Self-Editing

How to edit your own writing the right way.

What is editing?

Making specific surface changes to correct obvious (and sometimes not so obvious) mistakes.

Rearranging what you already have to ensure all parts are in the correct places.

Running through your paper with a fine tooth comb.

Things to look for: Erroneous words/word choice Spelling errors Awkward phrasing Punctuation Sentence/Paragraph order Run-ons Passive/Active Voice Subject-verb agreement Pronoun-antecedent agreement Verb tense shifts Transitions MLA Citation

To Begin:

Read your paper aloud to yourself, or into a recorder if you are at home.

You don't have to do this in front of other people. Surprisingly enough, even reclining on your sofa all alone you can immediately catch awkward phrasings and words that you are using too frequently.

Erroneous words/word choice

Read through carefully and watch out for extra words. Sometimes saying less can do more for your work.

Look for contractions and split the words up. It will make you sound more academic (trust me).

Get your hands on a thesaurus. Read your creation and look up synonyms wherever you feel a better word might more accurately describe your ideas. Be careful though: keep in mind that your audience has a certain level of sophistication and might be turned away from words that are overly complex.

Make sure you are not repeating words too much

Spelling errors Go through your document and look up in a

dictionary any words where you aren't 101 percent sure of their meaning. I've surprised myself a couple of times when I have used a word repeatedly only to look it up and find it has another meaning entirely.

Only after you have manually checked your spelling should you even consider using spell check. Remember, spell check does not catch human error. (which/witch)

Awkward phrasing When you read through your paper if some

of your wording seems weird, it probably is. When a sentence or phrase does not seem

to flow, you need to fix it. If your car seems to jerk while you are driving you would get it fixed, right?

Sometimes reading can be awkward due to the "bumpiness" of the accented syllables.

If something sticks in your mind as being "ever so clever" you probably should remove it.

Punctuation errors The most common error is comma usage. A comma followed by the word "but" is okay.

Commas separating a list of things are okay. Commas setting off parenthetic expressions are okay. Other commas, however, need careful scrutiny -- should it be a semicolon, a colon, or parentheses?

Be aware of end punctuation. Only use an exclamation mark if you are making a bold statement. Make sure when you ask a question there is a question mark.

If you are feeling unsure of punctuation rules, break down your sentences and phrases.

Sentence/Paragraph order Keep related words together -- adjectives

next to their nouns. The important words go at the end of the sentence; the important sentences tend to go at the end of the paragraph.

Make sure you are keeping importance in order or cause and effect throughout the entire paper.

Consistency is of the utmost importance. If parts of your paper are out of order ideas

will seem to jump around to your readers.

Run-ons

If your sentences take control of you they will seem long winded.

Do not be afraid to separate into multiple sentences.

While you are reading aloud run-ons will make you feel like you are running out of gas by the end.

Passive/Active Voice

Your writing will be clearer if you structure your sentences as subject-verb-object; tell action rather than describing situations. Use your word processor to search for words ending in "-ed" -- if you preceded this word by "is" or "was" (or similar verbs) the phrase would be better rewritten. Also check for the word "there" followed by "is" or "are" (or similar verbs).

Subject-verb agreement

Basic Principle: Singular subjects need singular verbs; plural subjects need plural verbs. 

My brother is a nutritionist. My sisters are mathematicians.

Pronoun-antecedent agreement Pronoun

A pronoun is a substitute for a noun. It refers to a person, place, thing, feeling, or quality but does not refer to it by its name. The pronoun in the following sample sentence is bolded. The critique of Plato's Republic was written from a contemporary point of

view. It was an in-depth analysis of Plato's opinions about possible governmental forms.

Antecedent An antecedent is the word, phrase, or clause to which a pronoun refers, understood

by the context. The antecedent in the following sample sentence is bolded. The critique of Plato's Republic was written from a contemporary point of view. It

was an in-depth analysis of Plato's opinions about possible governmental forms.

Agreement A pronoun must agree with its antecedent in three ways:

Person refers to the quality of being. Number is the quality that distinguishes between singular (one entity) and

plural (numerous entities). Gender is the quality that distinguishes the entities as masculine or

feminine.

Verb tense shifts Make sure you are not switching your verb tense and

contradicting yourself. You cannot travel through time. Strictly speaking, in English, only two tenses are marked

in the verb alone, present (as in "he sings") and past (as in "he sang"). Other English language tenses, as many as thirty of them, are marked by other words called auxiliaries. Understanding the six basic tenses allows one to re-create much of the reality of time in his writing. The six are

Simple Present: They walk Present Perfect: They have walked Simple Past: They walked Past Perfect: They had walked Future: They will walk Future Perfect: They will have walked

Transitions Make sure you are using proper transitions

throughout your paper. You need to make sure that you move from

one idea to the next by allowing all parts to work together.

You must transition between paragraphs, as well as ideas within paragraphs.

You must also make sure you are following the same patterns with your transitions.

MLA Citation Make sure all of your in text citation is

where it needs to be. There are tricky rules to how they must be placed within your text.

Quotes get quotation marks, paraphrases do not. However, they both get parenthetical citations.

Check your bibliography information to ensure your works cited page is in the right structure.

If you are ever unsure refer to the MLA citation guide on the OWL Purdue Page.

Reread your edited text

After you have made adjustments to your text read it again to check for any errors you may have missed or created.

If you have an opportunity to let someone else read your paper they may find errors you missed.