Writing Your Paper 3: Revising, Editing, and Proofreading

Revising is a continuous “re-seeing” of your writing that considers larger issues like focus, organization, and audience. It is not simply moving or deleting a few sentences or checking for typos.

• Set aside your writing for a few days (or hours, if you procrastinated), in order to clear your head. This will help you approach the work with fresh eyes.
• When you return to the work, concentrate on the overall content, focus, and organization.
• Think about the big picture. What do you want the reader to know about your topic? Do the topic sentences complement the thesis?
• Ask yourself questions: Who will be reading this? What are their needs and expectations? Am I communicating my ideas effectively?

A reverse outline is a great tool writers can use to look at the organization and focus of their draft. Here are some guidelines for how to create a reverse outline.

Editing is the process writers use to improve style, transitions, consistency, paragraph unity, and documentation. It is not simply changing a few words or deleting a sentence: clear writing requires a commitment of time and attention. 

• Don’t edit too soon. Wait until you feel confident in your paper's focus and organization.
• Look at your transitions. Try making a paragraph using only your thesis and topic sentences. Does the paragraph make sense? If not, it may be a sign that your topic sentences are not yet logically guiding your reader through the paper.
• Go over your paper sentence by sentence. Are the ideas stated clearly? Look at word choice and sentence structure. Do you find yourself using the same words/phrases over and over?
• Try reading your paper aloud—hearing it helps make sure your ideas are stated clearly, and you will likely catch other small errors in the process.

Proofreading is identifying and correcting surface level errors like typos, misspellings, and formatting errors. Good proofreading is meticulous; it is not just running a spell checker. Don't proofread until you've revised and edited. There's no point in correcting mistakes that you may delete/change while revising of editing.

• Begin by choosing an excellent grammar resource you can return to again and again to familiarize yourself with the rules of English grammar that you're less comfortable with. Your English 101 or 201 handbook or websites like the Purdue OWL and our Grammar, Punctuation, and Sentences guide are great options.
• Check for one type of error at a time—don’t overwhelm yourself.
• Are you making the same errors over and over? Identify them.
• You are smarter than your word processor—don’t rely on it to correct mistakes.
• Check your formatting!
• An extra set of eyes always helps. Swap papers with a friend, a classmate, or…pick a couple of error types to focus on and make a Writers’ Center Appointment!