# Poll: Are you a better writer or talker? **URL:** \ **Category:** In My Humble Opinion\ **Created:** [January 29, 2009, 1:29am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/poll-are-you-a-better-writer-or-talker/483477 "2009-01-29T01:29:43Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 14\ **Page:** 2
**Author:** ![Quasimodal](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/q/57b2e6/32.png) [@Quasimodal](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Quasimodal)\ **Post date:** [January 29, 2009, 6:11am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/poll-are-you-a-better-writer-or-talker/483477/21 "2009-01-29T06:11:39Z")
Writing for sure, I have a hard time thinking on my feet. ---
**Author:** ![Boyo\_Jim](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/87869e/32.png) [@Boyo\_Jim](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Boyo_Jim)\ **Post date:** [January 29, 2009, 6:29am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/poll-are-you-a-better-writer-or-talker/483477/22 "2009-01-29T06:29:30Z")
Depends. If I’m relaxed, I’m very good at conversation… If I’m stressed, my verbal skills drop – a lot. ---
**Author:** ![Mudshark](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/f04885/32.png) [@Mudshark](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mudshark)\ **Post date:** [January 29, 2009, 9:27am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/poll-are-you-a-better-writer-or-talker/483477/23 "2009-01-29T09:27:56Z")
Talker. When I write, I have to think about what I want to say more than if I just say it as I go along. ---
**Author:** ![Cider\_Depot](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/e274bd/32.png) [@Cider\_Depot](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Cider_Depot)\ **Post date:** [January 29, 2009, 9:38am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/poll-are-you-a-better-writer-or-talker/483477/24 "2009-01-29T09:38:38Z")
Me better write ---
**Author:** ![WormTheRed](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/bbe5ce/32.png) [@WormTheRed](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/WormTheRed)\ **Post date:** [January 29, 2009, 9:41am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/poll-are-you-a-better-writer-or-talker/483477/25 "2009-01-29T09:41:06Z")
Talking, by far! When talking I get to make stuff up on the fly, but when writing I can backtrack and start questioning myself, which usually turns out worse for me. And for languages I’m not fluent in, I can usually “hide” my bad grammar with a good accent. ---
**Author:** ![Kobal2](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kobal2/32/20_2.png) [@Kobal2](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Kobal2)\ **Post date:** [January 29, 2009, 9:46am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/poll-are-you-a-better-writer-or-talker/483477/26 "2009-01-29T09:46:29Z")
I can’t talk. I really um… what was I saying ? Ah yes : writing prose comes um easier to… well it’s like when you have this err image, or maybe picture, or… in your head and you try to describe it and it’s gone before… anyway, the point is : yes. 😃 ---
**Author:** ![CairoCarol](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/cairocarol/32/3825_2.png) [@CairoCarol](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/CairoCarol)\ **Post date:** [January 29, 2009, 10:01am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/poll-are-you-a-better-writer-or-talker/483477/27 "2009-01-29T10:01:04Z")
I get too nervous to talk well. ---
**Author:** ![Sophistry\_and\_Illusion](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/b3f665/32.png) [@Sophistry\_and\_Illusion](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sophistry_and_Illusion)\ **Post date:** [January 29, 2009, 10:35am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/poll-are-you-a-better-writer-or-talker/483477/28 "2009-01-29T10:35:04Z")
I’m a pretty good talker, mostly because I’ve had years of practice in the classroom. (I kinda sucked at first.) But I’m a much better writer. ---
**Author:** ![MichaelJohnBertrand](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/dfb087/32.png) [@MichaelJohnBertrand](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/MichaelJohnBertrand)\ **Post date:** [January 29, 2009, 12:03pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/poll-are-you-a-better-writer-or-talker/483477/29 "2009-01-29T12:03:28Z")
Hmmm, it’s a close call with me, complicated a little by how much time I spend talking to people via IM and other text based systems, which IMHO is a mix between the two. Text-talking is not like writing prose, where you have as much time as you want to revise, edit, rewrite, etc. There’s still conversation pressure, though not as much. I’d have to say I come off better in the written word, though. In regular conversation, I’m quite witty and sometimes even quite charming, but, as much as I absolutely love conversation (to me, interesting conversation is a nutritional need), I am subject to social anxiety in realtime, whereas on the Net, I am not. ---
**Author:** ![Suse](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/df705f/32.png) [@Suse](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Suse)\ **Post date:** [January 29, 2009, 1:05pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/poll-are-you-a-better-writer-or-talker/483477/30 "2009-01-29T13:05:54Z")
I’m not very good at either but I prefer writing because I can edit until I’m at least close to what I want to say. ---
**Author:** ![Annie-Xmas](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/ecc23a/32.png) [@Annie-Xmas](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Annie-Xmas)\ **Post date:** [January 29, 2009, 1:23pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/poll-are-you-a-better-writer-or-talker/483477/31 "2009-01-29T13:23:51Z")
Much better writer. ---
**Author:** ![Nava](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/da6949/32.png) [@Nava](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Nava)\ **Post date:** [January 29, 2009, 3:16pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/poll-are-you-a-better-writer-or-talker/483477/32 "2009-01-29T15:16:26Z")
I’m equally good or bad at both; the advantage of the written form is that there’s a permanent record (I can give the manual to whomever needs it, rather than go through the same explanation again); the advantage of the spoken form is the immediacy of the response (if I’m not explaining something clearly, I can try to correct it straight away; if it’s an exam, I can read the teacher’s face to know how am I doing). I tend to prefer writing but that’s my preference, it’s not because I think I express myself better in writing. I make a point of trying to write like I speak and hate people who think that putting something in writing means they should break out the Beeg Focaboolarye. ---
**Author:** ![Napier](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/ce73a5/32.png) [@Napier](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Napier)\ **Post date:** [January 29, 2009, 5:50pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/poll-are-you-a-better-writer-or-talker/483477/33 "2009-01-29T17:50:17Z")
Writer. In person, I’m actually worse than I am here. ---
**Author:** ![Omegaman](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/o/e480ec/32.png) [@Omegaman](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Omegaman)\ **Post date:** [January 29, 2009, 5:54pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/poll-are-you-a-better-writer-or-talker/483477/34 "2009-01-29T17:54:30Z")
Talker. Proximity is the key. Motivational consultations are my specialty. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/poll-are-you-a-better-writer-or-talker/483477.md?page=1)