Best Proofreading Tips from Experts

Best Proofreading Tips from Experts How to Proofread an Essay Home›Tips for Students›How to Proofread an Essay Tips for StudentsProofreading tips and techniques from expertsGood proofreading skills are absolutely necessary for everyone whos dealing with writing. Regardless of whether you need to write long texts on a daily basis or just compose a short piece of writing once in a while, mistakes should be avoided in any case. If you think only people who are not skilled in writing need to carefully proofread their texts, youre very much mistaken. Even professional writers have editors and proofreaders who are there to help them spot accidental slip-ups. So,  how to proofread professionally on your own?Since most people cannot afford a service of a personal proofreader, weve compiled a list of proofreading tips and tricks on how to proofread a text by yourselfLet it Be for a WhileIf youve been working on a piece of writing for a long time, youre likely to have lost the ability to see and judge it objectively. This m eans that you also wont be able to spot any mistakes if you start proofreading right after youve finished writing. Thats why you should dedicate the tasks of writing and editing to two different days. The same refers even to short texts. If you dont have the luxury of an extra day, you should still take a break and make sure your brain gets relaxed before you start proofreading.Edit at Different PeriodsAgain, if you cant postpone editing until tomorrow, you should at least do it at the different time of the day. For example, after having worked on an essay the whole morning, leave it till the evening because it will already give you a different perspective. Its been proven that our surroundings influence our perception, and it works even with such thing as writing.Read out LoudWhen reading the text in your mind to yourself, youre likely to skip mistakes because this type of reading is very fast and mechanical. Switching things up and reading aloud will give you a completely differen t picture. First of all, you wont jump over words or add some that you were planning to but didnt write down. Thus youll be able to spot repetitions and missed words faster. Secondly, your tongue will also betray spelling mistakes that your eyes might miss. Finally, youll also notice awkward wording and confusing sentences because when uttered out loud theyll make less sense compared to what they sounded like in your head.Learn on Your Own MistakesEveryone has a weakness, including at least one in writing. For instance, some people struggle with the difference between theyre and their while others have that one annoying word they can never spell correctly. If you notice that you make the same mistakes over and over again, jot them down on a piece of paper. When starting the editing process, use the search tool to find these exact mistakes to make proofreading a lot faster. This trick will also help you to become more aware of your weak spots and eventually get rid of them altogether .Have the Difficult Words PreparedAs it was mentioned, everyone has a word that they can never spell correctly on the first try. For example, such words as possession, embarrass, appearance, reminisce, successful and many others have already been proven to create extra struggles for many people. To speed writing up and avoid mistakes, make a list of your troublesome words and keep it next to you. Once again, seeing the correct spelling will help you to memorize it faster.Dedicate Enough TimeThere is a popular belief that writing is the most important process while editing is just something you do during the short time you have left. In reality, however, proofreading is as important as composing the text itself. So when planning your writing session, you should always make sure you leave enough time for editing and dont overlook its importance.Know Your Academic StyleOnce you start writing academically, youll get familiar with such styles of writing as APA, Chicago, and MLA. The choi ce of one will already be predetermined by the field of study for which you write, but you always need to be completely sure you know what that exact style requires. In case youre writing outside school and work for an organization, its also likely to have its own style. Whatever it is, style guidelines will help you tremendously in editing and meeting requirements.Change the FontIf you always write in the same format, your eyes eventually get used to it, and it becomes difficult to notice mistakes. Changing the layout makes the text look completely different from what youve already got accustomed to. This especially concerns increasing the spacing between lines to separate them from each other and make it easier for you to focus on every sentence without your eyes getting distracted by other words.Go BackwardsAfter youve read your text a few times already, it becomes extra difficult to spot mistakes you might have still overlooked. It happens because you already know it almost by h eart, and your brain already predicts whats coming next (even if youve missed a word). To see your essay from a new perspective, try to read it starting from the end sentence by sentence. It will make little sense but at least will prevent your brain from creating things that arent there.Look for a Specific MistakeOften its very likely that one mistake will reoccur all the way throughout the text. So after youve spotted a misspelling, go to the search tool and type it in to check if you have more of the same mistake. This is not the most efficient way to proofread a text because it will take longer, but on the other hand it will guarantee that you wont accidentally miss this mistake anymore.Eliminate DistractionsConsider proofreading as your quiet me-time. To be able to really get into the process of analyzing the text, you need to make sure you dont have any distractions. This means finding a spot where there isnt too much noise and doing your best to not check your phone all the t ime. If you lose the focus continuously, you wont be able to get into the flow of the text and will likely miss some things.Practice MoreGood editing skills are just like your writing abilities they are honed with time and through continuous practice. Thats why the more you proofread and edit, the better and faster youll become. If you dont have that much material to practice editing on a regular basis, look for alternatives. One thing you can do it to analyze articles you read in your spare time and think how youd improve the quality of writing.Dont Edit While WritingThe best way to approach writing is to just let it go and write everything that comes to your mind. Many people find it difficult due to their perfectionism since they dont like having a text that is not yet polished. They end up interrupting the writing process and go back to reread and edit what theyve already written. This is not the right technique because you make your brain switch from one activity to another ba ck and forth, and that doesnt lead to success in any of them. So next time youre writing an essay, go step by step.Ask a Friend for FeedbackWhile its true that in most cases you need to write by yourself, it doesnt mean that you cant get someones opinion regarding the quality of your text. In fact, even university professors recommend to first get someone else to read the final copy of your paper before you hand it in. This should be done for the reason that people who havent been working on that piece of writing can judge it a lot more objectively.Make the Same ChangesIf you have a long document to edit, its important that youre consistent with your changes. For example, there is still a debate around the Oxford comma, and there doesnt seem to be only one right option. Nevertheless, it doesnt mean that you should use them both in the same text. If youve put a comma before the last conjunction in your first sentence, make sure you keep doing the same thing till the last one.Refresh Your Grammar KnowledgeA grammar book in probably not a very thrilling read, but in order to be a good editor, you have to know the current rules. Its beneficial to brush up on your grammar skills once in a while by flipping through a textbook. After all, there is no limit to perfection.With these tips for proofreading, weve covered all you need to know about proofreading so now its only your responsibility to implement them.