My favourite writing goofs

Kia ora,

Over the years, I’ve picked up all sorts of goofs in my editing work. Here are a few I remember:

• a poisonous snake instead of a venomous snake
• a venomous frog instead of a poisonous frog
• the wrong rugby player scoring a match-winning try
• a racing driver winning the wrong race
• a prime minister’s name spelled incorrectly throughout the whole manuscript
• reference to Indira Gandhi being Mahatma Gandhi’s daughter
• a photo of Aoraki Mount Cook used in an advert for the Tongaraio Crossing
• the wrong prefix attached to an important ship
• Mt Everest being 29,000 metres high (damn, she’s launching into space with that height!)

In each case, something stuck out to me as I read. And because of the type of person I am, I had to go fact-checking.

The authors weren’t dummies for making these mistakes. They just got caught up in the writing excitement, or got confused, or used an out-dated reference. It’s easy to do. I’m sure you’ve done it. Usually, you catch the mistake during the revision process and you fix it up, no problem.

But every so often, a whoopsie slips through. And that’s why you use an editor, right? (Or at least a beta reader, friend, or trusted confidant.)

A fresh pair of eyes on your manuscript – and even better, genre-specific eyes – can help pick out the errors that readers may not be so forgiving about. 

Getting the details right also builds trust with your readers. If I noticed something was up, astute readers are going to notice it too. And if they read a glaring error, they might start wondering what else is wrong. The last thing you want is readers losing faith in your story, especially when you’re writing a genre that’s so reliant on telling a true story.

So, if you want that second pair of eyes on your adventure memoir, look no further. I can help ferret out those wonky details and get you telling the story you really want to tell. 

Cheers,

Deborah

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📚 What I’m reading

GREAT NEWS. I finished The epic city and got the book back to the library. Loved the chapter on School Street and the publishers of Calcutta!

I’m still reading Empire Antarctica by Gavin Francis. 

And I started Final Destination: Riding Britain’s Trains to the End of the Line, by Nige Tassell. I’m reading that on the library app on my phone.

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📅 Availability

I have spaces available from late May. Get in touch if you want a sample edit so you can see what editing can do for your story.

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✍️ Ways to work with me

Apply for a free sample edit​

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