Welcome to this series of writing tips, to be posted each Wednesday. If you would like to pen a guest post for this series, email me at ACBwrites@aol.com.
Today I'm happy to present a guest post by Sandra Miller.
Sandra Miller is
a writer living in New York. Two times a year she watches the sitcom Friends.
Her passion is Latin American culture, and she loves salsa. Sandra uses professional editing services help to write great material.
Simple Tips in Editing your Own Work
Writing doesn’t stop at finishing your
first draft. You have to go through another process and that is editing your
own work.
Editing is the process whereby the
writer checks on whether the paper is well-written and organized in terms of
content, clarity, overall structure, style and transition of paragraphs. Here
are a few tips which can help you through the process.
Tip No. 1. Finish the draft first. As
much as possible, avoid editing while you’re writing. Correcting typographical
or grammatical errors is okay. But avoid typing, re-reading and deleting
sentences or paragraphs unless you’re through with your first draft.
Tip No. 2. Print it. Most of the time,
it’s easier to pinpoint mistakes when the work is read in a printed format, or
at least read in a different perspective. The important thing is to read your
work using a different device aside from your computer to easily spot errors.
Tip No. 3. Edit the content and structure
first. Editing your own work means re-reading it as a whole, not just on a per
sentence basis. Through this, you’ll be able to check easily whether there is
missing information or certain sections that need to be deleted or revised.
Editing your sentences only comes after once the entire content is polished.
Tip No. 4. Reduce words used. Keep in
mind that readers don’t like it when the article is too long so if possible,
cut down the number of words by at least 10%. Delete superfluous and repeating
phrases and unnecessary adjectives and go straight to the point.
Tip No. 5. Don’t rely too much on
a spell-checker. Remember that you are smarter than your computer. In checking
grammatical, typographical and spelling errors, use your eyes too. There are
instances where the spell-checker will pick up on words that are used correctly
or will not pinpoint any errors when in fact, there is. So instead of changing
everything that the checker suggested, read it out first and see if it makes
sense.
Tip No. 6. Read your work slowly. To
determine any mistakes in your work, read through it slowly and out loud.
Tip No. 7. Take some time off. This is
often neglected by most writers. Because of deadlines or other equally
important tasks, writers tend to edit immediately so that they can pass their
work. That shouldn’t be the case. When it comes to editing, let your work and
your mind rest first before going through it again. In this way, it is easier
for you to spot mistakes since your mind will be refreshed. It’s a lot easier
to come up with new ideas and fill in missing facts and information when you
start with a refreshed mind.
Tip No. 8. Publish your work. Your work
needs to be published eventually. While it’s normal for you to feel less than
perfectly satisfied with your work, when there’s nothing else to be done let go
of it. Your work is meant to be shared, not kept.
Keep these tips in mind when it comes to
editing your own work. You wouldn’t notice but editing will become a breeze
when these guidelines are followed.
This guest blog was by Sandra Miller.
Further Reading:
Wednesday Writing Tips #1: Write!
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