Three Tips for Better Self-Editing

Editors fill a vital role in today's communications world by helping content creators of all skill levels deliver clear, concise works. A variety of ways exist to improve your writing with or without the help of your editor. Much like playing an instrument, writing is a skill that develops through practice. These three tips can help you improve your writing by editing your own creations. Putting yourself in the shoes of your editor can give you a different perspective on your work.

Communications experts can benefit first by focusing on delivering quality content. One of the oldest tips that can help improve your writing comes from traditional newsrooms and applies equally well in other content creation arenas. Boil down your article or story into a single sentence, and try to get at the real core of the issue at hand. Once you have your sentence, take out all but the most important words. Pick a single word from that set—this is the core of your story, and everything else must tie back into it. Creating a strong focus is one of the key elements of self editing.

The second tip that can help you improve your writing is to view it with a critical eye. Step away after you write the work; take a quick coffee break so that you can return to your article with a fresh eye. Remember that your editor will likely approach each piece you submit with a critical eye, and this quick break allows you to get a new perspective instead of leaving your head full of all the details that went into crafting the piece. Once you finish your break, go back and examine your piece from a grammatical or syntactical point of view. Look for missing or unnecessary commas in written works, missed cues or questions in interviews, and other minor details that may have slipped during initial creation. Taking a fresh look at things is an effective tool for self editing.

You have flaws and limitations—every communications creator does—and learning to embrace those flaws and admit you need to work on specific areas of your delivery is an important step in becoming better at what you do. The third tip that can help improve your writing is to keep a log of your flaws and limitations. Whenever you need to make a grammatical or contextual change, make a note of it. Look for emerging trends. Perhaps you need to focus on comma usage or the integration of second-tier footage in your recorded works. A professional editor can help you locate these errors, but self-study can often reveal just as much when you approach your work with a fresh perspective.

The world of communications changes constantly. Written works for novels and short stories are different from news stories and online copy pages. Your employer will often dictate your form and style, but it falls on you to improve your writing so that you can deliver the best and most compelling content possible.

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