Proofreading

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Kvetch
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Proofreading

Post by Kvetch »

while reading Towers of the sunset I came across this rather garbled sentence (at the end of chapter 5)
Why would anyone start an attack and then leave as soon as they she pinked his arm
anyone with a different copy to mine actually know what this should say ?
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Typo

Post by lmodesitt »

It should say "she"...

No matter how hard we try [and between 3 and 6 editors, et al, look at a manuscript after I submit it, and I get two more looks] ... some typos inevitably still slip through.


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Post by Kvetch »

Thanks

In my copy of The Magic Engineer, there is a part where Anya talks to the 'dead high wizard' - I presume she was meant to say dread, but it's still mildly amusing ....
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Post by MidasKnight »

Do editors make very much money? I'm sure Brad and I would be very good at it since we are so anal about grammar on the forums.
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Post by RecluceMage »

Editing isn't just about good grammer, spelling, etc. That part isn't difficult, what is challenging is deciding what content should be in the book, what shouldn't, etc. I know of several of Mr. Modesitt's books that were supposed to be only one book, but because of an editor's say it is now two books, and forced us all to wait an extra two years for the conclusion to one of the Recluce stories.

Now imagine - if you will - that you are an editor and are handed a manuscript by a very young and promising writer who has yet to learn the finer points of story telling. You are responsible for seeing to the content of the story, and informing him that, perhaps, a talking fantastical animal may not be the best way to go for that character, or that the "evil twin" idea has really been used too many times already. Not that we have to worry about that too much from Mr. Modesitt's books... :shock: :wink:
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Post by Kvetch »

really, we should all get jobs as PROOF READERS - much better idea - you get to be anal about grammar and formatting and stuff, but don't have to make editorial decisions !

how about it Mr Modesitt? - why don't you send us proof copies, and we'll catch all the weird bits. Free of charge too.
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Post by RecluceMage »

Kvetch wrote:how about it Mr Modesitt? - why don't you send us proof copies, and we'll catch all the weird bits. Free of charge too.
You know I tried that a number of years ago and it just didn't work. But feel free to try try again. I know I do. :P
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Post by Kvetch »

wouldn't it be cool though - It's the sci-fi/fan fans who are most likely to catch the mistakes because :

a) they know what the books are talking about and will catch the narrative errors (in my copy of the Crossroads of Twilight, it talks about the true source when it should say the one source - an irritating error that a proofreader who didn't know what was going on in the series would never get, but is perfectly obvious if you have read the preceeding books [please don't hurt me for reading Robert Jordan])

b) are the anal types who actually know the difference between stanch and staunch and other words

and, to convince the worshipers of Lucre;

c) would work for free (or the sheer pleasure of reading good authors...)
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Proofing

Post by lmodesitt »

Several years ago, a professional proofreader who is also a F&SF fan and reader offered to proof my books for free to catch those annoying errors. My publisher declined the offer. For logistical reasons, that's not something that an author can do during that stage of production. I have less than 10 days in which to proof the galleys [at times, I've had only three].

So... we have to do the best we can. I know that's not ideal, but publishing is a business, and if they don't publish, I can't write, and you can't read what I write.


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Post by Kvetch »

fairy snuff ! :lol:

we can still wish ......
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Re: Proofing

Post by jweb »

lmodesitt wrote:So... we have to do the best we can. I know that's not ideal, but publishing is a business, and if they don't publish, I can't write, and you can't read what I write.
I don't think I've ever found an author with multiple books published that didn't have the occasional spelling or grammar error. Personally, as long as they are infrequent enough that they don't interfere with the story, I don't care about them.

In fact, although I have found the occasional error in LEM's books, I'd much prefer that he (as well as his editors and publishers) continue to focus his/their efforts to maintain the prolific pace at which they currently release his novels. After all, I read his books for their value as entertaining and thought provoking literature. If I was interested in perfect linguistic correctness, I'd read a dictionary instead.

Others are, of course, welcome to their own opinion on the matter, but that's mine.
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Post by Darb »

Do editors make very much money? I'm sure Brad and I would be very good at it ...
Spelling and grammar are relatively modest aspects of the responsibilities involved with being a good Editor for professional writers.

I've occasionally been pressed into informal (read that as 'unpaid') service proofreading early drafts for various acquaintances, and it's not nearly as easy or trivial as you might think. In any case, what I did was more of a preliminary task to, rather than a replacement of, professional editing.

Aside from the fact that I don't have a degree in English, it's not for me. I'm already gainfully employed as an Engineer anyway, so it's moot.
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Post by Ron Lambert »

I have read more than half of the 46 or so books that LEM has produced in the past 13 years (quite a prodigious output!), and I only notice one or two typos per book. That is not bad. It certainly could be worse--like the Bible publisher a couple of hundred years ago who left out the word "not" in the eighth commandment, so that it read: "Thou shalt steal." He just barely escaped being thrown in jail!
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Post by torybear »

I actually enjoy the typos. Why you might ask...because they usually make me smile, are incredibly rare, and they make me feel special. Because I have seen them, and know that others have also. I guess it's sort of like coin collecting, it's the errors that make a coin rare more often than anything else. Besides which, it gives me hopes. Even LEM's posts are better composed then most of my well thought out business writing. Knowing that occasionally he has a typo, or even and editing goof escape him gives me hope for my own writing. Not to say I will ever venture into the terrifying field of writing fiction.
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Post by MidasKnight »

Well, I am 'proofing' a book for my step-father (Major Mitchell, he's in our database :) ) and I find I want to rearrange a lot of things. It is a fine line between editing and rewriting. I have to ask myself if I'm about to redline something because I wouldn't write it that way or if it really should be written differently.
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Post by Jaxom92 »

I'm an aspiring/amature writer myself and proof reading has to be one of the most tedious and time consuming tasks in the entire process, especially if you don't do it often enough to know how to scan effectively. I've been through a draft for a short story of mine at least four times and still a mistake shows up that I completely missed. It's best to print out the draft and look at it on paper rather than a screen. Also, reviewing your own work has it's problems. I tend to get caught up in nit-picking little details and completely forget I'm only looking for spelling, grammar, and punctuation errors. Also, I find my thoughts wandering into some story point and I don't really see what I'm reading. I get done and then think back, what did I just do. It takes more concentration than one would think.
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Post by Kvetch »

amature ?

How about passing out proofing samples to us ?

maybe we could have the 'proofreading forum' :lol:
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Post by Ron Lambert »

I kind of hate to mention it, but since we are talking about proofreading, the word is spelled "amateur," not "amature." I have found that one of the keys to good spelling is the willingness to spend the slight time and energy it takes to look up words if I have any question about how they are spelled. And it is not a "Catch-22" situation. I don't have to know how to spell words correctly to begin with before I can look them up. The Merriam-Webster Online Dictrionary allows me to input the word the way I think it might be spelled, and it will tell me if it is not a word (like it does when I enter "amature") and give a list of suggested possibilities that I might mean. "Amateur" heads the list. Here is the link for the Merriam-Webster Online Dictionary: http://www.m-w.com/netdict.htm
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Post by Jaxom92 »

Thanks for the correction.
amature ?
Yes. Unpublished, I just write for my own amusement. The thought of being published lurks in the back of my mind, but I need to finish something first. And I might post a sample of something I've done. I'll have to think about it.
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Post by Ghost »

Jaxom92, if you are an amateur writer, come over to the volleyball thread and have some fun. :banana:
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Post by CodeBlower »

This thread's a little dated, I see, but this seems like the appropriate place to ask ..


I found (what I believe to be) a couple proofreading errors in "Natural Ordermage".

If we submit these, is there a feedback-loop that gets them corrected for the next reprinting?

Or, are they just useful as subject-matter for playful banter between forum-members?

(thanks)

As a side-note: if/when this whole "internet publishing eliminates the middle-man" thing finally takes off, I'd like to join the long list of people who get early access to .. um .. er .. of volunteers for the position of proofreader. ;)
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Proofreading

Post by lmodesitt »

I gratefully accept any proofing corrections... BUT... for them to be included in the paperback copy, I need to get them 4-5 months before the paperback comes out.

So... alas, it's too late for the paperback of Natural Ordermage.


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Post by CodeBlower »

That's cool. Since my experiment with delaying the purchase of "Natural Ordermage" to reduce my wait for "Mage-Guard of Hamor" largely failed, I should be a little more timely with future feedback. ;)
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Re: Proofreading

Post by CodeBlower »

lmodesitt wrote:I gratefully accept any proofing corrections... BUT... for them to be included in the paperback copy, I need to get them 4-5 months before the paperback comes out.
(hopefully this is early enough - haven't noticed any others so far ..)

Viewpoints Critical
Iron Man, Plastic Ships

#1 - page 86
McCaine checked his instruments. Angel Two hadn't lined up his braking thrusts exactly. Probably misaligned instruments, though McCaine.
I think "though" probably should be "thought".

#2 - page 90
"Both Admiral Reagan and Heatherton agreed that you made an impossible recovery, especially with a defective and untested rug".
I think "rug" should be "tug".
"Budge up, yeh great lump." -- Hagrid, HP:SS
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The gelding is what the gelding is, unlike people who change in response to their perceptions of events that may benefit or threaten their power. -- Lorn, Chapter LXXXII, Magi'i of Cyador
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Re: Proofreading

Post by ShawnCowles »

Viewpoints Critical
Black Ordermage

page 140
I was definitely no ancient, ancient or modern, or...
I think the first "ancient" is supposed to be "angel".
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