The Printing Press story

Historical story

Coming from lower middle class [k4: wrong article] Coming from a lower-middle-class family, I used to be a businessman not plagued with success [k4: wrong preposition] plagued by success. Having heard of an opportunity to take part in testing of [k3: unnatural collocation] the testing of / testing the freshly invented [k3: less natural collocation] newly invented recently invented / just invented time machine, I grasped at it [k3: inaccurate word choice] seized it immediately. Being from a lower-middle-class family, I had long been a businessman dogged by failure. The moment I heard of an opportunity to take part in testing a newly invented time machine, I seized it without hesitation.

London of the past [k3: slightly awkward phrasing] the London of the past / old London met me with hustle and bustle of a stinky market [k3: awkward collocation + k1: style/register-use more suitable descriptive wording] the hustle and bustle of a foul-smelling market, overwhelming with bright and distinct crowd [k4: misuse of a verbal + k3: unnatural collocation] teeming with a bright and distinctive crowd. The first thing I did in this city was selling [k4: incorrect form of a verbal] was sell my grandma’s golden earrings to earn a starting sum [k3: unnatural collocation] some start-up capital. To get rid of modern clothes that attracted a lot of attention I resorted to London’s high fashion [k3: illogical / awkward phrasing — one does not usually “resort to” high fashion in order to disguise oneself in this context] , I changed into clothes typical of London at the time. Old London greeted me with the noise and foul smell of a crowded market, teeming with vivid faces. The first thing I did there was sell my grandmother’s gold earrings to raise some start-up capital. To avoid standing out in my modern clothes, I changed into garments typical of the period.

Having studied the time period before my travel [k3: less precise word choice] journey, I knew exactly where I had to go next – Fleet Street! My plan was all about using [k3: too colloquial / awkward phrasing] consisted in making use of a new thriving business niche of printing to get wealthy, so I headed to the most neat-looking facility [k3: unnatural collocation] most respectable-looking premises on the street.

“May I please discuss with you my newest fiction draft?” [k3: unnatural phrasing in direct speech] “May I show you my latest fictional manuscript?” I said to the man in the building publisher, already knowing that Pride and Prejudice will be [k4: wrong tense form] would be a huge success. The draft did in fact get accepted, becoming a guarantee of my pleasant life here [k3: awkward collocation] a guarantee of a comfortable life for me there. Since I had studied the era beforehand, I knew exactly where to go next — Fleet Street. My plan was to take advantage of the booming printing trade and grow rich, so I made my way to the most respectable-looking premises on the street. “May I show you my latest fictional manuscript?” I asked the publisher, already aware that Pride and Prejudice would become a tremendous success. The manuscript was accepted and secured for me a comfortable life there.

Now that I’m getting [k1: no short forms in formal writing! + k4: tense inconsistency] I am getting / I have been given a chance to escape my constant need for money [k3: awkward phrasing] constant financial hardship, I will gladly stay here despite the dirty streets, plagues [k3: less suitable word choice] plague and the necessity to work hard as a writer even though I don’t [k1: no short forms in formal writing!] I do not have to invent the plot. Now that I have been given a chance to escape constant financial hardship, I am more than willing to remain here despite the filthy streets, the plague, and the need to work hard as a writer, even if the plot has already been handed to me by history.

I had been used to life with no hopes [k4: wrong tense/form] I was used to a life without hope, dwelling in a fast-paced city where luck abandoned me, but here, in my new present, I feel a bright future waiting around the corner, making me feel refreshed and much more confident. It is as if I was [k4: wrong form after as if in unreal comparison] had been born for the second time. I was used to a hopeless life in a fast-paced city where luck had long abandoned me, yet here, in my new present, I feel as though a bright future is waiting just around the corner, leaving me refreshed and far more confident. It is as if I had been born a second time.