How to proof your own work (you can't)

Proofing Your Own Work

It is a truism that a writer cannot proof their own work with the same quality as using a third party. You are too close to it. Even if you put it down for a while, when you pick it back up it will be like an old friend you spent so much time with at college. Because you know it so well, you will overlook some things, whether it be syntactical snafus or grammar goblins, confusing content or contradictory characters.
Even if you have been signed to a publisher, who will use their own editors at no cost to you, you should still do options 1 and 2 below—especially if you are trying to get a publishing contrast. For instance, Sulis International sometimes rejects books because the manuscript is in such bad shape it would require too much editing and back and forth with the author. On the other hand, when we receive a manuscript that is in decent shape, not only do we need to do less work if we accept it, but it tells us the author is a professional and works hard at the craft. (If you are interested in submitting a manuscript to us for consideration, read our Publishing Page under “As a Sulis Author,” or email us.)

Option 1: Self-Editing

When I write short stories, posts, or novels, I have a process I use for editing. After having written the first draft, I do the following

1. I immediately go through it using a grammar and spell-checker. These technological helps will not catch every problem, but it is a good place to start.
2. I read through the piece, looking for passive voice and awkward sentences.
3. I do a search for words ending in “-ly” to get rid of most every adverb; a search for “very” “totally” and “really” to do the same.
4. Now that I have done these simple technical fixed, I put the work aside for a few days or weeks.
5. I read through the entire work, looking for any problems of any kind—something that doesn’t sound right, an improper word, and, of course, any of the problems above that I did not catch the first time.
6. I format the piece as it will be for final publication and print it out. Even if the publisher is going to reformat it, I get it as close as I can to the final look. This is because proofing the piece in a different format allows you to note problems you did not see in another format.
7. In this new, printed format, I read it out loud, marking problem areas to go back and fix later.

The End of the Line for Self-Editing

In my experience, any more self-editing is not going to catch much else. If I put it away for months and come back to it, I will find more problems. But deadlines, or a desire to get the work published, make this impossible in most cases. I am either done with it, or I need to get someone else to proof it for me.
 

You Need An External Editor

Using an external editor is always a good idea. Someone who is not connected with the work, did not see all of its permutations, and has not wrestled with it. She comes at this near-final product with pure eyes and few preconceived notions. She will see things you did not see, catch problems you would never have noticed. It’s all about perspective, and a third party has a perspective you can never adopt.
 

Option 2: Lay Readers

By “lay reader,” I mean someone who is not a professional editor or at least has some training and/or experience in editing. It could be a friend, a family member, or a colleague. If the person is an avid reader, especially of the genre of your piece, their feedback and provide some good insights. This person may not help you with proper syntax, grammar, flow, structure, or word choice, but their experience with similar works will enable them to give you advice on what doesn’t work, what is confusing, what they did not like. It is usually best to use such a person before you do the steps above—but they might also catch any language/grammar/spelling mistakes, too, which makes them valuable as a last-stage proofer.

Option 3: Professional Editors

Ideally, you hire a professional editor and proof-reader. Because this person works with words as a profession, they know what to look for—common writing mistakes, syntactical faux pas, and word problems. Not only that, but they can offer fixes or suggestions that make for good writing. Professional editors understand structure and flow, and can point our more substantive changes that need to be made by you. If you want your writing to be professional and readable, there is no substitute for using a professional editor.
 

Conclusion

Ideally, you would follow my steps above for self-editing (or something like it), then use a lay reader, and then, finally, a professional editor. You story, book, or novel will be as error-free as most books on the market (and it is a rare books that has no errors).
However, you may not have the luxury to follow all of thee steps. Perhaps there is a deadline looming, maybe you don’t any lay readers who read in your genre. Maybe you just want to write and not worry about all the editing and proofing yourself. My advice would be to hire a professional writer if you can only do one of the three options above, hire a professional editor. Do some research, check out prices, experience, and education.
Any combination of two of the options is better than nothing, even if it is just self-editing and a lay readers. That combination may not be quite up to the level of professional editing, but with care and time, it can come close.
For more, take a look at our editing and proofreading page, or email us for more information.