: Re: How many errors per page volume is typically "okay" in a book? Suppose I'm in charge of getting a three hundred page book published. I'll do all reasonable things to get it proofread, but

@Phylliss352

Vote Up Vote Down

Some errors will always remain, no matter how many proofreaders go through the manuscript. I've yet to see an error-free book.

Some readers will always be critical. If it's not the proofreading, it's the editing. If it's not that, it's the fact-checking, and so on. Just steel yourself for the critics, and hope they find happier ways to amuse themselves, soon.

I'm not sure there's any "error rate" to share with you. A single-letter error -- leaving an "s" off a plural, for example -- isn't the same as using an entirely incorrect word (accept, except), and some errors are more glaring than others.

A book that's been hastily proofread by just one proofreader may display 1 typo per 1,000 words. In my opinion, that's too many, but it's not unusual among published books I've been sent to read and review. I'm more comfortable with 3 typos (single-letter errors or two letters, transposed) per 10,000 words.

(0)

Login to post a comment!