Not having contractions.

[Five_Inch_Heels]

Read a story the other day that made me question if it was bot generated. It was all 'you are', 'they are', 'we are' and quite a few more where contractions would be quite normal. I forget what all the other instances were, but there were enough to make reading clumsy. But there were others like can't and don't, so I dropped the Bot though and even ESL, or other typical possibilities.

Can anyone see a possible reason?

 

[iwatchus]

ESL seems like a good possibility. Or maybe someone just had a teacher along the way who had a bugaboo about contractions.

 

[TheLobster]

Depending on the stage of labor you're in, not having contractions may be totally fine.

 

[Voboy]

I thought this was going to be about a sex story involving late-stage pregnancy.

Never mind.

 

[kellyt1994]

Depending on the stage of labor you're in, not having contractions may be totally fine.

Yeah, I read the title and thought someone had started a childbirth play-by-play thread. Witty commentary makes everything better.

 

[Five_Inch_Heels]

One of those word play things.

 

[ShelbyDawn57]

Read a story the other day that made me question if it was bot generated. It was all 'you are', 'they are', 'we are' and quite a few more where contractions would be quite normal. I forget what all the other instances were, but there were enough to make reading clumsy. But there were others like can't and don't, so I dropped the Bot though and even ESL, or other typical possibilities.

Can anyone see a possible reason?

I'm just guessing here, but y'all'd've probably wasn't used in this work. (you all would have for those who have never been to Texas)

 

[Five_Inch_Heels]

Snippet:

​

They ought to be in pictures, porn pictures. I would watch them.​

​

But I am prejudiced.​

​

'OK, give me a minute.'​

​

Then, I heard the camera warning of someone at the front door.​

​

Man, they are back.​

​

'Guys, sorry, someone at my door. I will call tomorrow night.'​

​

'OK, we will send current pictures of your favorite cocks.'​

​

​

​

No, I'm, I'll, we'll, they're, I'd .....

 

[TheWritingGroup]

That does look machine-translated to me. Purely intuitive, I have no special expertise.

--Annie

 

[NuclearFairy]

I've been trying to write dialog with fewer contractions when I'm writing for a non native speaker.

 

[SimonDoom]

The snippet didn't (note) look strange to me. I think the use of contractions in narration is a matter of taste and tone. The absence of contractions indicates a narrator who may stand on certain ideas of fastidiousness. But there are such people, and they have as much right to tell stories as anyone else.

I use contractions as a narrator (not just in dialogue), but when I edit my stories I sometimes eliminate some of them. It's a judgment call, an attempt to get the right balance of formality and informality.

 

[Trionyx]

Microsoft Word (my version, at least) highlights all contractions with the advice to undo them. I would suggest that what you read was similarly influenced. And if you find the absence of contractions in quoted speech, no doubt it was computer driven.

 

[kellyt1994]

I'm just guessing here, but y'all'd've probably wasn't used in this work. (you all would have for those who have never been to Texas)

Well just give away our secrets whydon'cha'. Next thing we know you'll be tellin' 'em how to make bourbon pralines.

 

[ShelbyDawn57]

Snippet:

​

They ought to be in pictures, porn pictures. I would watch them.​

​

But I am prejudiced.​

​

'OK, give me a minute.'​

​

Then, I heard the camera warning of someone at the front door.​

​

Man, they are back.​

​

'Guys, sorry, someone at my door. I will call tomorrow night.'​

​

'OK, we will send current pictures of your favorite cocks.'​

​

​

​

No, I'm, I'll, we'll, they're, I'd .....

Out of curiosity, I ran it through three different AI detectors. They all said it is 100% human.

I'm thinking aliens...

 

[GoldenMaia]

I personally like writing uptight characters without contractions. Assuming AI is harsh.

 

[Five_Inch_Heels]

The snippet didn't (note) look strange to me.

But when it's pages and pages of it, the story becomes uncomfortable to read. I had to stop without finishing.

 

[Trionyx]

Out of curiosity, I ran it through three different AI detectors. They all said it is 100% human.

I'm thinking aliens...

Do you really think an AI detector will truthfully respond? Those AI programs are all in cahoots.

 

[NotWise]

I often read passages that would read better to me with a contraction. I sometimes even write them. It isn't unusual, but maybe you're looking at an extreme case.

I don't know what I'd do if I were editing something like that. It isn't an error, but I might point it out and let the author make the style decision. It's probably a good thing that I'm not an editor.

 

[iwatchus]

I'm just guessing here, but y'all'd've probably wasn't used in this work. (you all would have for those who have never been to Texas)

Y'all'd've blessed their hearts if they were in the Carolinas.

 

[ShelbyDawn57]

I often read passages that would read better to me with a contraction. I sometimes even write them. It isn't unusual, but maybe you're looking at an extreme case.

I don't know what I'd do if I were editing something like that. It isn't an error, but I might point it out and let the author make the style decision. It's probably a good thing that I'm not an editor.

Yeah, we can't erven think about suggesting someone alter their style. Style is sacrosanct after all...

 

[ShelbyDawn57]

OK, I just had to look this up.

The longest grammatically correct English contraction is generally accepted to be "y'all'd'nt've'd'd'I'd'nt've'd'y'all't've'd". This contraction represents the phrase "you all would not have had, had I had not have had you all to have had"

 

[TheLobster]

"y'all'd'nt've'd'd'I'd'nt've'd'y'all't've'd".

Gesundheit!

 

[ElectricBlue]

But when it's pages and pages of it, the story becomes uncomfortable to read. I had to stop without finishing.

Based on the snippet, I'd agree. It sets up too much formality for me, it sounds unnatural. There's no flow in the prose.

 

[THBGato]

I've been trying to write dialog with fewer contractions when I'm writing for a non native speaker.

As a former TEFL/ESL teacher, that doesn't make much sense to me. Contractions are so commonplace that every textbook I've ever seen deals with them very early on. Even complete, ab initio learners would be taught them. In fact I often find that non-native speakers of English are more consistent with their apostrophe use than native speakers. So they'll use them in speech too (they'll probably make other errors, like double negatives or missing out a/the or regularising irregular verbs e.g. writing "teached" instead of "taught").

 

[NuclearFairy]

As a former TEFL/ESL teacher, that doesn't make much sense to me. Contractions are so commonplace that every textbook I've ever seen deals with them very early on. Even complete, ab initio learners would be taught them. In fact I often find that non-native speakers of English are more consistent with their apostrophe use than native speakers. So they'll use them in speech too (they'll probably make other errors, like double negatives or missing out a/the or regularising irregular verbs e.g. writing "teached" instead of "taught").

It could be wrong, but it's what I've been taught is a way to spot someone who has English as a second language.