. Kayode is giving legal advice in his letter of notification. He does nothing to identify himself as a member of the legal staff in the Treasury Department.

After experiencing this correspondence, there are probably questions going through your mind about various forms of property, such as

• life insurance benefits
  
• real estate
  
• intellectual property rights
  
• tax refunds
  
• insurance overpayments
  

and other types of funds and properties. There is a page on Reference.com that provides many answers to these types of questions. We've meandered away from copy editing and proofreading but when your writer comes from many backgrounds and wears several hats, you get bonus information. No matter what, do your own research to confirm that the information is correct.

Resources:

• U.S. Department of the Treasury
  
• Contact Us - Treasury.gov
  
• How do you contact the government's U.S. Treasury Department directly?
  
• What is U.S. Treasury unclaimed money?
  
• Report Phone and Email Scams
  

Sponsored Links:

• The Unclaimed Property Resource Guide
  
• Examples & Explanations: Professional Responsibility
  
• Money Finders System: Because It's Your Money
  

Change of Focus

Initially, this blog was created as part of my editorial and content creation presence.

Some changes occurred on another site. In typical form, decisions were made quickly and without plans. Now, with the benefit of time and more vision, this blog is returning to its original purpose. After this message is posted, I'll be taking steps to ascertain whether I can link this blog with the Facebook page that was created in August.

Where will you find the health and transportation news that was beginning to be posted here? Once that detail is worked out, I'll post the answer in a Comment to this post.

Thanks for being with me.

Now let's get back to talking about grammar, punctuation, editing, content creation, grabbing a reader's attention.

Sponsored Links:

• Writing for the Web: Creating Compelling Web Content Using Words, Pictures, and Sound
• Content Marketing for Nonprofits: A Communications Map for Engaging Your Community, Becoming a Favorite Cause, and Raising More Money (The Jossey-Bass Nonprofit Guidebook Series)