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THE MAGIC ART

New Writers Often Make These Glaring Mistakes

How to add emphasis and complete an unfinished sentence

Malky McEwan
E³ — Entertain Enlighten Empower
5 min readDec 17, 2024

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Womand wearing sunglasses
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Brian finished writing his first book, “See what you think,” he said. As a friend, I took on the task as a favour.

I found 22 mistakes on his first page.

I sat with Brian at his computer for an afternoon and detailed what needed fixing. I set him up with a grammar checker and then spent another afternoon showing him how to work it.

Months passed before Brian contacted me again. He’d found a publisher and was considering their offer. A few weeks later, I met Brian for a coffee and he presented me with a paperback copy of his book. I was delighted for him until I opened the book on the first page.

I found 23 mistakes on the first page.

I could tell at a glance his book hadn’t been properly proofread. These were glaring mistakes, jumping off the page and stinging my eyes. A conversation he’d written went like this —

  1. “Put your gun down!”
  2. “You put your gun down first!!”
  3. “No. You put your gun down or else…..!!!”
  4. “This is your last warning!!!!”

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Malky McEwan
Malky McEwan

Written by Malky McEwan

Born storyteller. Born curious. Fascinated with what makes people tick and how the world works. https://malkymcewan.medium.com/subscribe

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