I was scrolling through my work-in-progress the other day when three words caught my eye. “Get me off.” I couldn’t remember having one of my characters demand that from the other. Nothing wrong with that line, but how odd that I couldn’t remember something I had written on a current project. I stopped to review that section.

My character wasn’t talking to another guy. He was talking to a dog.

Ew.

Wait. The line was “Get off me.”

What a difference the order of the words make.

I hope nothing like that ever slips by me.

And if it does, I hope to God my beta reader, critique partner, editor, the copy editor, or the proofer catches it.

Thanks to all those hardworking people behind the scenes who help an author put out the best work they can. And who save them from embarrassing typos like this.