I just finished Alvin Journeyman, and I think I noticed a mistake.
Page 350 of the original (I think) paperback edition. Fifth and fourth paragraphs from the bottom:
quote: "Governor Harrison ordered it," said Measure. "And it was years ago. Before I was married. Before Alvin came here to Hatrack River as a prentice boy. And if I recall aright, Mike Fink was a little prettier in those days."
"Not in my heart," said Frank. "But I bore you no malice, Measure. And after Harrison had me to that to you, I left him, I wanted no truck with him. It don't make up for nothing, but it's the truth, that I'm not a man who'd let such as him boss me around, not anymore. If I thought you was the type of man to get even, I wouldn't run, I'd let you do it. But you ain't that kind of man."
Shouldn't that Frank at the begining of the second paragraph be Fink?
Posted by TheSeeingHand (Member # 8349) on :
You'd think so. Certainly looks like a typo to ME.
Posted by Orson Scott Card (Member # 209) on :
Yes. It's a typo. We have about eight readers to catch such things; but what sometimes happens is that in correcting one problem, the typesetter introduces a new error that nobody catches because nobody is looking for it by then. Easy for a typesetter to memorize a line a bit wrong; and then the person checking will be looking to make sure the original error was fixed and won't see the new error elsewhere in the line.
When I was a professional proofreader, our publishing house had TWO proofreaders for everything we published. And yet we'd always miss something. It's human nature.
So one or two errors in a book is normal. The problem is that nowadays, there are often dozens or hundreds of really annoying errors, until you wonder if anyone proofread it at all. Standards are lower by far. But ... if I complain, then when ANY error shows up in my books, it makes me look like a fool. Still, I believe my books are among the LEAST type-ridden of any published today. Except for Cardography, which the publisher refused to let me proofread ("Oh, my dad will do it, he's really good"), so that this is among the WORST books every published for typos - hundreds and hundreds in this small collection. I'd rather have the crappy covers I got on the trade paperbacks of Hot Sleep and Capitol or the humiliating cover of the hardback of Wyrms than have a book whose actual text is so infuriatingly flawed. I find that book unreadable.
Posted by Hamson (Member # 7808) on :
Ah I see. So should I not point out other typos if I find them then? Thanks.
Posted by Stone_Wolf_ (Member # 8299) on :
Come on! The cover art was HOT! She's totally checking her watch while the evil winged penis menaces her!
Oh, and here's what they had to say about OSC, not sure what they are saying, or what language they are saying it in.
Orson Scott Card - inteligencja i talent, rzadka umiejętność napisania książki, którą się czyta z przyjemnością, a która po przeczytaniu daje czytelnikowi powód, by przez chwilę pomyśleć.