Brian G's Unique Tips on Editing and Proofreading

Editing and proofreading are very important to your career because they allow you the ability to double-check your work. By editing and proofreading your paper, it allows you to catch any grammatical errors, or misrepresented information that you may have written.

Editing is important to documents because it allows you to make sure that you do not having any grammatical errors within the document. Some of the biggest things that people find when they edit a document include spelling, capitalization, punctuation, grammar, and sentence structure. These mistakes can cost you dearly if you miss them. When I first began writing both in my scholastic days and in my career I found that editing would be a key to my success. By editing my papers, I was able to make sure that my point came across and that there were no errors. This made me look like I cared about my work and that there was a personal feeling of pride that I took. Editing is a vital part of the writing process. If you edit every document that you write, you will find some very common errors that you would have missed, and you will be able to learn the importance of editing.

Here is a video that shows you more about editing:



Proofreading is important because it allows you the ability to make sure the point you want to get across is coming across. “One of the most difficult parts of the writing process is proofreading. It is easy for us to see what we want to see, not necessarily what our readers will see.” (OWL) Every person has his or her own unique style when it comes to proofreading. I am the world’s biggest procrastinator and that is not good when it comes to proofreading your paper. I learned the hard way the importance of proofreading your work. Just because it made sense to you does not mean that, your reader will understand your writing. Some common suggestions that I have used over the years were to take a break before proofreading, leave you enough time to proofread, and to read the document aloud.

By taking a break, you will allow your brain to catch a mistake that it may not have earlier. “The goal is to return with a fresh eye and mind.” (OWL) When I did manage to proofread my documents, I always did it immediately after finishing the writing process. This did not allow my brain time to clear itself and come in with a fresh and open thought process. I now make sure to come back and reread the paper at least once before submitting it.

The biggest mistake that I made when proofreading was not proofreading at all. I would wait until the last minute to write the paper so it allowed almost no time to proofread the document. Now I write the document with at least a day to spare. This allows you the ability to come back and only look at bits and pieces at a time. I found this to be a valuable tool. Now if I could just stop myself from being a procrastinator.

The last key to proofreading is to read the paper aloud. By reading aloud, you will catch grammatical errors, and other mistakes that may have gone unnoticed before. By making sure that you read the document aloud, you will be able to make sure the proper point is coming across as well.

I hope these tips on editing and proofreading have helped you better understand. These tips have helped me out in the past and I am confident they will help you as well.

"ABC's of the Writing Process - Editing." Free Website Hosting Angelfire free website templates to make your own free website. Web. 07 Dec. 2009. .
"Proofreading Your Writing: Suggestions for Proofreading Your Paper - The OWL at Purdue." Welcome to the Purdue University Online Writing Lab (OWL). Web. 07 Dec. 2009. .