Out Out Damn NOT PROOFREAD Book Errors

I love to fall into a book, into its rhythms and cadences.

But when I read a book these days, I invariably find proofreading errors. When I find said errors, it’s akin to a wrong note in a symphony, and it interrupts my reading pleasure.

A few years ago I read a self-published book by a Stanford graduate. Five pages in, I found a handful of errors. I wrote to the author, shared the errors, and asked, if I found more, could I forward them? She agreed. By the end of the book, I had fifteen pages of edits.

I recently purchased a book published by a company in Berkeley. As I began to read, I began to find errors. I contacted the author via his website, and received a reply from his assistant who said she would forward my edits to the publisher. Well I could have done that – so I did. In my email, I asked the Berkeley company for a proofreading job; I received a thank you from an editor for my interest in being a “content editor.”

It must be noted that although ‘proofreading’ and ‘editing’ are sometimes used interchangeably, there are important differences. Proofreading deals with spelling, grammar, syntax, punctuation, and formatting.

It must also be noted that I didn’t ask to be a “content editor.” This editor didn’t READ.

We scheduled an interview, and then she sent me three tests for which I needed the Chicago Manual of Style. I didn’t own one. I could subscribe to a 30-day free subscription, but it was an abridged CMS. And, the version of the required dictionary was decades away from my good old standard Webster. I took the test, but something stuck in my craw.

For the record, during the interview, the editor remarked that she wasn’t concerned about proofreading errors in the book I was reading because it was selling well.

STOP. REWIND. REPEAT THAT PLEASE??!!

That’s not an excuse to forego a proofreader. Her logic, at best, was specious.

I emailed the test, and then returned to what was stuck in my craw. I composed and sent the editor this email:

“I made a decision, after continuing to read the book, finding ten more syntax mistakes, and I'm not halfway through yet.

All the familiarity in the world with the Chicago Manual of Style hasn't served the editors of this book.

My skill and expertise is as a proofreader. So it doesn't matter what your review says; I withdraw my application. I don't want to work for a publisher that lets this many errors slip by in a book.”