Editing Yourself
I was the senior (and lone) technical writer at two different companies. I had no editor. Now, I'm in charge of the quality assurance area, and I edit/proofread our technical writer's documents. Here are some tips that helped me edit my own writing.
1. Try to put some time between writing the document and proofreading/editing it. Set it down and come back to it a little later. (The more you work with a document, the less clarity you have.) Go for a walk, work on another task, or take a quick break.
2. Do a proofreading pass on your document. Look for spelling, formatting, and style issues. Then go back and edit for content.
3. Verify all of your facts. Make sure your addresses, phone numbers, quotes, and URLs are correct. Check everything, even if its stock or boilerplate text that you use over and over. We've found errors in footers that have been perpetuated. Pay attention to the details. It's not sexy, but it will save you (or your co-workers).
4. Use templates with styles. This standardizes your documents, and you don't have to worry about making unnecessary formatting or page design errors.
5. If there are a lot of contributors to your document (and you want it to read like a single document), you are going to have to edit for style. Make sure that tenses and voices are the same. (In our company, one person writes in second person, and another writes in first person.)
6. Make sure the spacing is uniform throughout the document. You should use one space after each mark of punctuation with proportional fonts. (Many folks who transitioned from typewriters are still using two.) When I get work from other subject matter experts (SMEs), I do a search and replace to remove the extra space after periods and colons.
7. Know your weaknesses and use your word processor. If you know you always have trouble with a certain (frequently used word), add (the correct spelling) to your word processor's autotext feature.
8. If you use standard text over and over (and over), put it in your word processor's autotext feature. As a technical writer, I can't tell you how many times I used, "Complete the following steps to..." or "Click Save to store your information." This will save you some key strokes and prevent errors during monotonous tasks.
9. Find writing allies in your company. There's always someone with good proofreading or writing skills. Make a deal to proofread for them if they'll reciprocate on things that need an extra set of eyes.
10. Don't rely on the grammar or spellchecker in your word processor. It's not always correct.
11. Invest in a good dictionary and style guide/writer's handbook. If you don't want to purchase one, there are lots of good online references. (See my website, I've listed a bunch. http://www.CrazyforWords.com.)
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1. Try to put some time between writing the document and proofreading/editing it. Set it down and come back to it a little later. (The more you work with a document, the less clarity you have.) Go for a walk, work on another task, or take a quick break.
2. Do a proofreading pass on your document. Look for spelling, formatting, and style issues. Then go back and edit for content.
3. Verify all of your facts. Make sure your addresses, phone numbers, quotes, and URLs are correct. Check everything, even if its stock or boilerplate text that you use over and over. We've found errors in footers that have been perpetuated. Pay attention to the details. It's not sexy, but it will save you (or your co-workers).
4. Use templates with styles. This standardizes your documents, and you don't have to worry about making unnecessary formatting or page design errors.
5. If there are a lot of contributors to your document (and you want it to read like a single document), you are going to have to edit for style. Make sure that tenses and voices are the same. (In our company, one person writes in second person, and another writes in first person.)
6. Make sure the spacing is uniform throughout the document. You should use one space after each mark of punctuation with proportional fonts. (Many folks who transitioned from typewriters are still using two.) When I get work from other subject matter experts (SMEs), I do a search and replace to remove the extra space after periods and colons.
7. Know your weaknesses and use your word processor. If you know you always have trouble with a certain (frequently used word), add (the correct spelling) to your word processor's autotext feature.
8. If you use standard text over and over (and over), put it in your word processor's autotext feature. As a technical writer, I can't tell you how many times I used, "Complete the following steps to..." or "Click Save to store your information." This will save you some key strokes and prevent errors during monotonous tasks.
9. Find writing allies in your company. There's always someone with good proofreading or writing skills. Make a deal to proofread for them if they'll reciprocate on things that need an extra set of eyes.
10. Don't rely on the grammar or spellchecker in your word processor. It's not always correct.
11. Invest in a good dictionary and style guide/writer's handbook. If you don't want to purchase one, there are lots of good online references. (See my website, I've listed a bunch. http://www.CrazyforWords.com.)
Posted by Crazy for Words at 12/1/2007 12:07 PM 
Categories: Technical Writing and Editing, Proofreading and Editing, Writers and Writing
Categories: Technical Writing and Editing, Proofreading and Editing, Writers and Writing
I can see that you are an expert in this field! I am launching a website soon, and this information is very useful for me. Thanks for all your help and wishing you all the success in your business.
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