In my last blog post, we looked at how to self-edit your writing. In this week’s blog post, we will be considering a similar thing, but how you can use a computer to help you self-edit. There are many ways a computer can come in handy both to check your writing as you go and to help you find problems within your work. However, we will start by first going over why it is worth your while to self-edit as much as you can.
Why Self-Edit?
Simply put, self-editing makes your work better. It should catch some of your spelling and grammar errors, keep everything consistent and make sure there are no plot holes. It also helps you to improve your future writing, as you will know what mistakes you make most commonly and be aware of them when you are writing. You might even find that you learn new writing tips as you go along.
Self-editing can help whether you are pitching to traditional publishers or going the self-publishing route. If you are pitching to a traditional publisher, there is no point paying for a professional editor and proofreader, as the publisher will organise this if they take on your book. However, doing a bit of self-editing doesn’t cost you anything, but means that your manuscript is at its best when you pitch, increasing your chances of being accepted.
On the other hand, self-editing can also help you as a self-publishing author. Before your book can be published, it will need professional editing if you want it to shine. This will likely involve multiple rounds of editing, starting with developmental, which looks at big-picture elements, such as plotting and character development. The last stage is proofreading, which checks the formatting and details such as spelling and grammar. You can read more about the different types of editing here.
However, as you can guess, professional editing can be expensive. Therefore, it is to your advantage for you to polish your work as much as possible before having it edited. An editor will usually ask for a sample of your work, from which they will then decide how intensively your work will need to be edited and how long it will take them. The more issues you have resolved, the less there is for your editor to do, so it should be cheaper.
Using Word Processing Features
Spellcheck and Grammar Checker
One of the most useful features of Word for self-editing is its spelling and grammar checker. This means that, as you write, Word will flag up any problems with your work, using red underlining for spelling errors and green for grammar ones, so you can see at a glance where your writing needs attention.
If you right-click on the word or phrase that is underlined, you will get suggestions of what it should read. Spelling errors will also give you the option to look up the word in the dictionary to check you have the right one, while grammar errors will have an option to read more about the rule that is being used.
Alternatively, if you click on the spelling and grammar checker in the bottom toolbar, a new panel, the reviewing pane, will open on the right of the screen that lets you review each error in turn, taking you to the right place in the document and giving you the options described in the paragraph above in the reviewing pane. You may well find this option easier if you will be going through the whole document at once.
However, don’t rely too heavily on this tool. If you are unsure about a suggested correction, do go through Word’s reasoning, such as the grammar rules, to make sure you agree. In addition, bear in mind that Word rarely takes context into account, so if you misspell “from” as “form”, it will still mark this as correct, as “form” is a word.
Text-to-Speech
Word also has a text-to-speech feature which will read your work back to you. This can be an enormous help when you are self-editing, as it lets you hear your writing exactly as it is. When you read back over your own work, you may find that you don’t actually notice the mistakes and end up skipping over them, as you already know exactly what you mean and what you expect to read.
Similarly, even if a friend reads it out to you, you may find that they end up not noticing the mistakes and reading it out without them. However, there is no chance of the text-to-speech function doing this. It lets you hear where you have made mistakes, such as grammatical errors and transposed words, and correct them.
Track Changes
You could also try using Word’s Track Changes function to keep track of the edits that you have made. Once you have turned it on (it’s found in the Review pane at the top), Word will start recording any alterations you make. You can switch between showing All Markup, No Markup, Simple Markup and the Original document. This makes it easier for you to review your editing.
Wrapping Up
I hope that this helps you when you are self-editing. In my next blog post, we will be looking at creating the cover art for your book, so come back in two weeks for that!
Want help proofreading your work? Contact Carmine Proofreading for a friendly, professional service from a qualified proofreader.
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