Just like a CSI investigator, you can frequently spot errors in writings if you can forget that you are the author and examine the work like a detective. Here are some of the most frequent suspects:
- Missing comma after an introductory element
- Vague pronoun reference
- Missing comma in a compound sentence
- Wrong word
- Missing comma(s) with a nonrestrictive element
- Wrong or missing verb ending
- Wrong or missing preposition
- Comma splice
- Missing or misplaced possessive apostrophe
- Unnecessary shift in tense
- Unnecessary shift in pronoun
- Sentence fragment
- Wrong tense or verb form
- Lack of subject-agreement
- Missing comma in a series
- Lack of agreement between pronoun and antecedent
- Unnecessary comma(s) with a restrictive element
- Fused sentence
- Misplaced or dangling modifier
- Its/It’s confusion
(Bedford-St.Martin’s Press)
Source: http://www.bedfordstmartins.com/lunsford/twenty.html