Content Writing And Self Editing Go Hand In Hand

I write an article for Bloggingtips.com and last week I touched on the subject of how important self editing was to content writing in general.  There seemed to be a misconception among people starting out in writing that you should be editing whatever you’re writing as you go along. That’s not the way to get the best results.

First Content Writing and Then Editing

Although they work hand in hand you need to finish the writing part before you move on to the editing. It’s important to write that way so that you can get the whole point down that you want to. It’s too easy to lose your train of thought when you keep stopping as you go through the first draft.
You need to read out loud as well when you’re editing something you’ve just written.

Rob

Starting The Edit Off The Right Way

There’s always the preliminary work before you start any job. Especially when it comes to the kind of copywriting that you want to be professional, and certainly when you’re trying to edit you own copy as more content writers are, you really need to take a step back and do a little research that will save you time when you’re self editing.

First off, most editors need to know if the document answers the questions that it set out to. If it’s so far off the mark that you can’t even tell what it’s really about, then more than likely you’ll need to send it back for a rewrite. Especially when you’re dealing with business copy, you’ll want to be able differentiate between fact and opinion as well.

Editing is all about polishing what’s already there, but you need to be clear about what it is that you’re looking at. Finally, you need to decide is there is a balance before you start or if there is too much or too little information.