Editing Aloud

I don’t remember when or where I saw (or heard) this piece of advice, but it’s incredibly effective. I was reminded of it yesterday, when I read a paragraph of something I’d written to my partner. I stopped half-way through and had to correct an error that I hadn’t noticed even when I’d read the piece several times.

Editing your own work is never a very good idea, especially at the later stages of preparation. The more times you read your own writing, the less likely you are to see a mistake, since your brain will retain increasing amounts of text. It will then supply you with what you wanted to write, rather than what you actually wrote.

For short articles or blog entries, it’s unlikely you’ll have a third party around to read everything you create. That’s where a short pause and stepping away from the keyboard can be a great advantage. Clear your mind and come back with fresh eyes.

If you’re writing something significantly bigger, such as an e-book or a novel, then you really need a separate person to look it over – several times. Choosing an editor is something very difficult, especially for the self-publishing author (so I’m told: I haven’t tried it yet).

Returning to the point of this post, an exceptionally good way of editing your own work is to read it aloud. It doesn’t have to be read to someone else, but you should read it out loud. No mumbling. Read the words in front of you, preferably on a printed page rather than the screen.

You’ll be surprised just how many mistakes and unwieldy sentences you catch, even in the best writing.

[Originally published on www.wordophilia.com]