Thus far, I’ve covered the most offensive types of errors I’ve seen in fiction on the web, and now I’ll get down to things that are merely bad or that are just annoying. But just because an error doesn’t stand up and slap you in the face, it doesn’t mean an editor will let you get away with it. She shouldn’t and she won’t.
From here on, though, the problem with these errors is that–more so than the topics of previous posts–frequently they aren’t errors at all. Don’t you just hate that? As we move on, keep in mind that all of the word usages I list here–all of them–often have a legitimate place in prose. There will be times that you specifically want what they provide; the key is to understand the danger they pose, and use them knowingly.
And so, onward to “wiggle words.”
Now that I’ve finished my foray into Shakespearean biographies and Elizabethan conspiracy theories, it’s time to get back to work.
Woohoo!
