Editing + Proofreading
Higher Order Concerns and Lower Order Concerns
When students think about revising their papers, many only think of editing the grammar before turning it in. While grammar may seem like the most important issue at that time, this should not share equal weight as other aspects of the paper.
Higher Order Concerns: These are the factors you should pay the most attention to when editing your paper. These "big picture" ideas are the main components involved with developing a strong, coherent paper.
Lower Order Concerns: These are factors that are also important, but contribute more to the readability of your paper than the overall argument or main idea. These are also important, but should not be treated the same as HOCs.
Tip: Sometimes, it is most natural to revise your paper by switching your focus from HOCs to LOCs multiple times! Each writer has their own unique writing process, so do not feel like you need to follow a strict format during the revision step. However, it is important to note the difference in importance between the two.
For a complete guide on the differences between HOCs and LOCs and how to best revise both, schedule an appointment with one of our tutors!
Tips for Editing Your Writing!
After you finish writing your essay, it's important to edit your work in order to catch any mistakes you may have made, as well as to improve the general quality of your paper. Follow these words of advice to help guide you through the editing process!
Read the paper aloud as if you are reading a story.
For this to work, it is important that you read SLOWLY and not mutter to yourself! Listen for errors. If you listen carefully, you will be able to correct any errors that you hear.
Listen for incomplete phrases, sentences, and ideas, as well as things that sound funny.
Look for patterns of error.
Personal patterns:
All writers make mistakes that are typical of their writing. If you always forget commas, check for commas. If you always have trouble with transitions, look for transitions. If you work on wordiness, look for this. Bring your essays to the writing center! A tutor can help you to locate the patterns of error.
List:
Keep a list of your trouble spots. Use this as a checklist and refer to it as you edit.
3. Know your grammar and punctuation rules, or know where to look them up.
Study the rules of grammar and punctuation. Review the ones you don't know. If you have a writing handbook or handouts, keep them out when you write. Refer to them when you have questions as you write and edit.
Source: https://gustavus.edu/writingcenter/handoutdocs/editing_proofreading.php
Uploaded by Haley Chapman 11/13/2017 (November Monthly Project)
More Tips for Editing Your Writing!
1. Let Your Writing Rest for a Few Hours or Days
The more distance you put between yourself and your writing, the easier it is to make improvements and find mistakes. When possible, let important writing sit for a few days. When you pick up the material again, it’s almost like proofing someone else’s work.
If you don’t have the luxury of letting your work sit for days, then a few hours will have to do. Find another activity that will help you distance yourself from the writing. You might want to take a jog, wash the dishes, or take your dog to the park. Do something that clears your mind. Ideally, you can approach the work from a fresh perspective.
2. Read Your Writing in a New Format
Seeing your writing in a different format can help you correct everything from misspellings to poor word choice. If you have access to a printer, make a paper copy that you can use to note changes.
3. Read Your Writing Out Loud
This is a helpful tip for writers of all skill levels. Brains are tricky machines that often see what they want to see. Reading silently makes it easier for your brain to correct mistakes and fill in gaps. If your brain expects to see the word “off,” then it will quietly transform similar words, such as “oft” or “of,” to match those expectations.
Reading out loud disrupts your brain’s attempt to make everything look perfect. You will likely find yourself stammering through poorly worded sentences and pausing at misspelled words. If you have difficulty reading a section, then you know you’ve found a piece of writing you could improve.
4. Read Backwards
Disrupting narrative flow can help you find mistakes you would otherwise miss. Try reading your work backward, starting with the last paragraph and ending with the first. This approach forces you to pay careful attention to details and makes it harder for your brain to correct mistakes. When you’re fully engaged in reading, you’re more likely to see opportunities for improvement.
5. Use Grammarly to Find and Avoid Mistakes
Grammarly is a writing app that acts as a fresh set of eyes to look over your work carefully and spot spelling and grammar mistakes. Grammarly checks more than 250 advanced rules to find mistakes such as:
double negatives
run-on sentences
comma splices
sentence fragments
double pronouns
dangling modifiers
Source: https://www.grammarly.com/blog/5-tips-for-editing-your-own-work/
Uploaded by: Keely Ryan 11/13/17
Revising vs. Editing
Knowing the difference between Revising and Editing will help you get in touch with what you should be looking for when doing each.
In form of essay deadlines, a first draft is usually having an organized form of putting down your ideas.
After revising, you conduct the second draft, where you now further connected ideas and organized a little more.
In the final draft, you have moved around your paper and have done the major revisions. The next step before submitting is making sure the rest of your paper stands confidently in revision and running through the assignment for editing purposes a few times to catch minor mistakes.
Added by: Roxana Pimentel
Here is an example of a draft, how it was revised, and then how the revised paragraph was edited:
While you are editing your paper their are a lot of shortcuts to allow for a quick markdown of information for a faster a editing experience. There are many different styles and you can play around to find the best way that is easily remembered while your writing.
You can use these proofreading marks to proofread your papers!
Comma Usage
Beware of popular myths of comma usage:
MYTH: Long sentences need a comma. The length of a sentence does not determine whether you need a comma.
MYTH: You should add a comma wherever you pause. Different readers pause or breathe in different places.
MYTH: Too many commas in one sentence aren't right. All commas in a sentence should be present if needed in the structure, no matter what.
REMEMBER:
Comma Usage should always follow its rules in all forms of papers because it's important to let your readers know where your main ideas can be found within your sentence, what background you're giving, and technical structures.
The easier your paper is to read with the correct punctuation, the more interested your reader is in the topic you are discussing.
Most Common Comma Usages:
Rule 1: INTRODUCTORY BITS (Small - Medium - Large)
Regardless of bit size, the comma usage will let the reader know that the main idea will be followed up after the comma.
examples: Generally, I like to eat at a restaurant downtown, (small). Throughout her life, my mother has always liked to cook, (medium). If you ever stop by my house, my mother is likely to offer you a drink, (large).
Rule 2: FANBOYS (For, And, Nor, But, Or, Yet, So)
FANBOYS serve as connectors for words, phrases, or clauses.
example: My mom loves to cook big meals, so I bought her bigger pans.
Rule 3: "FANBOY FAKERS" (However, Therefore, Moreover, etc.)
These words also serve as connectors, but they require commas before and after they're said.
example: When I bought my mom's pans, it was very expensive, so I, therefore, had to withdraw money from my bank account.
Rule 4: Interrupters (X, Y, X)
When further describing your subject, it needs to have a comma to interrupt and another comma after to close off your description.
example: The store I went to for my mom's pans, which was too far to walk, was in the same shopping center as the gym.
Commas. The Writing Center at The University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill, 2017. writingcenter.unc.edu/tips-and-tools/commas, Accessed 3 October 2017.
Editing Run-On Sentences
What is a Run-On Sentence?
A “run-on” sentence contains two (or more) independent clauses that are incorrectly joined together. (An independent clause is a word group that can stand alone as a sentence.)
Here are some tips on how to edit your sentences!
Join the two clauses with a comma and a coordinating conjunction
Use this mnemonic for remembering the coordinating conjunctions: FANBOYS = For, And, Nor, But, Or, Yet, So
Break the run-on sentence into two separate sentences
Join the clauses with a semi-colon and a conjunctive adverb followed by a comma; however,
Examples of conjunctive adverbs: therefore, nevertheless, however, as a result, in any case, consequently, and thus
Join the clauses with a semi-colon
Examples of Corrected Run-On Sentences
Incorrect
Body language is non-verbal everyone uses it to communicate.
Tom enjoys playing hockey, he plays it as much as he can.
Many people believe that violence on television has a negative effect on our youth, however, this topic continues to be debated.
Increased pollution in the environment threatens the health of millions this is an indisputable fact.
Correct
Body language is non-verbal, and everyone uses it to communicate. (coordinating conjunction preceded by a comma)
Tom enjoys playing hockey. He plays it as much as he can. (two sentences)
Many people believe that violence on television has a negative effect on our youth; however, this topic continues to be debated. (semi-colon + conjunctive adverb + comma)
Increased pollution in the environment threatens the health of millions; this is an indisputable fact. (semi-colon)
Remember: Do not simply choose one method at random and edit all of your run-on sentences this way. Be sure to read each sentence and give thought to how best it can be edited. For example, some sentences contain two separate yet important thoughts and would benefit from being split into two or using a semicolon. However, other sentences might be redundant so you can simply cut part of it out to create a shorter, more concise sentence.
This is adapted from How to Catch and Correct Run-On Sentences
Shared by: Haley Chapman (Monthly Project) 10/2/2017
How to Correct Short Sentences
The simplest way to make short sentences longer is by adding coordinating conjunctions, which are commonly used to connect independent clauses or phrases.
Examples
INCORRECT: Too many short sentences can hurt an essay. It can make the writing seem choppy. The writing may seem like it is below college level. Readers may lose interest. They may not want to continue reading.
Notice how the writing in this example seems choppy and doesn’t flow well. Now, look at how this writing can be improved by joining some of these sentences together with coordinating conjunctions:
CORRECT: Too many short sentences can hurt an essay, for it can make the writing seem choppy and seem like it is below college level. Because of this, readers may lose interest and may not want to continue reading.
Another way to fix the problem of short sentences is to add subordinating conjunctions.
INCORRECT: My grades continue to suffer. I am not studying as much as I should. I hope to pass. I am not sure I will.
CORRECT revision through subordination: My grades continue to suffer because I am not studying as much as I should. Even though I hope to pass, I am not sure that I will.
Notice how subordinating conjunctions not only connect sentences together to improve length but also show how ideas are connected.
The following is a list of common subordinating conjunctions that can be used: after, although, as, as if, as though, because, before, even if, even though, if, if only, now that, once, rather than, since, than, that, though, unless, until, when, where, whereas, wherever, whereas, whether, which, while.
Shared by: Keely Ryan (Monthly Project) 10/2/17