Copyediting sample 7:
A barbecue pit

Even a prolific author of mystery novels can make mistakes with grammar and spelling.

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Original
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The three of us—Jefferson, Ruby, and me—were lucky. We looked and smelled like we had just been tossed around in a barbeque pit but other than irritated eyes and throats, we were fine. We sat down on the curb in the shade, just beyond where the emergency medical teams were working on people who weren’t as lucky as us.

Markup
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The three of us—Jefferson, Ruby, and me—were and I—were lucky. We looked and smelled like we had just been tossed around in a barbeque pit but a barbecue pit, [Merriam-Webster's Collegiate Dictionary for spelling (also, “barbeque” would be pronounced “barBECK,” just like Dubuque is pronounced “dooBYOOK,”)] but other than irritated eyes and throats, we were fine. We sat down on the curb in the shade, just beyond where the emergency medical teams were working on people who weren’t as lucky as us. as we were.

Result
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The three of us—Jefferson, Ruby, and I—were lucky. We looked and smelled like we had just been tossed around in a barbecue pit, but other than irritated eyes and throats, we were fine. We sat down on the curb in the shade, just beyond where the emergency medical teams were working on people who weren’t as lucky as we were.