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Friday, November 17, 2017

The Writer's Life 11/17 - To Err Is Human

This guy should have used Spell Check. A thief misspelled "robery" in notes in three separate bank heists in the Boston area. Once busted, he had no choice but to plead gilty. (From a NY Post blurb.)  Of course, spelling errors worry a self-published author such as myself. One should not shrug and dismiss them simply because they occur in the books of mainstream publishers as well. The goal is always zero mistakes, although it is darn near impossible to achieve. Here are examples of goofs in the first editions of famous works, gleaned from a list at mentalfloss.com:
An American Tragedy by Theodore Dreiser: "...like two small chips being tossed about on a rough but friendly sea.” Wise or Pringles?
The Good Earth by Pearl S. Buck: "... flees to a dog's back." A really big canine.
Tropic of Cancer by Henry Miller: "...“He listend to me incomplete bewilderment.” Ol' Hank may have been as excited as his readers by his content, so the errors are understandable.
1631 edition of the King James Bible: "Thou shalt commit adultery.” This has to be number one all-time.
The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn by Mark Twain: "...ripped a hole in the bottom of it with the was.” (Saw) "It was like this..."
Gravity's Rainbow by Thomas Pynchon: "...wall temperature and Nusselt heart-transfer coefficients...” (Heat) Tough read, though not as much Joyce's Ulysses.
Twilight by Stephanie Meyer: “I ate breakfast cheerily, watching the dust moats stirring in the sunlight..." (Motes) Maybe she was conjuring Dracula's castle as she worked.

A 21-year-old Norwegian woman was fined the equivalent of $30,400 for drunk driving. The country bases its levies on a person's income. Her father gave her a 42% share in his company. Her net worth is estimated at $1.23 billion. She has also been banned from driving for 13 months. Sounds like a government of gangsters. Here's a pic of this hardcore criminal:



My thanks to Gina, who bought a Bible published by Good News, and to the woman who purchased Good in Bed and All Fall Down by Jennifer Weiner, and to the gentleman who selected five books in Russian. The highlight of the session was the appearance of local Super, Mayor Mike, who was walking unsteadily. I was sorry to hear he'd spent the night in the hospital. He was seeing double and feared he'd suffered a stroke. As I suspected, it was due to diabetes. I handed him $25 the sale of Elvis vinyl albums had brought in thus far, and said: "I hope this makes you feel better." He smiled and replied: "I love you, man." I hope he doesn't spend it on those sugary treats he loves. 
Vic's Sixth novel: http://tinyurl.com/zpuhucj 
Vic's Short Works: http://tinyurl.com/jy55pzc


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