Readers. At which moment would you inform authors that you spotted typos?

[Russell Brooks]

Last year, bestselling author, Jonathan Franzen, had the nightmare of his life when over 80,000 copies of his newly-released novel, Freedom, were recalled due to the fact that it was an unfinished version that accidentally went to print.

If you purchased an eBook or a paperback novel and you found a few typos (less than ten out of 70,000 words) would you still inform the author? Some people are fussier than others. What number of typos would be your breaking point?

[GeoffC]

"littered with errors" - 50 over 70,000 words .... mmmm

Your question asks for a reaction if 10 errors occurred over 70,000 - on that I probably wouldn't nor perhaps with 50/70,000 - but may depend on whether it's a systemic error that's repeated .... One recent ebook I downloaded had no apostrophes - it was readable, but looked strange and probably equated to a higher 'error' total.

[Russell Brooks]

Originally Posted by GeoffC

"littered with errors" - 50 over 70,000 words .... mmmm

Your question asks for a reaction if 10 errors occurred over 70,000 - on that I probably wouldn't nor perhaps with 50/70,000 - but may depend on whether it's a systemic error that's repeated .... One recent ebook I downloaded had no apostrophes - it was readable, but looked strange and probably equated to a higher 'error' total.

Thanks for pointing this out to me. I modified the question.

[DixieGal]

I am reading a book right now that has errors on nearly every page. I PM'ed the author, who says the revision is in the works. The story is good, but this high level of errors is distracting.

[Russell Brooks]

You did the right thing, DixieGal. I'm sure the author will remember this and appreciate the fact that you alerted them to the problem.

[Hellmark]

Typically if it is under 10, I just move on, and usually forgot about it before I hit the next one. Above that, it starts bugging me, and I keep track of it. Too many, it just bugs me, and I'll stop reading.

[Giggleton]

I might be getting a bit more used to the occassional typo. They can be a bit distracting but I haven't been throwing the Kindle down in disgust lately when I spot them. What exactly is a typo after all?

I think typos can be classified on a sliding scale of egriegiousness? Depending on whether the book is fiction or non-fiction. And where the typo is in relation to other words in the sentence etc..

Maybe your poll needs more options?

[DiapDealer]

I wouldn't base my decision on a number. Some typos I can blow right by and assimilate. Others bug me to the point of distraction. The latter is where I would contact the author/publisher.

[Catlady]

I make a mental distinction between typos (a simple spelling mistake) and what seem to me to be usage errors (e.g., it's / its). I have a higher tolerance for the former, but the latter drive me crazy.

[Pomtroll]

So many of the books I read lately have typos (both e-books & paper). For the most part I live with them. BUT I tried reading one the other day that was so bad I gave up. This will be the second time I am contacting the author.

[Ron.]

I don't think I ever would

[RainingLemur]

Typos don't bother me too much. But, they can really start to get annoying when it's apparent the final draft was proof-read by an 8-year-old with ADD.

[bhartman36]

Originally Posted by Russell Brooks

Last year, bestselling British author, Jonathan Frazen, had the nightmare of his life when over 80,000 copies of his newly-released novel, Freedom, were recalled due to the fact that it was an unfinished version that accidentally went to print.

If you purchased an eBook or a paperback novel and you found a few typos (less than ten out of 70,000 words) would you still inform the author? Some people are fussier than others. What number of typos would be your breaking point?

I'm looking at this from a "Do unto others..." standpoint. If someone found typos in a book (or short story, or basically anything) that I released, I'd want to know about it so that I could go and fix the errors immediately. I actually had a few typos that a reader let me know about, and I did just that.

Of course, it matters how you let the author know. I would only be angry about it if the work was rife with errors. Otherwise, a note about how "I enjoyed the work, but there are a few things you might want to fix" would be how I'd approach it.

[bhartman36]

Originally Posted by Catlady

I make a mental distinction between typos (a simple spelling mistake) and what seem to me to be usage errors (e.g., it's / its). I have a higher tolerance for the former, but the latter drive me crazy.

Me, too. I can be tolerant about typos, but grammar and usage errors (that aren't part of a character's intended speech pattern) drive me nuts. If I'm paying for your work, that makes you a professional writer, and professional writers shouldn't be making those kinds of mistakes.

[SeaBookGuy]

I assume we're focusing on ebooks here -- recently I returned a Kindle book, writing a review explaining that edition was replete with formatting problems. The (self published) author responded that she had noticed returns, thanking me for citing the issue; she followed up later that a revised copy had been posted.

As for print books, I've told two authors about factual errors (contradictions). Both responded nicely - first (established author) said "Good copy editors are hard to find!" and more recently the other (newbie, though not self published) responded "I'm sure there are others you and I didn't catch!" We exchanged a couple of messages; she was incredibly good natured!