No work is complete without a few good edits. You are the best person to do the first edit of your own work. Often, the first few drafts contain many small errors as well as areas that need reworking. As the author, you know exactly what you want to share in your writing. When you read over your work you can often find better ways to express yourself. So how do you go about self-editing?
Read it through
The first step is to read the work through. You can do this productively in two different ways. The simplest way is to use the editing mode in the word processor you used. MS Word, GoogleDocs and Pages all have options for the user to “track changes.” This allows you to make changes in the document and add comments without actually altering the document. In a different colour, the text will now show your new edits and the old version of your text will be crossed out. I love this feature because you are able to accept or decline any changes you make at a later time. Keep in mind, it’s always wise to save multiple draft versions of your work to ensure you don’t lose any content you love.
A second way to edit might be called “the old-fashioned way.” You can print the text out and mark it up with a pen as you read. Printing the text out double spaced is a good way to leave enough writing space to make changes. I like to use a contrasting colour pen in pink or purple, but that’s just my preference!
Read it out loud
I’m not a doctor or a scientist, but I know there is an interesting phenomenon that occurs when you begin to read your own writing out loud. When you read out loud, a different part of your brain begins to work and you can pick out errors in your text that were not evident to you before. Have you ever tried those brain teaser images where the text is misspelled with various letters, numbers and symbols? If you have ever tried one, you’ll see how your brain will see the correct word and spelling even if it is wrong! This can happen to authors as they read their own writing. Moreover, the author of the text knows what each word and idea is meant to be so your brain can trick you. Maybe you intended to write the word “brain,” but instead you wrote “Brian.” Simple slip-ups can easily be caught with this simple tactic.
Give it a break
Another way to catch mistakes is to take a break from your writing. Go for a walk. Sleep on it. Leave it alone for a few days. Sometimes when you are caught in the moment of writing you can misread what you actually wrote and read the text the way you envisioned in your head. When you return to your writing you will have “fresh” eyes to go over your work. You’ll be surprised at how many typos you might encounter or ideas that need to be made clearer.
After you edit your own work, it’s always advisable to have someone else look over your work. Better yet, have many different people read your writing. Willing friends and family members are great people to ask. When you want to go to the next level or if you need a professional touch, you can always inquire about our editing services here.
The Northern Edit 
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