The Benefit of Proofreading

I've spent the last half hour proofreading and editing a synopsis for a novella for one of the members of my online writing group. This was version #4 and she said she needed some other eyes on it. 

By the time we write something that many times, we are not very good at proofreading our own work.

She was wise to ask for fresh eyes. Someone else sees little errors that the person who is so involved in the piece of writing does not. 

This is not the first time I've addressed this topic, and it probably won't be the last. My reason is simple. It's important!

What are we looking for when we proofread? 

• typos
• punctuation 
• clarity
• repetition of words (or phrase)
• passive verbs
• unnecessary words
• cliches
• too many adjectives
• adverbs
• telling instead of showing
• tense
• spelling

Typos are easy to fix.

We make simple errors in punctuation. Are you going to use the Oxford comma or not? Choose one method and be consistent. That's where many mistakes are made. Write a sentence like Mary hit the ball, ran the bases, and collapsed at home plate. This illustrates the Oxford, or serial, comma. It's a style choice. You can eliminate the comma if you prefer. The BIG thing is to be consistent. Don't mix up the methods you use.

Clarity is a bugger. What seems perfectly clear to the writer is not always so for the reader. So, do check to make sure the reader will know what is happening.

It is so easy to repeat words, especially everyday kinds. Things like was, is, want are so easy to use again and again. Even phrases like my younger brother can unknowingly be repeated in a story. Find something to replace the phrase or the words that are repeated in a couple of back to back sentences or even in one sentence.

Passive verbs creep into our writing very easily. It's fine in the first draft, but you'd better look for active verbs to replace a lot of them. Using a passel of passives ends up being boring for the reader.

Those unnecessary words like really, very, just come naturally to us when we converse with others. In our writing, we should not use them except in special cases. For emphasis, perhaps.

Again, we use a lot of cliches in our everyday conversation. Replace them when you write with something else. Don't be a lazy writer and pluck a cliche out of the air. Think of something new.

Too many adjectives leaves you with flowery, overdone writing. Use adjectives to help with description but choose wisely and sparely.

The same goes for adverbs. Adverbs after a dialogue tag tells the reader how the person spoke or is feeling. Far better to drop the adverb and show with an action.

We have been told myriad times that it is better to show than tell. Still, we often fall into the trap of wanting to do nothing but 'tell' a story. Showing as much as possible brings the reader into the story and is more interesting.

Be careful of tense when you write. Choose past, present, or future and be consistent. Switching tenses within a paragraph is confusing to the reader, even switching here and there within the story, unless it is for a purpose--such as a flashback. 

Last in the list, but far from being unimportant, is spelling. Some people are notoriously poor spellers, but there is help when we write on the computer. Use spellcheck. It's a wonderful tool for all writers. 

When we all started to write, the story, essay, article or whatever was our primary focus. Nobody told us we had to have all our ducks in a row (to use a cliche) with the mechanics of what we wrote. The longer you write, the more you realize how necessary it is to be able to write well grammatically and with clarity.

Learn to be a good proofreader and your writing will be stronger and possibly more publishable.