As a veteran editor, I have seen many a story turned in with
holes in the content or errors in grammar or style. These types
of things do not instill confidence in a writer.
When new writers ask for advice, I tell them to learn how to
self-edit. When veteran writers ask me why I'm so grumpy after
reading one of their stories, I say learn how to self-edit. Writers shouldn't assume that it's an editor's job to fix all
the mistakes in a story. That's just laziness on a writer's part.
Besides, before a writer puts his or name on any piece of text,
extra time should be taken to ensure its cleanliness. Credibility and reputation are all writers have. And no writer
wants them sullied by dirty copy -- especially free-lance writers,
who are competing with thousands of others who hope to impress
editors. OK. That's the case for self-editing. Now how do you do it?
Following are some tips that may help:
1. Plug those holes. When you're done with a story, close
the file and go on to something else for a while. Get away from
it and forget about it. Then, when sufficient time has passed
-- 24 hours if possible -- open the story
and re-read it. But don¹t read it as the writer; read it
as the reader. Come to it cold with no knowledge of the subject
and no background. When you come to a point you don¹t understand,
is out of context or just doesn't make sense, you've found a hole.
Now plug it. Reread the story as many times as possible -- deadline
permitting -- to find all the details you left out that could
confuse the reader. 2. It or they?
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Mike Sturman, a 25-year veteran journalist, has held writing
and editing positions at newspapers, magazines and a startup Web
site. He also is the owner of CONTENT ASSOCIATES (http://www.contentassociates.net),
which offers writing and editing services. He believes that good
writing is the missing link between success and failure for many
Web site owners. Contact Mike at content@contentassociates.net
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