Mrs. Hying’s Top 10 Editing TipsRighting dun write…

#1: Formal vs. Informal

In a formal paper (CA essay), do not use “I”, “my”, or “you”… instead, refer to yourself or the audience as “the reader”.

#2: CitationsCitations should include the page number within a set of parentheses, after the quotation mark and before the punctuation.

#3: TitlesTitles of books should be italicized, but titles of short stories or articles should be put into quotation marks.

#4: Character Names

Character names should always be capitalized, unless the word “the” comes before, then they should not be capitalized.

TITLE

CHARACTER

#5: ContractionsDo not use contractions in a formal paper, unless they are used in an example.

#6: Spell Out Numbers and Small Words

“and”, not & “with”, not w/“two”, not 2 “for” or “four”, not 4

#7: SpellingIf you aren’t sure how to spell something, look it up or ask a friend!

#8: ProofreadRead your paper out loud and if it sounds funny, you are probably missing something!

#9: PunctuationUsing commas correctly is hard to do, but it’s really important. If you use them incorrectly, you might be saying something you don’t mean!

#10: Overemphasizing!!!!

-Only use one ! or ?-Do not WRITE IN CAPS or bold your words to make them seem more important