When Editors Err: What to Do When an Editor Introduces Mistakes Into Your Work

February 15, 2025June 15, 2025 Aries Payne

You finally finished your article! You were awarded a byline, so you poured everything you had into it, edited it as best you could for clarity, and gave it a great title. You sent it off to the editor to review and publish online or in print (or both), and now you’re sitting back and waiting for your pride and joy to be revealed to the world so you can share it with your friends and family.

So you wait… and you wait a little bit longer… and then the article goes live! You rush to the nearest store to buy a copy before the contributor copy is mailed to you. You refresh the website, delete the cookies, and then refresh again. Finally, you see it. You see your name in shining lights at the top of the article and read your work in the flesh for the first time. It starts out reading great, but then you see… a typo. Some repetition. A misplaced modifier that you don’t remember.

“Did I… Did I write this?” you think to yourself, ashamed of the very thing you were just so proud of. You go back to your final draft and compare the two to get a sense check, and you find that, no, you’re not imagining things. These mistakes aren’t yours to claim; they’re new.

So what happened? Well, as much as we rely on editors to make sure that a manuscript or draft is completely free of error, they’re still human. Editors (myself included) tend to be perfectionists when it comes to words–but realistically, we won’t always get it right 100% of the time.

How to Address Introduced Errors from Editing

So, once you find the mistake(s), how do you address it?

Assess the error (severity, type of error, if there’s an error, etc.).
Communicate the issue to your editor (offer context to help them understand your intention).
Remain professional (be respectful and understanding).

What About Printed Work?

Of course, when an article goes to print, we, unfortunately, can’t do too much about the copies that are already in circulation, but flagging any mistakes to the editor or editor-in-chief can help them prevent the error from living on to the next reprint.

How to Prevent the Introduction of Errors

As with anything we want to avoid, there are a few preventive things you can do to avoid the risk of introducing errors to your work, from using track changes to keeping copies of the work you submit or receive prior to edits.

Tips for Writers

Communication is key! Discuss your expectations with your editor in advance. Share background information or research materials that support your work for them to easily reference.
If you’re contracting an editor, offer a style guide or document outlining your stylistic and writing preferences.
Always keep an original, unedited version of your work. That way, you can easily spot unintended changes if they occur.
Request track changes from your editor so you can see all of the modifications made to your work.
Review edits in stages rather than after all the edits have been completed.

Tips for Editors

Take breaks! This is especially important if you’re working on a longer manuscript. When you step away, even if it’s just for five minutes, you can come back to the work with fresh eyes. Along with this, avoid rushing. While we all want to make sure a piece of writing is finalized as soon as possible, it’s not worth the risk of ending up with subpar work.
Change your perspective. Print the article out, change the font or font size, or read everything out loud. Doing this will force you to see the work in a different way, helping you identify errors you might have missed.
Leave the major revisions to the writer. As an editor, your job should be to help the writer ensure their work is clear and correct. If you have concerns about anything beyond this, have a conversation with the author about potential rewrites. Doing so will not only help the writer improve their own craft, but prevent you from accidentally taking on additional, unnecessary work.
Remember: Editors aren’t perfect. Sure, we would love to have a clean, well-written article attached to our name, but don’t get too caught up in the fear of making a mistake. You’re still human, so focus on doing your best, and the rest will follow!

As embarrassing as it might seem to go back to your editor and request a change in the final live draft, it’s completely normal. However, if you’re still hesitant, think of it this way: Wouldn’t it be more embarrassing to leave a mistake up for readers to see when your name is all over it? So be proud of your work, and protect it from errors!

How to Get Away with Murder: A Case Study in Flash-Forwards in Writing

June 21, 2023 Aries Payne

When you’re confined to the couch for a long period (I thank my appendix for that), you can’t help but start binge-watching a new TV series; in my case, it was picking up one I hadn’t had time to finish until now. And if you’re down and out for the count but still want to feel like you’re on your toes, I highly recommend How to Get Away with Murder.

Created by Peter Nowalk, How to Get Away with Murder is a serial legal drama (or thriller, depending on how you look at it) that follows the interconnected stories of a group of ambitious law students and their renowned (read: infamous) criminal defense professor.

The series kicks off at the school bonfire: there’s partying, there’s drinking — you know, stereotypical college shenanigans. But it’s not all fun and games.

In the distance, in a dark, wooded area behind the festivities, we find our star law students standing over a dead body (yikes). They’re frantically arguing about what to do with the corpse to steer suspicion away from them. Do they leave it where it is or take it with them?

It’s not long until one of the young adults, Wes Gibbins (Alfred Enoch), decides it would be best if they just…flipped a coin. Of course, we don’t see if it lands heads or tails because we’re immediately brought back to what we realize is actually the present. It’s here we get our true introduction to Wes as he heads into Criminology 101 for the first day of class with Professor Annalise Keating.

Throughout the rest of the first season, every episode starts with a small peek at the future state, with each return to it revealing a little bit more about what’s coming. The remaining 40 or so-odd minutes take place in the present, where events slowly begin to unfold that will lead us to what we now know will inevitably happen — the question is just how.

An Introduction to Flash-Forwards

These short trips to the future are known as “flash-forwards.” It was originally a literary device used to create anticipation and suspense but has more recently had applications in film and TV. It is not the same as starting a plot in medias res or “in the middle of things.” The key difference is that the flash-forward still reverts to the beginning, whereas stories that begin in medias res pick up from that point and continue to drive the plot forward.

Another feature worth noting is that flash forwards don’t always promise a future that is definite. In some cases, the preview you get is just a “possible” ending.

Benefits of Using Flash-Forwards in Writing

Now, you may be wondering: “Why on earth would any writer want to potentially spoil the conclusion as soon as the story starts?”

There are a few advantages to flash-forwards, but the biggest is that they can be used to immediately hook the reader.

A hook is a technique used to grab the audience’s attention at the beginning of a story. It’s meant to capture their interest and encourages them to continue watching or reading. A group of young lawyers-in-the-making now responsible for someone’s murder? I mean, who wouldn’t be inclined to want to know what happened?

Other benefits of using this literary technique include:

It builds an emotional connection with your audience. Since flash-forwards are generally used as hooks, this is the perfect tool to establish a relationship between your protagonist and reader. What happens in this possible future that will make your audience care about them?
It helps with tone-setting. Rather than hinting at the themes of your novel, you can use a flash-forward to get straight to the point. Things like a dead body in the middle of the woods scream “mystery” and “thriller,” so your audience should already know from episode or chapter one that it’s time to grab a detective cap and strap themselves in.

How to Avoid Spoilers with Flash-Forwards

There’s an art to creating flash-forwards that can circumvent spoiling your story’s plot or conclusion, which is something How to Get Away with Murder does particularly well. Here are a couple of tips you’ll want to keep in mind if you decide that this literary technique is something your plot needs:

Don’t get caught up in the details. Offer just enough information for the reader to have a vague idea of what’s to come. Leave out the why and how and just focus on concrete details (the who, what, when, and where).
Circumvent expectations. Earlier, I mentioned that flash-forwards don’t always present a definite ending. That’s because, in some cases, writers cleverly deliver breadcrumbs that may lead a reader to believe that one thing will happen when in fact, it’s something else entirely. (If you’ve seen the series finale of Firefly Lane, you’ll know what I mean.)

Done right, a flash-forward will not only hook the audience but will provide just enough information to add suspense and get them invested, regardless of whether that ending actually comes to fruition.

Why Are Blogs Important?

June 6, 2021June 6, 2023 Aries Payne

Whether you want to learn more about raising bamboo, homeschooling your kids, or what your zodiac sign says about how you feel about exercising—there’s probably a blog about it. But why are there so many of them online, and why have they become so important for a website?

Blogs are important because they’re not only good for marketing and SEO, but their content can be repurposed for social media, newsletters, videos, and more. They’re also a good way for the author to express themselves and their thoughts to a new audience.

No matter if you’re a small business trying to attract new customers, an entrepreneur trying to make a name for yourself, or a hobbyist that just wants to share inspiration, a blog can take you one step closer to your goals.

Blogs Are Good for Marketing and SEO

If you’re reading this, chances are you’re probably at least a little familiar with SEO or Search Engine Optimization. SEO is a standard marketing practice—which includes strategies such as blogging—that aims to increase traffic to your website through search engine results. The more traffic you get, the more likely those visitors will contact you, interact with your site, or purchase your products or services.

How do blogging and SEO go hand-in-hand? Well, Google uses crawlers (think of them like tiny little invisible robots) that scan your site’s content and just about every other website that exists on the internet. The crawlers then build an “index,” which is connected to an algorithm that tries to match the information the small bots find to what users search.

For example, if you wanted to know what the Kingdom Hearts series is about, you may open Google and enter something like “Kingdom Hearts summary” or “Why doesn’t the plot of Kingdom Hearts make sense?” As soon as you hit Enter, Google will pull up a list of results—websites that best answer or address your query based on their index and algorithm.

If you’re regularly blogging, it’s likely that Google will crawl through the pages of your site, including those new posts, so you can start showing up on search results. In other words, if you happened to actually get the plot of Kingdom Hearts and explain it clearly enough that even a tiny invisible robot can understand it, your blog might be one of the first results for someone searching for it.

Their Content Can Be Repurposed

Whether you’re a business or an influencer, content is essential for attracting and maintaining an audience. But what if you’re fresh out of new ideas to keep them engaged?

Another benefit of blogs is that you can reuse their content for different things and platforms.

Just wrote a blog about your favorite peach cobbler recipe? Take a photo of the final product and post the recipe on Instagram or Facebook. Share tips for the best, mouth-watering pie in your next newsletter. Create a short video of you making the dish from your kitchen with a tutorial. The possibilities are endless!

They Spark Creativity and Inspire

Finally, blogs allow writers to get their creative juices flowing. Maybe you’re trying to learn something new yourself, get around writer’s block, or just want to vent about your day. Regardless of your reason for blogging, it’s an excellent outlet for expressing what’s on your mind.

And if your readers happen to feel the same way or take away something from your post that they can apply to their own life or experiences, you’ll likely gain followers and continue to grow your online audience. It’s a win-win for everyone!