Sunday, September 21, 2014

Authors Who Make Mistakes Always Get Caught

Hi Everyone,

When writing a story even though it's fiction you need to be accurate.  In my short story, All Bets Are Off, I made a mistake. This is the first time I made a serious mistake and was caught.  It could be I've made others, and I didn't get caught.  I hope not. 

One thing I noticed is that the person who reviewed All Bets Are Off talks about the story as if she read it in print, but she really listened to an audio copy. 

This review was not horrible, but it was embarrassing.  After all I'm seventy years old and I should know my anatomy, but I failed and was told about it in a public review.  The below review is only a partial. 

The set up was good, the story OK. Contemporary romance isn’t my favorite genre, but because of the addiction angle I wanted to give it a try. Then there is the sex. I enjoy sex scenes in my stories and this book has 2 such scenes. The first is the better of the two. I was thoroughly getting into it but then the man stuck his tongue in her uterus. Yep. Uterus. Briefly, I hoped the story was going to take on some mutant scifi elements, but alas, it did not. To get to the uterus, you have to travel the entire vaginal canal and then get past the cervix. The cervix doesn’t let just any old object enter the uterus, being perhaps 1/8 inch opening nearly all the time (common exception is when a baby is headed out). So either the man had a very long and narrow tongue, or the woman had some mutant uterus that sat in the vaginal canal with the wide open cervix. Anyway, here is the Wikipedia article - and yes, it is safe for work. So I was totally into this sex scene – there was heat between the characters, great descriptors, etc. and then he sticks his tongue in her uterus. I giggled, totally taken out of the moment. At best, this is a big typo. At worst, the author is not well informed on the female genitals/reproductive organs. But, other than this one typo (I will be generous in my thoughts), the story flowed smoothly and was fun. 

If you would like to read more go to this URL: 
http://dabofdarkness.com/2014/09/15/all-bets-are-off-by-sandra-k-marshall/

Many authors get ridiculed and torn apart for mistakes they make in their stories, so most of us work very hard to try to be accurate.  This means we do our research.  Unfortunately, I didn't this time.  The reviewer was honest about All Bets Are Off not being her usual genre. 

You can bet, I will do my research in the future. 

Have a great week and I'll see you again next Sunday.

Sandra K. Marshall, Author
@ Eirelander Publishing
http://www.skaymarshall.com

 

18 comments:

Anonymous said...

Those things happen.

Sandy said...

Thanks, James. It's the first one, so it's really tough.

Melissa Keir said...

We all do it! Will you edit the book and change it then republish it?

Sandy said...

I ask my publisher if they would be willing to, Melissa.

D'Ann said...

Well, at least it wasn't her anus! I'd forget about this review. People just love to troll.

Sandy said...

LOL Thank you, D'Ann. That helped a lot.

Jill James said...

I apparently have 1 typo in my publisher-published book. I know this because my brother was so kind to point it out. I asked to get it fixed, but no dice. Hope you have better luck. :)

Marianne Stephens said...

Edit the book - what else can you do? Mistakes happen.
I wonder if many readers would catch that.

The Comeback Kid said...

Well Sandy, if it's any comfort, my tongue has been in worse places.

Sandy said...

Thanks for your comment, Jill. I have already heard from my editor and it's no dice, too. They believe it's still a good story.

I wonder if your brother was the only who noticed the typo. Most people just figure it's publisher's fault when it's one typo. Tell your brother he's being too picky. lol

Sandy said...

Marianne, I don't think my publisher will change it. It's an audio. Yes, mistakes happen. I hope most readers don't notice, but I blogged about it because I was so upset about it. Nothing like spreading the word.

Sandy said...

LOL Tom, you're bad.

Carol Ericson said...

Eh, it's a mistake. In my current Intrigue, a character's name is different in the Cast of Characters from what it is in the book. Three readers pointed it out to me. My mistake since I changed the character's name but didn't change it in the Cast of Characters. These things happen (and your mistake IS a little giggle-worthy, but I don't think the reviewer was too hard on you).

Kari Rogers Miller said...

Well, now you know what it is like to be embarrassed....in public....it is not fun but a learning experience. Add it to your other "adventures" :)
Kari

Sandy said...

Thanks, Carol! Maybe, I'm being too sensitive. I felt like she was making fun of me, not that I didn't deserve it making that kind of mistake.

Sandy said...

Kari, you're right it's a learning experience. Will go on and forget it.

Janet Lane Walters said...

We all make mistakes. I'm sure I've made some doozies. Fortunately, they haven't really been pointed out but I sure wish they were. Was reading a book the other day during a love scene when the geroing was massaging his sacrum when I think scrotum was meant. This also made me laugh

Sandy said...

LOL Thanks, Janet. I appreciate your comment.