Nitpickers ‘R Us
May. 7th, 2004 06:52 am![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
madbakerSloppy copy-editing and obvious continuity errors in a novel annoy me. It's not that difficult to fix! Assuming that a modicum of attention is paid to a manuscript...
It's a sign that either the author doesn't care about his work, the editors don't care enough to actually read carefully - or both.
Latest example: Robert Asprin's Legion series, which is being ghostwritten because Asprin is only slightly better at meeting deadlines than was Douglas Adams. In the latest book, the main character is named Willard Phule. His father refers to him as "Wilfred". (And all future references go back to "Willard".) The Filipino cook inexplicably morphs into a Jamaican homebwah. Phule himself, in previous books disdained paying bribes; here he explicitly says that he doesn't mind bribing and that breaking rules is part of business.
I'm not an obsessive fanboy with this series – just generally observant. That sort of error jumps out at me. It makes me realize that I'm reading, as opposed to immersing me in the narrative.
So all you aspiring authors, pay attention to your work! If you care enough about the characters and universe, shouldn't you care enough to avoid stupid errors? (Unless you're writing a Star Trek novel, where continuity is discouraged.)
We nitpickers will thank you. Or at least not be audibly annoyed at you.
It's a sign that either the author doesn't care about his work, the editors don't care enough to actually read carefully - or both.
Latest example: Robert Asprin's Legion series, which is being ghostwritten because Asprin is only slightly better at meeting deadlines than was Douglas Adams. In the latest book, the main character is named Willard Phule. His father refers to him as "Wilfred". (And all future references go back to "Willard".) The Filipino cook inexplicably morphs into a Jamaican homebwah. Phule himself, in previous books disdained paying bribes; here he explicitly says that he doesn't mind bribing and that breaking rules is part of business.
I'm not an obsessive fanboy with this series – just generally observant. That sort of error jumps out at me. It makes me realize that I'm reading, as opposed to immersing me in the narrative.
So all you aspiring authors, pay attention to your work! If you care enough about the characters and universe, shouldn't you care enough to avoid stupid errors? (Unless you're writing a Star Trek novel, where continuity is discouraged.)
We nitpickers will thank you. Or at least not be audibly annoyed at you.
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And I had wondered
Date: 2004-05-08 10:21 am (UTC)