Editing Blogs
15 Tricks for Proofreading Your Work
You’ve finished your project and hit send. Then you notice an error. It’s the worst feeling when you find the mistake after submission. Those tiny errors haunt writers, which is why proofreading is an essential step for everyone. It doesn’t matter whether you’ve written an email, presentation or novel. It needs to be error-free.
The Five Phases of Big Picture Editing
Editing can be fun, but it also can be tough. It’s an emotional phase of the writing process that can batter a writer’s spirit. Not all of the time. There will be projects that are easy to write and edit, but I’m not talking about those projects today. Today I’m talking about those larger beasts that tear at a writer’s soul. The projects that make us question whether we can write and why we want to do this in the first place. Those projects are the ones that test our resolve to write.
Top 12 Tips for Critiquing Someone Else’s Work
I am often asked to critique my friends’ work. I consider it an occupational hazard. Of course, I also offer manuscript critiques as part of my business. I enjoy doing them, but recognize they can present a few challenges and always proceed with caution.
NaNo: Now What? (Part 4 of 4)
This month we’ve been focusing on what to do now that NaNoWriMo is over. This four-part series has covered the initial steps of revision, editing on a larger scale, and drilling down to the sentence level edits. Now it’s time for the last bit of advice before you can send your story out into the world.
General Advice:
NaNo: Now What? (Part 3 of 4)
NaNoWriMo is finished, but you aren’t. This four-part series covers what you need to do next. The first blog tackled the initial steps of revision. The second focused on editing on a larger scale. Now we’re going small, moving on to the sentence level.
Sentence Level:
There are a host of elements to check at the sentence level.
NaNo: Now What? (Part 2 of 4)
NaNoWriMo is over. So what now? This series lays out a game plan for revising your manuscript. The first blog covered the initial steps to take. Now we’re moving on to editing, starting large and moving toward the smaller details as we go. The final blog will cover the final steps of manuscript preparation.
NaNo: Now What? (Part 1 of 4)
You’ve made it. It’s finally December and NaNoWriMo is over. You did it. Or you did something. It doesn’t matter whether you reached your goal or fell a bit short. Just because NaNoWriMo is done doesn’t mean you are. There are still many things left to do if you want to turn your words into something finished.
The Five Phases of Big Picture Editing
Editing can be fun, but it also can be tough. It’s an emotional phase of the writing process that can batter a writer’s spirit. Not all of the time. There will be projects that are easy to write and edit, but I’m not talking about those projects today. Today I’m talking about those larger beasts that tear at a writer’s soul. The projects that make us question whether we can write and why we want to do this in the first place. Those projects are the ones that test our resolve to write.
The Ups and Downs of Editing
Editing someone else’s work is always easier than editing your own. When I review someone’s manuscript, I can always see the flaws, the errors in grammar, the leaps in story logic, the stalled through line. It jumps out at me demanding attention and comment.
The same thing does not always happen in my own writing.
Top 12 Writing Fails: Editing & Script Doctoring
In my business, I am not always the first call and I like it that way. Call me weird, but I love being called in to fix writing that isn’t working. Luckily, there always will be those clients who think they can write their own scripts, speeches and manuscripts. They think taking English classes in high school and college means is enough preparation, and sometimes it is. Then again, sometimes it is not.
My Top 12 Tips for Critiques
I am often asked to critique my friends’ work. I consider it an occupational hazard.
While I don’t mind doing critiques, they do present a few challenges and I always proceed with caution. This is especially true with new and unpublished writers, although it’s tricky with anyone who does not know my critique style. The last thing I want is to alienate another writer or come off as harsh, but I admit I have been blamed of that in the past. The problem is that what I consider a constructive critique (one that I ask for myself) is more detailed and direct than most writers want.
Top 15 Proofreading Tricks for Everyone
There is nothing worse than sending out something you have written only to spot errors in it afterward. Those tiny errors haunt and are the reason why proofreading is an essential step. It doesn’t matter whether you’ve written an email, presentation or novel. You need it to be error-free.
Think of your poor readers. You don’t want them stumbling on your poor punctuation, misspelled words or clumsy construction.
The problem is that proofreading requires a shift from the creative writing mode into a detailed perfectionist state. It requires different skills than writing does, but is most often performed by writers on their own work. It is a circumstance rife with peril. Writers are least likely to see their own errors. Our eyes gloss over missing words and punctuations because our minds see what we meant to write. Unfortunately, it is not always possible or feasible to hire a professional proofreader or con someone else to read our work before hitting the send button.
The only solution is to do our best. Here are my top 15 tricks to help you find pesky errors in your work and someone else’s work: