Learn Hardcore Italian: La professoressa mi fa riscrivere la trama con meno errori. - The professor makes me rewrite the plot with fewer mistakes.

It’s the causative construction with fare: fare + infinitive means “to make/have someone do something.” Here, La professoressa mi fa riscrivere = “The teacher makes/has me rewrite.” The subject (the teacher) causes someone else (me) to perform the action (rewrite).

Why does mi come before fa and not after riscrivere?

Clitic pronouns like mi normally go before the conjugated verb (fa). In the causative, the pronoun referring to the person who performs the action (the “causee”) attaches to the conjugated fare, not to the infinitive:

Correct: La professoressa mi fa riscrivere...
Not for this meaning: La professoressa fa riscrivermi... (that would mean “makes someone rewrite it for me,” changing the meaning).

Is mi here a direct or an indirect object?

Functionally, it’s the person who carries out the action (the “causee”). With the causative:

If the infinitive has its own direct object expressed, the causee is usually indirect: Gli faccio leggere il libro (“I make him read the book”).
If the infinitive has no direct object, the causee tends to be direct: Lo faccio lavorare (“I make him work”). With mi, the form looks the same in both roles, but the underlying pattern still applies (here the infinitive has a direct object, la trama, so “a me” is the idea).

Could I say fa di riscrivere?

No. The causative uses fare + infinitive with no preposition: fa riscrivere, not fa di riscrivere.

Can I use a me instead of mi?

Yes, for emphasis or contrast: La professoressa fa riscrivere la trama a me (“…to me”). In neutral style, the clitic mi is preferred: …mi fa riscrivere…

How do I replace la trama with a pronoun?

Use la. Two common options:

La professoressa me la fa riscrivere.
La professoressa mi fa riscriverla. Both are acceptable; many find the first smoother when two clitics appear.

How does this work in the past? Any tricky agreement?

Neutral past: La professoressa mi ha fatto riscrivere la trama.
With a clitic object: Me l’ha fatto riscrivere. In careful usage with causative fare, the past participle fatto often stays invariable. In everyday speech, you’ll also hear agreement with a preceding direct object pronoun: Me l’ha fatta riscrivere. Both occur; keeping fatto invariable is the safest choice in formal writing.

Can mi ever attach to the infinitive (riscrivermi) in this sentence?

Not to mean “makes me rewrite.” Riscrivermi would make mi the object of riscrivere (“rewrite for me/to me”), so fa riscrivermi la trama would mean “makes [someone] rewrite the plot for me,” which is a different meaning.

Why con meno errori? Do I need di?

Con meno errori = “with fewer errors.” Meno is invariable and works with count and mass nouns.
You only add a comparator when you specify one: con meno errori di prima / rispetto a prima (“than before”).
You can also say con il minor numero possibile di errori or the colloquial con meno errori possibile (“with as few errors as possible”).

Is there a difference between errori and sbagli?

Both mean “mistakes,” but:

Errori is a bit more formal/neutral and fits academic contexts well.
Sbagli is more colloquial. So con meno errori is perfect here.

Does trama mean plot or summary?

Trama is the story’s plot. If you mean a “summary,” use riassunto:

La professoressa mi fa riscrivere il riassunto = “The teacher makes me rewrite the summary.”

Why la professoressa and not just professoressa?

Professions in Italian normally take the definite article in this kind of sentence. Alternatives:

L’insegnante (gender-neutral noun; article shows gender: l’insegnante can be feminine or masculine depending on context).
Il professore (male), la professoressa (female). Colloquially, students often say la prof.

Is riscrivere di nuovo redundant?

Yes—ri- already means “again.” Riscrivere di nuovo is common in speech for emphasis, but riscrivere alone is enough.

Could I say meglio instead of con meno errori?

Yes, with a slightly different nuance:

…mi fa riscrivere la trama meglio (“…makes me rewrite the plot better”) is broader.
…con meno errori targets accuracy specifically.

What if the teacher lets me rewrite it (not makes me)?

Use lasciare (to let/allow):

La professoressa mi lascia riscrivere la trama. Or for permission/request: La professoressa mi fa riscrivere la trama? would not mean “lets me”; it still means “makes/has me.”

Can I move parts of the sentence around?

Within limits. These are natural:

La professoressa mi fa riscrivere la trama con meno errori.
Mi fa riscrivere la trama con meno errori (la professoressa). (Subject recoverable from context.) Avoid splitting clitics incorrectly (e.g., not Mi la professoressa…). When pronominalizing both “me” and “it,” the order before the verb is me la: La professoressa me la fa riscrivere.