Proofing Your Writing

AKA I Can't Hear You

Once the writing is done, once the editing is done enough, it is time for the proofing to be done. The best way to proof your writing is to read it out loud. To yourself, a friend, your pet, a table – it doesn’t matter, just speak the words aloud.

And you’ll be amazed at what you find, because your brain has to slow down.

perfectionism

Most writers can read much faster than they can speak. Translating the black markings on the page into audible vibrations takes more effort and more mental processing time than if you just read silently to yourself in your head. Each word gets a little more attention and suddenly you find some of them aren’t what you meant them to be.

The spellchecker of your word processing program will catch the obvious typos, but other kinds of oops can slip through.

Did you mean though instead of thought? Their instead of there? Its instead of it’s? When he put his hand on his arm and his hand on his shoulder and there are two males in the room, do you really understand who did what to whom?

You may also find that a certain brilliant arrangement of words on paper makes your tongue stumble when read aloud. In that case, a subtle shift in layout is needed.

I have heard this advice from multiple people at multiple writing conferences and conventions. When I finally decided to listen to it, it made a world of difference in how much smoother my writing became and how many errors I was able to find and eradicate.

For an added level of thoroughness, have someone else read your writing, out loud, to you. You know what you wrote, have heard that dialog in your head many, many times. Hearing it voiced by someone else will give you insight as to how a reader will see, and interpret, your words. And sometimes it’s not the way you thought it would be. Then you have to decide what to do about it.

Words should flow, both in the mind and spoken out loud to the world.

Hawkeye: Read it out loud, I love the sound of my own skullduggery.
- M*A*S*H

Jul 21, 2009

Tags: proofing  |  reading

Categories: writing