I focused on the lake, instead of looking at Mike, partially surrounded by the forest.
When you read the above sentence, it looks as if Mike is partially surrounded by the forest. However, that’s not what I intended. The correct sentence should read:
Instead of looking at Mike, I focused on the lake, partially surrounded by the forest.
Do you notice the difference? The modifier “partially surrounded by the forest” is next to the noun it’s describing. The forest is partially surrounding the lake, not Mike. Quite a different image, right?
Misplaced modifiers generally occur when you’re writing the first draft, since you’re racing to get your thoughts down before they slip away. The modifiers can occur at the beginning, middle, or at the end of a sentence. When you go back to edit, check all your clauses and modifying words to make sure they are next to the noun you want to modify. Circle the noun you want to describe. If the clause is at the beginning of the sentence, it will be directly in front of the noun. Otherwise, it will be directly after it. If they are modifying the wrong noun, rewrite your sentence so that they are linked with the correct one, or else the result might be quite comical.
She extended toward the guy her hand who I guessed to be about my age. Seventeen, maybe eighteen.