GREAT WHITE OR GO HOME

I have never. Seen this specific typesetting mistake before. I've seen editing mistakes I've seen writing mistakes I've seen typos aplenty I have never seen someone accidentally paste the file version details into the text while typesetting.

that's the first page of the book as well like. I'm assuming this got missed because it obviously happened after the copy was finalised. that's an InDesign file (and not the first InDesign file of the project (clock the 'V2')) so idk much about the publishing process but this is presumably final final steps before committing to print.

The more often you look at something, the more used to seeing it you get and your eyes simply skip over stuff even if you don’t intend for that to happen. It’s subconscious. You can’t control it. This is one of the reasons it’s recommended to edit or proofread in a different font and size - the text physically changes which means your eyes aren’t just scanning the same old for the nth time but are forced to process it anew.

(This is the explanation for why fanfic writers catch typos more often after they hit post on ao3. The text literally looks different on ao3 than it did in their text editor so their eyes are now seeing things they missed.)

When it comes to cover proofs it’s SO common to have typos or word repeats because the covers get looked at SO much that everyone just goes “yep looks fine” because this is the 7th cover meeting or whatever and the persons who worked on it obviously have seen it 5 million times in the past two months. For proofing covers it’s recommended to work backwards and use physical barriers, like a piece of paper covering the cover printout you’re looking at and then you look at the last line on the back of the cover and start backwards. You catch so many more errors that way. That includes misspelled titles, word repeats, punctuation errors, whatnot.

When You Look at Dr. Grace

eyes hit serious diminishing returns wrt resource costs vs vision quality as they get bigger, so the question became: what the FUCK do giant (and colossal) squid need to see so badly that they couldn't see with swordfish-sized eyes that's justifying that massive energy cost? that nothing else in the deep ocean needs to see so fucking badly??

turns out the one strength eyes that big really have over much smaller eyes is: seeing large glowing objects in water deeper than 500 meters from an appreciable distance.

sperm whales are the primary predator of giant squid. sperm whales don't glow. BUT! water that deep is full of bioluminescent creatures-- these creatures light up when bumped into. something a sperm whale's size is continuously bumping into those critters, it's just surrounded by a glowing field all the time when it's swimming at those depths, visible from a distance-- if you have the right eyes-- as a massive glowing shape. so basically the only reason to have eyes the size of soccer balls is if you live in the deep ocean and your life depends on having a heads up when a hungry sperm whale lurking around

(this came out of a conversation in the comments on a previous post about an author threatening to stop updating a fic because of lack of engagement)

So there’s this idea that fic writers should write for themselves and not care too much about stats or engagement,

and i totally get the sentiment behind that. if writing becomes entirely about stats and external validation, something important does get lost - creative freedom and joy, conviction in your own writing

but i also think:

“i write for myself, but i post for others.”

because posting fic is not only self-expression. it’s social. ao3 is called an archive, but emotionally it often functions as a community space.

people post for connection, for participation, for others to bear witness to their pain and trauma and grief,

and i don’t think most people are asking to be admired so much as acknowledged. there’s something deeply human about wanting another person to encounter something that mattered to you and go:

“ok, yeah, I see what you were trying to say. I see you.”

especially because fanfic is often people processing very real feelings through fictional characters at a safe distance, one step removed,

and then uploading that deeply personal thing into a shared archive and hoping somebody else might connect with it.

And i think that’s why it hurts so much when you summon up the courage and post a fic into the void and you get nothing back,

and then it’s like,