Grammatical Crimes I Have Committed: A Little Christmas Humor


That one click of my computer’s mouse almost spelled disaster.  I was putting the final touches on my inspirational thriller, The Face Behind the Veil, and about to e-mail it to my publisher, when I decided to change a character’s name from Joseph to Stanley. 
            It only took an instant to do this "globally"  throughout the 600 page, three-part document, which traces the legend of the birth veil through three generations.             That was the only alteration I made after the book was edited.  Confident it was error-free, I clicked "send" and off it went.   It wasn’t long before I received the galley proof for me to approve, so the printing process could begin.           Weary of the seven-year project, I almost didn’t review the galley.  But something in me couldn’t let it go until I did.  That must have been Providential.  Imagine my shock when I discovered how the name change I made affected a scene where the Christmas story is told.  In horror, I read the following. 

"Now the birth of Jesus Christ was on this wise: When as his mother Mary was espoused to Stanley, before they came together, she was found with child of the Holy Ghost. Then Stanley her husband, being a just man, and not willing to make her a public example, was minded to put her away privily. But while he thought on these things, behold, the angel of the Lord appeared unto him in a dream, saying, Stanley, thou son of David, fear not to take unto thee Mary thy wife: for that which is conceived in her is of the Holy Ghost . . .. Then Stanley being raised from sleep did as the angel of the Lord had bidden him, and took unto him his wife."(Matthew 1:18-20, 24)

After getting over my initial shock, I made the necessary changes.  However, rather than globally, I did this the old fashioned way, one at a time.

Look inside The Face Behind the Veil
https://www.google.com/books/edition/The_Face_Behind_the_Veil/9vA6qHv_aoUC?hl=en&gbpv=1&printsec=frontcover

More of Flora's books

Look inside Elizabeth's Secret: Left for Dead in the Forest.
https://www.amazon.com/Elizabeths-Secret-Left-Forest-Castle-ebook/dp/B07QX98DDG#reader_B07QX98DDG

Look inside When Love Becomes Obsession
https://www.amazon.com/When-Love-Beco...-ebook/dp/B07ZS2Q274#reader_B07ZS2Q274
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Published on December 24, 2019 04:58
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