This is K.M. Island and you are listening to the 300 seventh episode of the Helping Writers Become Authors

Podcast.

Woot, Woot.

Final edits on my historical aviation adventure novel Storming are finished.

I just shipped it off to the proofreader and I'm

about to start final proofread for myself. My all-time favorite and most effective

tool for catching all those sticky typos is reading along as my Kindle reads my manuscript to me.

I'd call this method foolproof, but I'd probably jinx myself, and anyway we know there's no such thing as a foolproof proof reading system.

But this one is pretty close. Reading aloud myself is another very useful technique. I'll use both before I'm finished. I know I'm in

crowded company when I say proofreading is not my favorite part of the writing

process, but it's exciting because it means I'm that close to publication on this puppy.

And now I hope you enjoyed this week's podcast entitled Most Common Writing Mistakes Part 44,

Too Many Participle Phrases.

Running to her computer, Katie tries not to spell her coffee.

She is late to write a very important 44th installment

in the most common writing mistakes series. She looks for her coaster,

rooting through her desk drawers, Finally, relieved to have protected the precious particle board of her desktop

from permanent circular stains, she plops down in her desk chair.

Index finger fidgeting with the worn N button on her keyboard. But now what?

She frowns in thought and peering up at the snoopy plush atop her computer admits, gosh, Snoopy, I have no idea how to start this article.

Fortunately, all that rushing, coaster hunting, fidgeting, and peering is the perfect intro to a post on what is all too often a grammatical sticky

point. Participle phrases or as those of us with clumsy tongues prefer to call them

...