Editing and proofreading your essays can be a chore, especially when you\u2019re already time-poor. Read through these useful tips to help you become a superior editor and proof-reader for your next essay.<\/p>\n
Edit your work<\/strong> – Look at reviewing and refining your writing with a focus on the language and content.<\/p>\n Proofread<\/strong> \u2013 Don\u2019t confuse proofreading with editing! You should proofread after the final edit of your essay and this important step allows you to pick up any spelling, punctuation and grammatical errors. Reading your work out loud can also be a useful tool for proofreading. Another tip is to print a hard copy of your essay and proofread with a pen – many professional writers and editors adopt this method.<\/p>\n Have a break<\/strong> \u2013 Give yourself enough time to have a break from writing your essay before editing and proofreading the final copy. If you can, take a few hours to refresh your mind and your eyes. When you\u2019ve been writing for a while, your brain can start to overlook your own mistakes. Take a break and revisit your essay with fresh eyes.<\/p>\n Don\u2019t be distracted \u2013<\/strong> Minimise all possible distractions before you sit down to edit and proofread. Turn your phone off or remove it from the room and see if you can reduce background noise. If silence is difficult to find, try listening to white noise \u2013 a steady, constant sound such as waves or a heartbeat can help mask background noise and improve your focus. If you want to give this technique a go, you can find \u2018white noise\u2019 clips on YouTube.<\/p>\n Read with care<\/strong> \u2013 When editing and proofreading your essay don\u2019t skim through it, read it slowly. Check everything is correctly in order. One tip is to read backwards, which is to read each sentence in the essay starting with the last sentence and work backwards to the first. Isolating each sentence like this allows you to find errors in punctuation, spelling and grammar you may have missed.<\/p>\n Stop relying on spell check<\/strong> \u2013 Although spell check is great for correcting errors in your writing, it will not pick up everything. It may correct a misspelled word to the wrong word. Spell check can also have issues in determining context with words such as \u2018affect\u2019 and \u2018effect\u2019. Missing sentences, paragraphs or an entire page will only be found with your own eyes.<\/p>\n\n