In The Importance of Editing, I wrote about the need for writers and bloggers to edit their work before publishing. But, I may have been too quick to judge.
People make mistakes. Writers make them all the time, too. That shouldn’t stop you from writing. Here are a few things professional writers would love others to know.
You Don’t Have to Have a Perfect Voice to Have a Voice
On one hand, I understand how a few spelling errors can change a reader’s perception of the writer’s viability. I am the first to admit that I am a very judgmental reader. When you have deadlines, or thoughts just rolling out as fast as they come in, or are writing at 2AM when a stroke of brilliance hits, sometimes writers miss things. Who cares? Right? Now more than ever, it’s important to speak your truth. You shouldn’t be afraid to speak your truth because of making a mistake.
Editing is a Normal Part of Writing
Whether you’re writing and editing yourself or working with a publication and a professional editor like ERE, editing is an important part of writing. If you are lucky enough to work with a professional editor from time to time, don’t take offence when they edit your work. Trained writers are used to the criticism and can often separate the work from their abilities.
But, unlike those with professional editors, most bloggers are on their own. In that case, it can be hard to see the flaws in your work if you’ve been working on something too long or you’re in the weeds.
Don’t Trust Everything You Read
According to recent Edelman Trust Barometers, people are struggling to understand which sources of information are credible and trustworthy. It’s important to think critically about things you read these days. Torin Ellis and Julie Sowash offer some great advice for how to determine the credibility of information in their Crazy and The Kings Podcast episode “Q” Crazy… No “Q” Crazy. Check it out.
In the days of fake news and fear of being your authentic self, finding the confidence to use your voice for the better or getting corrected can be tough. But, moving forward with a critical eye for truth and an less judgmental view of your self and your abilities, finding your voice can get a little easier.
I usually allow the people I read to make a mistake or two in a long posting, but a post that is riddled with errors is unforgivable. I will stop reading people if they cannot be bothered to edit their posts.
agreed!
@OpinionatedMan thanks for the reblog! You’re definitely right about a paradigm shift. Going back and forth between being a less judgmental reader and a pseudo-professional writer is a difficult mindset to continuously transition between.
@The.richard.braxton: as someone with an English degree (I saw you do, too), I guess what I learned from blogging is that not everyone, even those with BAs in English can catch everything. I have become more open minded through doing. But, I agree, I still have a little spell-catcher bug in my head biting me with each mistake!
No worries and thanks for letting me share the post! 🙂
Reblogged this on HarsH ReaLiTy and commented:
I liked this post. It kind of shows the evolution of blogging and how a perfectionist writer can slowly grow into blogging and learn that not everything has to be perfect. Great post! 🙂 -OM
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I get it to an extent…or should I say understand? I rarely write, but I love to read. When I write, I call it mind puke, and I edit somewhat, but will never live up to the expectations of an English Major. I like your post.
The hardest thing is to proofread and edit your own writing. One often “sees” what should be there which means that it “is”. As usual, the best thing is to write and go away from it – for a good while. That’s a discipline I don’t always have. I hate it when I miss errors or someone else finds them – and I have regular readers who find them and point them out. Not just The Husband ;). I’ve learned, however, to forgive myself. Enjoy the journey – I am!
I’ve worked as an editor and a proofreader (although I’m better as an editor than as a proofreader), and I can testify that we’re none of us good at proofing our own writing. We know what we think it says, so our eyes tend to see what we expect. So all have to cut ourselves (and presumably everyone else) some slack there.
Then there are the times we all forget to reread what we typed before hitting Post or Send. And the people who never learned to do that because their lives were busy with learning other things–some of them useful and inevitably some of them, life being what it is, less so.
I love good writing, and I appreciate a clean surface, but it’s not everything. When I edited a small magazine someone sent me an article whose grammar was perfect and whose sentences flowed well but the article itself said nothing. Bad grammar I could have fixed. A lack of content, though, I couldn’t do a thing about–except tuck it back in its self-addressed, stamped envelope and say “Thanks, but not for us.”
I’d rather read a choppy article or blog by someone who has something to say than a perfectly clean one that says next to nothing.