It’s only 10.45 and I’ve already saved The World. That’s the name of the novella I’ve proofread this morning. 🔎 Here are my top #proofreading spots from the manuscript. 1️⃣ The wyvern’s took to the air. ❌ ➡ wyverns ✔ 2️⃣ “I feel like a raised you.” ❌ ➡ I raised ✔ 3️⃣ She didContinue reading “December 15th 2020. Fantasy novel: top proofreading spots.”
Tag Archives: writingtips
Is it loose or lose? And other top proofreading spots.
🔎 Today’s top #proofreading spots from an adventure Bildungsroman. Including loose vs lose, amongst others… ❌ All hell broke lose ➡ loose ✔ ❌ a eighth ➡ an eighth ✔ ❌ hypthesis ➡ hypothesis ✔ 🔎 A lot of people make the lose/loose error, but it’s usually the other way round. I think it’s becauseContinue reading “Is it loose or lose? And other top proofreading spots.”
Is it deduce or deduct? And what is a deduction?
❓ Deduce or deduct? 🔎 Let Sherlock Holmes be your guide. 🕵️♂️ When Sherlock Holmes works something out, he deduces. He reaches a conclusion based on the facts that he has uncovered. 💰 Whereas, deduct means to subtract or take away. HMRC deducts tax from your pay. 🖊 For the verb form of these words,Continue reading “Is it deduce or deduct? And what is a deduction?”
Best proofreading or editing spots? When the name of something has changed. Consistency is the key.
🔎 Want to know my all-time favourite type of proofreading spot? When I catch that the name of something has changed. 🍦 Like the same ice cream parlour with two different names in two different chapters. 🏘 Or the same street with two different names in two different chapters. 📄 I catch these inconsistencies byContinue reading “Best proofreading or editing spots? When the name of something has changed. Consistency is the key.”
October 20th 2020. Top proofreading spots.
🔎 Top #proofreading spots from a manuscript I’ve been working on today. ❌ She thrusted the blade 🔪 ➡ thrust ✔ ❌ We were on route 🚗 ➡ en route ✔ ❌ The community were celebrating 🎉 ➡ was celebrating ✔ So, we have an irregular past tense verb, a French borrowing and an agreementContinue reading “October 20th 2020. Top proofreading spots.”
October 7th 2020. Top proofreading spots.
🔎 Top #proofreading spots today. ❌ I had ran 🏃♀️ ➡ I had run ✔ ❌ glistening from copious amount of oil 💧 ➡ a copious amount / copious amounts ✔ So, we have a past participle issue and an agreement issue. Glad to be of assitance cleaning up the manuscript before it’s published.
Is it loath or loathe? Top proofreading spot.
🔎 Top #proofreading spot from today. Loathe vs Loath. You loathe something if you hate it. 🤢 For example, I loathe scampi. It’s the texture. Yuck. And in this example, loathe is a verb. Notice the ‘e’ on the end of the word. 🦐 Whereas, I am loath to eat prawns. For the same reason.Continue reading “Is it loath or loathe? Top proofreading spot.”
The perils of Find and Replace.
The perils of Find and Replace. 😬 A writer told me about a time recently when he used Find and Replace on Word to change all references of ‘he’ and ‘she’ to ‘they’, and ‘his’ and ‘hers’ to ‘theirs’. Unfortunately, he did a ‘replace all’ and did not have ‘whole words only’ selected so itContinue reading “The perils of Find and Replace.”
Top proofreading spots: vocabulary. Stalagmites or stalactites? Servility or civility?
🔎 ‘Stalagmites hung from the ceiling, shimmering with alchemical light.’ ❌ One of my favourite types of #proofreading spot is when I’ve caught a wrong word choice. ‘Stalactites hung from the ceiling, shimmering with alchemical light.’ ✅ Tites hang down! NOTE also the change from a G to a C: stalaCtites. Another one I flaggedContinue reading “Top proofreading spots: vocabulary. Stalagmites or stalactites? Servility or civility?”
How can I teach myself to spell? (You’ve just got to get on with it!)
Flannal ❌ Deodorent ❌ Lables ❌ 💬 Family member: You’ll going to have to improve your spelling if you’re to become an English teacher. 19-year-old me: 😬 True story. These were misspellings on my holiday packing list. 🛄 At that time I was doing an English degree. And I had high hopes of being atContinue reading “How can I teach myself to spell? (You’ve just got to get on with it!)”
