Tips and Techniques About Proofreading

It is well-known that professional proofreading services play a vital role today in helping authors make the most impact on their writing. Using a high-quality proofreading service is even a practice among the world’s most famous writers, including Stephen King and J. K. Rowling.

Therefore, an interesting question to ask, especially if you want to achieve professional-grade results but don’t want to recruit a proofreader, relates to the issue of what the proofreading process actually involves. We all know that professional proofreading services tend to focus on a document’s grammar, punctuation, and spelling, but what exactly are the tips and techniques used to do this effectively? 

The purpose of this article is to provide an answer to the question of what are the most effective tips and techniques for proofreading that non-professionals (i.e., people without specialised training or experience in proofreading) can immediately start adopting these techniques to improve their work.

 

1. Print out your work

It is well-known that people’s reading habits differ substantially when they move from a digital copy of a document to a paper copy. Therefore, if you print out your work on a piece of paper instead of reading it on a screen, your eye may catch some of the errors on paper that you missed on screen.

 

2. Check for misused homonyms

A homonym is a word that has the same spelling or pronunciation as another word but a different meaning. A good example of a homonym is the word “complement”, which may be confused with the word “compliment”. Although these words have different spellings, they are pronounced the same and they carry a different meaning.  (Look them up).

 

3. Avoid contractions in academic writing

Using contractions (e.g., “you’re” rather than “you are”) has a significant effect on a writer’s tone. In academic writing, the use of contractions may undermine the credibility of your voice. For this reason, always avoid contractions in academic writing, and ensure that you carefully consider whether you should be using them in other types of writing.

 

4. Don’t overlook punctuation

Ensuring that all the words in your document are correct is great, but you should not overlook punctuation. In particular, pay special attention to capitalization, commas, semi-colons, and use of case (e.g., title case versus sentence case).

 

5. Read it backward

Starting from the end of your document and reading backward – word by word – is an effective way to break the pattern of our brain automatically correcting errors in sentences when we read them in the usual way (i.e., when we read forwards). For this reason, reading your work backward is one of the quickest and easiest ways to improve your results as a proofreader.

 

6. Get someone else to check it

One of the most convenient ways to proofread your work is to pay for a professional proofreading service. The investment of an affordable sum of money to hire a good proofreader usually pays dividends in terms of the time you save, as well as the quality of your work overall.

How to Proofread Your Work Well

Whenever people rush to meet their deadlines, one of the first writing activities that they tend to abandon to save time is the proofreading process. For this reason, proofreading services are becoming increasingly popular today, especially with the rise of companies that offer a turnaround time of 24 hours or less.

Ordering a proofreading service is not an option for everyone, though, especially if the budget isn’t available. Therefore, if you can’t use a proofreading service – even in situations when you are rushing to meet your deadline – it is worth knowing some tips and tricks to ensure you don’t have to abandon the process entirely.

 

1. Use a proofreading tool

Irrespective of how careful you are when you write your work, there is always the possibility that spelling or grammatical errors may enter your document. In many cases, only the proofreading process will lead to the identification of these errors; a casual glance over your manuscript before you submit it simply won’t cut it. However, if you really can’t use proofreading services and, instead, you opt to make use of a proofreading tool, this is definitely recommended.

 

2. Avoid repetition

As you check over your work, even if you are in a rush, it is important to pay special attention to repeated words and sentence structures. If you continuously repeat parts of the same sentence or use the same words over and over again, you will quickly bore your reader. Therefore, as you proofread, aim for a flowing style by avoiding repetition and redundant expressions.

 

3. Check the less obvious things

Most proofreaders, even inexperienced ones, will know about all the obvious things to check before considering their job done. These issues include spelling, punctuation, capitalization, consistency, numbering, clarity, and concision. However, many proofreaders – and especially writers who are in a rush to meet their deadlines – overlook the less obvious things, including unclear writing, missing information, and missing references. Therefore, to ensure you proofread your work while if you are not working with a professional proofreader, be sure to check the less obvious things.

 

4. Double-check your numbers

Even in high-quality peer-reviewed journal articles, we often see inconsistent and incorrect use of numbers. One of the reasons for this is that many writers, when they see numbers in a document, tune out and assume that the information is correct. When you’re checking over your paper as an amateur proofreader, be sure to perform a double-check to ensure these values are correct.

 

5. Get someone else’s help

Even if you are not interested in working with a professional proofreader, it is essential to have a fresh pair of eyes to look over your document. Therefore, when you are done proofreading, ask a friend or family member to have a quick scan through your document. It is, of course, routine for a professional proofreader or editor to spot errors in your work even after you’ve checked it. However, at the same time, even a novice proofreader – such as a friend on your academic course or a colleague in your field of study or business – is likely to spot errors that you have overlooked.

How to Find a Good Rewriting Service

Everybody understands that proofreading a document is not a straightforward task. What is less well-known is that another writing-related task – namely, the task of paraphrasing (or “rewriting”) a document – is significantly more complex, which makes the fact that there are great rewriting services available online today and proving to be a welcome comfort.

To find a good rewriting service, the first key thing to know is what rewriting services actually are. In essence, a writer “paraphrases” or “rewrites” a phrase, sentence, paragraph, chapter, or full document when they use different words to communicate the same meaning. Hence, a rewriting service is a service provided by a professional writer for a client who wants to paraphrase or rewrite a piece of text. 

Image: Change is the essence of paraphrasing

The second step to ensure that you hire a great paraphraser is to receive a free sample before ordering. If you ask your potential paraphraser to rewrite a short piece of text (e.g., 200 words on a topic that relates to your field of study or investigation), you can evaluate it to get a sense of the final work that they would complete for you. Importantly, you should use software like Turnitin to check the quality of the paraphrasing performed by the writer; without this check, it will be hard to tell if the paraphrasing is good or bad even if the quality of the writing looks excellent on the surface.

As a third step, be sure to validate the credentials and experience of the person (or organisation) that you are using for your rewriting or paraphrasing needs. If it turns out that the paraphraser you are meant to be working with is actually a piece of software (e.g., an automated program for paraphrasing text), this should be avoided. Given the growing popularity of paraphrasing services worldwide, especially among students and academics, it is important to be on the lookout for unscrupulous service providers seeking to cater to this demand using low-quality software. 

Image: Check your paraphraser’s experience to ensure their compatibility

As a final point to consider, you should always remember to try paraphrasing a piece of text yourself if you have been assigned this task. For example, at universities, instructors commonly ask students – usually first-year students – to develop their ability to paraphrase other authors. If you find a good paraphraser and ask them to complete the work instead, you will end up with a high-quality document but you will miss the opportunity to develop an invaluable skill. For this reason, even if you struggle with document rewriting, it is worth spending some time to refine this skill.

How Do Proofreaders Help Authors?

All of the world’s most prominent authors make frequent and extensive use of editing and proofreading services, including specialised book proofreading services UK. For example, Stephen King is famous for working extensively with proofreaders (to check the accuracy and correctness of his writing) and with editors (to help develop and structure his initial drafts).

In no way does an author’s reliance on proofreaders and editors detract from their creative achievements; as a matter of fact, it is extremely logical for a writer to use proofreaders and editors to address the technical task of correcting and optimising their writing, freeing them up to focus on more creative tasks.

Book proofreading services UK are increasingly in-demand today due to the growing recognition of the above fact: namely, that writers should do what writers do best and – likewise – proofreaders and editors should be recruited to do what they do best (that is, to correct and maximise the clarity, concision, and consistency of the author’s creative work).

With these issues in mind, the purpose of this article is to explain some of the specific ways in which proofreaders help authors. The types of authors considered in this article are blog writers, book writers (both fiction and non-fiction), poets, and authors of short stories. Any person in any of these categories can expect to learn something from this article about how a proofreader might work with them to improve their documents.

1. Captivating readers

To communicate effectively and connect with readers, clear and compelling prose is vital. If this is missing – and it is very easy to miss if you don’t work with a proofreader – you will not be able to connect properly with your readers and, in this way, captivate them.

2. Having a knowledgeable collaborator

The proofreader you work with on your writing project is likely to have vast experience in reading all sorts of documents, ranging from high-quality books and textbooks to poorly-written blog articles and student essays. For this reason, it is likely that they will have some knowledge about how best to maximise the impact and effectiveness of your writing.

3. Painstaking attention to detail

The best proofreaders go through a document line by line, word by word. As they proceed through the document, they fine-tune your style, correct errors, and promote clarity and concision. Due to their painstaking attention to detail, the proofreader will polish all aspects of your work.

4. Trustworthy advice

Given that proofreaders typically have experience working with published authors and stakeholders in the publishing industry, they can exploit their understanding of both the editorial and creative process to offer personalised and trustworthy advice. As a result, you may find that as a result of working with a proofreader, you not only end up with a great document but also that you receive useful leads for publication.

Editing Checklist for Good Business Communication

The main task of a business editor is to enhance your written content to ensure that it is a perfect fit for it's audience. Just as authors of short stories and books use book proofreading services UK to improve their work before publication, it is critical for businesses to use editing and proofreading services to ensure their content is up to scratch..

Irrespective of the type of business document that you have – whether it is website copy, a report, a document, an information email, marketing or advertising materials – it is important to apply a standardised editing and proofreading process. This ensures that the style, tone, and presentation of your business documents are uniform and consistent, and it also safeguards against human error.

The purpose of this article, therefore, is to provide and discuss a comprehensive editing checklist that you can use for good business communication. Whenever your business uses editing and proofreading services, consider consulting this editing checklist to ensure that the professional you have worked with has performed a high-quality service.

Editing Checklist

·         Correct and consistent spelling, grammar, and punctuation (correctness)

·         Content is easy to understand (readability)

·         Content is not overly long (concision)

·         Ideas are explained effectively and accurately (accuracy)

·         The focus is good and key points are sharply presented (clarity)

Discussion

The editing checklist presented above focuses on five core areas: correctness, readability, concision, accuracy, and clarity. To ensure that your business writing is as direct and concise as it needs to be to engage your audience, it is essential to score well along each dimension.

If you are concerned about your editor’s ability to meet the requirements in each of these areas, please remember to consult with them before the service begins. It is helpful if your editor has experience in working with checklists, and you can ask them about this before hiring them.

It is worth noting that although the editing checklist presented above, if followed effectively, will bring your business content to a shippable state, there are other issues that it may be desirable to focus on. For example, if your company has standards in terms of style, it is important to ensure that the editor has those guidelines close at hand.

Another consideration relates to the use of specialized terminology, acronyms, and jargon in your business writing. Since your audience may be put off by the extensive use of technical terminologies and jargon, it is crucial to balance this aspect of your business writing by using such words sparingly (if at all).

Conclusion

Asking your editor to follow the editing checklist presented here is a surefire way to improve the quality of the service you receive. However, as emphasised in this article, there are other issues you may want your editor to focus on, including fact-checking, conforming to company style guidelines, and striking a suitable balance in terms of the use of jargon and specialised terminologies.

Why is Paraphrasing Such a Big Deal at University?

If you’re an academic, a graduate, or student currently enrolled at a university or college, you’ll know all about the joys, difficulties, and complexities of paraphrasing. What you may not know is that paraphrasing services provided by professional paraphrasers and document rewriters are available on-demand to help you with this tricky task.

The purpose of a paraphrasing service (or rewriting service) is to help you articulate a passage of text in your own words (i.e., rather than using the words in the original text) without losing or changing any of the original meaning. If you’ve ever been assigned a paraphrasing task in an academic context, you will be familiar with the extensive investment of time and effort required to do this to a high standard. For this reason, using Proofreading services can prove invaluable in terms of their time-saving and even its sanity-preserving effects.

You may be wondering, as a student or even as a professional academic, why it is that paraphrasing and rewriting skills are emphasized so strongly in the academic setting. After all, wouldn’t it simply be easier to use a direct quotation? Furthermore, if another author has already taken the time to express a thought or argument very concisely, eloquently, or powerfully, what’s wrong with reusing their words to make the same point in another context?

In many cases, there is absolutely nothing wrong with directly quoting another author. However, it must be added here that this is only permissible practice – both practically and ethically – if a clear attribution is made to the original author. After all, if you had spent a great deal of time on a particular task that you were passionate about, only to find that somebody else illegitimately took credit for it, you would not feel happy about it.

So, if directly quoting other authors – which is a common practice in academic works – is acceptable, why do most universities make their students develop paraphrasing skills? And why do many professors within universities dock marks from students who fail to paraphrase and, instead, rely heavily on direct quotation?

There are several reasons why this is the case, the most prominent of which is the belief among many university officials and university educators that developing paraphrasing skills is an essential part of a well-rounded education. Many educators perceive that if a student can express another author’s ideas in their own words, this is evidence of their adequate understanding of those ideas. On the other hand, if the student simply quotes the author, it is difficult to tell whether they have even read the quote let alone understood it.

All in all, paraphrasing is certainly a big deal for students at universities and colleges around the world. Furthermore, if you develop the capability to paraphrase the words of other authors with confidence, you will find yourself with a much stronger command of language, and you will also likely learn a substantial amount. If you’re unsure about how to go about paraphrasing a text, though, working with or talking to a professional paraphraser can be a valuable learning experience.

 

3-Bad Writing Habits and How to Correct Them

As you develop as a writer, you are likely to pick up some habits along the way. Some of these habits will be useful, such as being able to whip-up a draft rapidly in a positive stream-of-consciousness style, but other writing mistakes may derail your message or even frustrate your future readers.

Leveraging professional proofreading services can account for bad writing habits if they are spotted in the professional proofreading process, but it’s still worth knowing what these habits are. Thus, to help you improve as a writer, this article highlights some of them with solutions.

1. Procrastination – Alternatively, use blocks of time

Procrastination is one of the most well-known habits associated with writing. It is also one of the most pernicious, often leaving you stressed and deflated about how you are progressing.

To solve it, block out periods of time in your calendar that you can dedicate to writing, editing and proofreading, during which you will commit to doing nothing else. If procrastination is a major issue for you, be sure to keep these blocks of time as short as possible as this will help ease you in.

Image: Blocking out time in your calendar can help solve procrastination

2. Run-on sentences – Alternatively, use punctuation well

A run-on sentence – commonly referred to as a fused sentence – occurs when two independent sentences are compressed into one without using proper punctuation (e.g., a semi-colon or a full stop) or a suitable coordinating conjunction. Long sentences are not necessarily run-on sentences, but it is often the case that the most egregious run-on sentences are extremely long and difficult to understand.

To correct this popular writing habit, professional-grade proofreading – which, in fact, you can provide yourself if you are attentive, careful, and have a good grasp of language fundamentals – is a key option. During the proofreading process, try to spot areas that have a natural pause in them. In these areas, introduce suitable punctuation (e.g., a semi-colon or a comma) to chop up the run-on sentence, helping your reader absorb your message better.

Image: If reading the sentence feels like running a marathon, something has to change

3. Overuse of exclamation marks – Alternatively, think about your tone

In text messages and social media messages, exclamation marks are pretty much ubiquitous. However, in your blog writing or any other pieces of writing your produce, overuse of exclamation marks can have a comical effect, which ultimately detracts from the message you are trying to convey.

As an alternative, think first about the attitude or tone you are aiming to convey in your written work. Tone is influenced by factors like punctuation, syntax, and word choice, and if you manage these elements carefully, they can have a much greater effect on your readers than even an infinite number of exclamation marks. 

Image: Overuse of exclamation marks can undermine your tone, even in light-hearted text