Self-Editing: Quick Tips & Fixes



Today, I bring to you something slightly different, inspired by my years of working as an editor in corporate America:

Have something short that you’re writing in a hurry and no second set of eyes?  It’s still important to mind your Ps and Qs.  Here are seven quick tips and fixes for reviewing your own words:

-          Change the font size   and/or type while you review.
o   Perhaps nothing as drastic as the above is needed, but it certainly caught your eye, didn’t it?  There’s something about an error in text that will stick out differently when you’re reading it in Comic Sans. 

-          Actually use the spell check feature.
o   It can be easy to mentally filter out those little red, blue, and green squiggles, but spell check is your friend.

-          Walk away.
o   Even just departing from what you’ve written for five to ten minutes can mean the difference in catching a huge glaring error.

-          Read your document from bottom to top.
o   Work by reading the last paragraph/sentence first, then the second to last, etc.

-          Say it out loud.
o   Breathing the words into the universe is a different exercise than “saying them in your head”.

-          Make an outline.
o   Not sure you have included everything?  Grab a post-it or the notepad on your computer and make a quick and dirty outline of what you’ve actually said thus far.  Determine from there if you’ve written out your thoughts completely.

-          Trust your gut. 
o   Seriously, if something sounds funny to you as you’re reading what you wrote, it’s probably off.  Find a different way of saying it… or perhaps know that it’s time to work with a professional editor.

So, fear not, friends!  You can self-edit too!



#AnitaVP #self-editing #editing #quicktips #tips #mindyourpsandqs 

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