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Self-editing: a Challenge that's Worth the Time and Effort

By Helen Wilkie

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Published: 12Feb2010
Word count: 410
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This is the first in a series of three articles about editing your own writing. Too many written messages are sent out without the writer even reading them carefully, much less editing them. That's a big mistake, because good editing improves even the best writing.

Editing your own writing can be a challenge, because you are so familiar with your own style that you may not easily see how it can be improved. Your favourite words and phrases come so naturally to you that you may not notice you overwork them, which reduces their effectiveness over time.

The same problems apply to the inappropriate use of jargon. Those words, phrases and acronyms you and your colleagues use without thinking can be baffling when read by someone outside your company or industry. You need to look for these during the editing process.

Also, because you know what you are writing about and can easily follow your own logic, you assume it will be clear to the reader too, but that's not always the case! So where should you start editing your message? Read on.

Check Your Message Structure

Start with the big picture by looking at the overall structure of your message. If it is lengthy, did you break up the text with sub-headings? Sub-headings help your reader follow the story logically, so even relatively short messages can benefit from them.

Headings Should Match Content

Now look at those headings. First, do they accurately represent the subject you are writing about in their sections? Make them clear and obvious -- your reader shouldn't have to guess!

Is the Content In the Right Order?

Next, does one idea flow naturally and logically into the next? Would the message benefit from reordering the subjects? Here's an example to illustrate what I mean.

Say you've written a report to management recommending purchase of a new software package for your accounting system. Obviously, there is a cost to this, and you will have done a cost/benefit study to back up your recommendation.

If your benefits greatly outweigh the cost, put the cost/benefit study right up near the beginning. On the other hand, if the cost is higher than you would like, move the cost/benefit study down so that you can expand on all the benefits before you mention the cost.

That's a valuable tip from the world of marketing, and all it takes is some judicious editing at the "big picture" level.

Helen Wilkie is a professional speaker, workshop leader and author on communication at work. Visit her blog, Communi-keys.com, for article 1 and article 2 in this self-editing series.

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