How to Edit a Review You Wrote on Yellow Pages
Writers rarely spit out their all-time re-create on the first draft. If you run across a writer who claims to accept the secret for doing and so, please let the remainder of the states know!
Commencement drafts — and second drafts and sometimes thirds — exist to hash your ideas out on paper. Later on you lot've revised your book, story, web log post or article until you tin revise no more than, you but hand it off to your editor to clean upward, right?
Well, that'd be platonic. Only virtually of us don't have the luxury of hiring an expensive editor to review our personal web log mail It might fifty-fifty be hard to spend the money for a book editor. And since procrastination is the writer's best friend, you might not even accept time to even inquire a boyfriend writer pal accept a quick peek for errors.
And and then, in some cases, it falls to you to be your own editor.
How to edit: Follow these copyediting tips
Even if yous don't desire to get an editor, you've got to learn how to edit. Is it really possible edit your own work when all the words y'all but finished writing are then precious? Yes! It can be washed — and for the sake of making your writing stand out, it must exist washed.
So pull up your most recently saved typhoon, and get to work. To get in easy for y'all, nosotros've added to the bottom of this list a downloadable and printable PDF that summarizes these copyediting tips into a checklist.
Here'due south how to edit your own work.
one. Cut long sentences in two
I'yard not talking about run-on sentences. Many long sentences are grammatically correct. But long sentences often contain several ideas, so they can hands lose the reader's focus because they don't provide a break, leading readers to go stuck or lose involvement, and maybe the reader might get bored and go lookout man TV instead.
See what I hateful? If you lot spot a comma-heavy sentence, effort to give each idea its ain sentence.
two. Axe the adverbs (a.one thousand.a. -ly words)
Adverbs weaken your re-create considering these excess words are not truly descriptive. Rather than saying the girl runs chop-chop, say she sprints. Instead of describing the cat as walking slowly, say he creeps or tiptoes. The screen door didn't close noisily, it banged shut.
Notice a more powerful verb to replace the weak verb + weak -ly adverb philharmonic.
3. Stick to one vocalization
Sometimes it's necessary to utilise both first and second person, but that tin be jarring for readers. For example, you might start your introduction talking about yourself, then switch halfway through the piece and start addressing the reader. Effort to stick to "I" voice or "you" voice throughout 1 piece of writing.
And if you lot must switch, start with one and finish with the other. Don't motility dorsum and forth between the two. Your readers volition get lost.
A powerful hyphen here and a thought-provoking semicolon at that place tin can exist effective. But a piece of writing littered with all sorts of punctuation — parentheses, colons, ellipses, etc. — doesn't menses well.
Oftentimes, you lot can eliminate these extra pieces of punctuation with commas or by ending a sentence and starting a new ane. And that makes your writing that much stronger.
five. Replace negative with positive
Instead of proverb what something isn't, say what it is. "You don't want to make these mistakes in your writing" could be better stated as, "You want to avoid these mistakes in your writing." It's more straightforward.
If you observe negative statements in your writing that contain don't, shouldn't, can't or another such word, observe a manner to rewrite them without the "non." That will probably mean you need to notice a more than powerful verb.
vi. Replace stuffy words with simple ones
Some people recollect jargon makes their writing sound smart, merely y'all know amend. Good writing does not misfile readers. If they need to take hold of a dictionary to finish a sentence, your writing has room for improvement.
To get your bespeak across, use words people are familiar with. The English linguistic communication has thousands of words. You tin certainly discover a shorter or more common word in your thesaurus than a jargony one.
vii. Remove redundancies
Yous don't need to say the exact same thing with 2 words. Did you catch the redundant words in that sentence? Here's a better version: yous don't need to say the same affair with 2 words.
Brand new, advance planning, basic necessities… the list of these mutual phrases is longer than this blog mail service. Check out About.com'south 200 Common Redundancies and and then start snipping!
Sometimes sneaky redundancies are separated by an "and." If yous say your sentences are straightforward and to-the-signal, they are neither. You lot don't need both words. Your sentences are straightforward. Or, your sentences are to-the-point.
viii. Reduce prepositions
Though prepositions (of, in, to, for, etc.) are helpful little words, they brand sentences more lengthy because they cannot stand alone. Prepositions need lots of friends. By cutting the preposition and the words that follow, you can cut three, 4 or even five words. Sometimes a prepositional phrase can be replaced with merely one more direct discussion, or cut completely.
An easy way to cut prepositions is to look for opportunities to make something possessive. The car of your neighbor is actually merely your neighbor'southward motorcar.
9. Cut "in gild to"
You never demand it. If you lot're going to the kitchen in order to make a sandwich… Your sentence could be tighter. Because you lot're really going to the kitchen to make a sandwich.
That "in order to" makes it take a millisecond longer to make it at the meaty office of the judgement, which means your story is dragging more than it needs to.
10. Don't apply "start to"
Did you start to walk the dog, or did y'all walk the canis familiaris? Is the car starting to roll down the loma, or is it rolling down the hill?
"Outset to" is a more hard phrase to deal with than "in gild to," considering sometimes y'all do need information technology. Only more probable than not, you don't.
Rather than making "start" the active verb, use the verb that's actually more agile — like walking or rolling — to tell your story.
11. Aught "that"
In about 5 percent of your sentences (full approximate from the grammar law), "that" makes your idea easier to empathize. In the other 95 percent, get rid of it!
"I decided that journalism was a skillful career for me" reads better every bit "I decided journalism was a good career for me."
12. Supervene upon "thing" with a better word
Commonly when we write "thing" or "things," information technology'due south considering nosotros were too lazy to think of a amend word. In every twenty-four hours life, nosotros may ask for "that thing over there," but in your writing, calling annihilation a "thing" does non help your reader.
Effort to replace all "thing" or "things" with a more descriptive give-and-take.
13. Endeavor really hard to spot instances of "very" and "really"
This is a very difficult one to call back. I almost never go it right, until I go back through my copy, and the word jumps out at me, then I change the judgement to "This is a hard one to remember." Because actually, how much is that "very" helping you lot get your point across?
Information technology doesn't make the job sound more than difficult. Same thing with "really." It'southward non a "actually" difficult tip to remember. It'due south simply a difficult tip to remember. Got information technology?
14. Make your verbs stronger
"Make" is sometimes used in the same way as "beginning to," in place of what could be a stronger verb.
For instance, I beginning titled this post, I wrote "25 means to brand your copy stronger." When I re-read it, I realized the verb wasn't strong.
I'd used "brand" as the verb, when information technology doesn't tell the reader much at all. So I changed the title to "25 ways to strengthen your copy." Somewhen I realized "tighten" was an even meliorate verb.
fifteen. Ditch the passive vox
Passive vocalization sticks out to editors, but it tin be difficult to detect in your own writing. Learning how to identify it and fixing these instances will make your writing stronger.
Here's an instance of passive voice: "The door was left open up."
To alter that sentence to active voice, information technology would look like this: "Someone left the door open" or "He left the door open." The idea is to be articulate almost who or what is executing the action.
If you want to get good at this, Cocky-Publishing School has a solid post explaining passive voice.
xvi. Refer to people as "who" not "that"
John is the guy who always forgets his shoes, non the guy that ever forgets his shoes.
Information technology's easy to make this mistake because "that" has go acceptable in everyday conversations. But it's more than noticeable when it'due south written downward.
17. Avert "currently"
Pro copywriting tip: "Currently" is always redundant.
Don't write: "Tom Jones is currently a communications director." Tom Jones is a communications director at that moment. You don't need "currently" to clarify. Just go rid of it.
18. Eliminate "there is" or "there are" at the beginning of sentences
This is often a symptom of lazy writing. There are lots of better, more than interesting ways to get-go sentences.
Encounter how easy information technology is to make this mistake? Instead of starting a judgement with "there is," try turning the phrase effectually to include a verb or start with you.
For example, replace the sentence in a higher place with "Starting time your sentences in a more interesting way." If your copy includes a lot of phrases that brainstorm with "at that place is" or "in that location are," put some time into rewriting near of them.
nineteen. Lucifer upward your bullet points
Bullet points are a popular and effective way to organize complex ideas. But make sure your bullets stand for to i another.
Too often, writers mix and match mistakes with what you should practise or transition to shoulds halfway through the post — which only confuses the reader.
If your piece is chosen 3 Career Mistakes You Don't Want to Make, here'south a bullet point that works:
-
Forgetting to tailor your resume each time yous apply for a task
Hither'south one that doesn't work (considering information technology'due south not actually a fault — the author accidentally switched to what you should do):
-
Make sure you tailor your resume
You can turn well-nigh whatsoever idea into a tip by adding a verb. For example: "Remember that sitting on your head helps you write improve." Make your bullet points consistent and your writing will read more than smoothly.
20. Use contractions
Which sounds more personable: I am heading to the market place that is close to my house, or I'm heading to the market that's close to my house?
Contractions make your writing audio friendlier, similar you're (not you are) a real person. And that makes it easier to connect with readers.
Contractions can also make your post easier to read and comprehend. Then go out of your manner to include them in your posts! Your editor volition thank you.
21. Steer clear of the "ing" trap
"We were starting to …" or "She was skiing toward …" Whenever you lot see an "ing" in your copy, think twice about whether you need information technology — because you probably don't.
Instead, become rid of "were" or "was," then eliminate that "ing" and replace it with past tense: "We started to …" or "She skied toward …" Pruning excessive "ings" makes your writing clearer and easier to read.
22. Check your commas with "that" and "which"
When used equally a descriptor, the word "which" takes a comma. But the word "that" doesn't.
For case: "Nosotros went to the business firm that collapsed yesterday" or "We went to the house, which complanate yesterday."
Confused nigh when to use "that" vs. "which?" Grammar Daughter offers a peachy explanation.
23. Replace "over" with "more than" for numbers
Over 200 people did not like your Facebook page — more than 200 people did.
Of course, everyone will know what y'all hateful if you employ "over." In fact, the AP Styleguide, which many journalists follow as the bible of style, announced a few years ago that "over" is at present adequate in place of "more than."
Simply if nosotros're beingness actually nit-picky, using "more than" instead is still one a little detail that will help your writing smooth.
24. Hyphenate modifiers
Whenever you modify a substantive with more one discussion, you need a hyphen. Lots of people don't follow this dominion, then it'southward a keen way to bear witness you really walk the walk.
That means you need a hyphen if yous're writing near total-fourth dimension piece of work. But you don't need one if you're working full time.
Got information technology? The exception: No demand to hyphenate modifiers that end in "ly." Those are OK on their own. And so your newly hired employee doesn't need that hyphen.
25. Place your tells
No matter how adept of a writer you are, when you sit down to write a first typhoon, you accept a tendency to spit out sentences in a sure way or use certain words. The more than familiar y'all become with editing your ain copy, the more quickly y'all should be able to selection up on your tells. And, the more ruthless y'all can exist to eliminate them from your writing.
"Start to" plagued me while writing my book; I made the "start to" mistake again and again. But once I knew to look for it during revisions, I was able to right information technology.
(Hint: If this is a problem for you, try using Word'due south or Google Doctor'south search function to look for "kickoff." You'll catch each one, and so you can evaluate them individually.)
Bonus: An editing checklist for how to edit your work (it's printable!)
Since we outset published this mail back in 2013, then many of you lot mentioned bookmarking and sharing the post that we whipped upward a pretty editing checklist to go with it. It'southward bachelor to download and print.
Pin this baby up on the wall above your desk, whip out your red pen, and go to piece of work! Your blog post, feature article, or novel volition be tighter and stronger in no time as yous acquire how to brand edits.
If yous want to download or print the editing checklist, click on it to bring up the total size.
This is an updated version of a story that was previously published. We update our posts as often as possible to ensure they're useful for our readers.
Some of these tips originally ran on Copyblogger and AlexisGrant
Photo via Lamai Prasitsuwan/ Shutterstock
Source: https://thewritelife.com/edit-your-copy/
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