In the final installment of this mini-series on self-editing for authors, learn how to catch the little mistakes in your writing.
Editing English Articles
The Style Edit (continued): Word Search
Part 4 of the self-editing for authors mini-series continues with some ways writers can use the search function to improve style.
The Style Edit: The Sound of Style
Part 4 of self-editing for authors touches on how listening to your work can help you refine your writing style.
The Structural Edit: Following the Thread
Part 3 in the series on how to self-edit is about refining a work’s structure to make sure the story holds together.
The Content Edit | Editing for Coherence
Part 2 of the self-editing mini-series is all about why a reader’s questions are the most valuable tool for content editing.
The most important step in editing your own writing
Effective self-editing is a superpower for any writer, and it starts with one very important step.
Junk English
Junk English comes in many flavors, some of which are very addictive. Overused phrases. Buzz words. Hyperbole. Euphemisms. Filler words. We usually don't notice or mind when someone uses these devices in speech – and most of us do. Sometimes they have redeeming...
Editorial Oops
I'm so glad that people sometimes say — and write — unwittingly funny, telling, or bizarre things. Even the most articulate people and the most well-edited publications are subject to editorial slip-ups, and you just have to be grateful for that. I, for one, can laugh...
Karmic Apostrophes
It's not an obsession, this thing I have about apostrophes. It's just that the poor things are so misunderstood and misused! When I notice one in the wrong place, I can't get it out of my mind. It's the same feeling I get when I'm visiting someone's home and the...
The Ultimate Anagram
My brother is a software engineer who considered being a math major in college. I, on the other hand, make my living in words and rejoiced when I learned that I would never actually need calculus. Not long ago, he and I chatted about what sorts of things we randomly...
The Unintentional Apostrophe
When I drove up to Pennsylvania to spend Christmas with my family, I passed a digital road sign that read, “Caution New Traffic Pattern’s Ahead.” Those signs – the Lite-Brite answer to Gutenberg – definitely attract attention. (I would like to know the statistics of...