Proofing & Editing

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You have a great idea for a story and you have put it to paper. Now what? Well, the first thing you should do is save the file, or print it out, and then bury it for a while.

Bury it?

Yes, bury it. If you can afford to, bury it for a couple of weeks. When you take it out and look at it again, it will seem unfamiliar to you. This will allow you to see your work with a more objective eye than while you are actually writing.

After you have spent so much time writing your masterpiece, you are too close to the creation of the work to properly edit. You have to edit. I guarantee it. Your manuscript will be overflowing with mistakes. And the amazing thing about this will be the surprise you experience when you actually look at your work with a discerning eye.

If you try editing your work right after you finish writing, the mistakes will not stand out. After all, you just finished creating your work the way you wanted and all of your hard work will camouflage the mistakes. Another thing helping hide the errors is your immediate familiarity with the writing style.

In order to make your article, novel, or journal entry perfect, you have to be able to edit with an unbiased eye. You have to maintain objectivity in order to cut phrases, sentences, and paragraphs, or add to the piece to make it more understandable or flow effortlessly.

Why is this so important?

If you finish your article and send it off to an editor or publisher filled with mistakes, you dramatically increase the probability of a rejection letter. Editors tend to work with writers who decrease their workload, not the other way around. It is a competitive field out there and usually, an editor has options.

If you want to be successful in this career, your writing has to be – well – almost perfect.

jC
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