Editing and proofreading for University students

Solid editing and proofreading of university assignments can make a huge difference to grades received. It’s about structure and style as well as spelling and grammar used.

An editor will ensure that a paper has a clear start, middle and end. That the message sent is clear and that the main arguments have been covered. An editor will make certain a student doesn’t make contradictions and that an argument is convincing. An editor will check that there is a logical flow and that the question asked is responded to correctly. An editor will safeguard that your work isn’t too wordy, that the sentences aren’t too long and that you are writing academically or formally. While each university has varying ideas about a particular writing style the significant point to remember is that a scholar’s work can be understood without question.

Sometimes it can be unclear what is acceptable academically, and ideas about good writing style or good academic writing means being cognisant of not using:

• ·         Slang, like this fella, use instead, Mr Peters.
• ·         Jargon, which is language used by a particular group of people, like medical staff or government employees. An example would be a doctor using Rx instead of medication or Code 7 if you are a police officer. The general population doesn’t understand terms that are not generic unless they are in the field themselves.
• ·         Internet jargon, although widely understood now by many are not known or accepted by others. Things like lol and brb and so on are nonsensical unless written personally.
• ·         Do not over use abbreviations such as, ASAP.
• ·         Contractions such as is not instead of isn’t.
• ·         Avoiding personalisation like I think, I feel. This is obviously different when writing reflective pieces.
• ·         Clichés should also be avoided at all cost. They depict a lack of original thought. They stink unless written in a novel or when repeating a factual statement another person has used and the using of square brackets around a cliché is a good idea…as in The good professor mentioned last week it was raining [cats and dogs] all day.

When writing academically and therefore based on research, use language such as tends to, or suggests that rather than it is a fact that, or it is definitely not. In addition, try not to use verbose wording. A bigger word, does not make it better and there is the possibility the writer may get it wrong. Avoid the use of the second person pronoun you. Instead of saying, you will note the difference between…say instead, the difference can be noted in.

Grammar needs to be consistent in terms of tense all the way through. Pronoun reference can be fraught with danger in terms of noun usage. It is ambiguous and may mean rearticulating to ensure precision. Instead of writing, after grandma put her china in the cupboard she sold it, write, grandma sold the china after putting it in the cupboard. The person reading the first line would be unsure if grandma was selling the china or the cupboard.

A student’s job is huge. It is not just ensuring research is captured correctly and that the introduction, body and conclusion is answered fittingly; for the student, the constant thought when writing a paper needs to be that you are writing for the reader. 

As Dr Seuss said; the writer who breeds more words than he needs, is making a chore for the reader who reads.

www.kirstieanders.com

Freelance editor and proofreader

To proof or not to proof, that is the question…here is the answer.

What is the question?

If you are anything like me and note an error while reading (instantly), it will drive you mad. To me, they are glaring and impossible to ignore, they also remove a little bit of the credibility of the scribe. Now, I might be a little particular, some may even say anal, about correct grammar and good spelling etc. but I’m certainly not the only one.

Proofreading needs to be exact because it is the last thing you do before publishing or handing work in. Poor or inconsistent grammar and spelling can make work difficult to read, often to a point where people won’t even be bothered reading it to the end. For students and businesses, good grammar, punctuation and spelling is vital. It says a great deal about where it is coming from. The difference between good, accurate work can be a whole grade and a much more successful business; spelling, punctuation or grammatical faults or content randomness in material that is read by clients or the public reflects poorly on an organisation or prevents the achievement of a high score in your upcoming assignment.

Proofreading is more than catching those misspelled words. It is a double checking process following editing, which is a heavier practice of cleaning up the big stuff. The proofread is the polish making it gleam. But the main reason to proofread is to ensure that you are communicating your message clearly. It should be well-written in terms of organisation and appearance and it should be free of errors in terms of spelling, vocabulary, punctuation, grammar, and English usage.

A document which does not clearly present its message is a valueless paper. 

Epic fails without a proofreader/editor

It’s easy to misspell a word here or there or forget important punctuation on occasion, but sometimes those blunders can be embarrassing and even laughable which can really mess with your reputation, especially because readers are laughing at you, not with you! The benefit of having an external proofreader and/or editor is that a good grammar checker will ensure you don’t miss important gear that makes your copy readable and accurate, eliminating all possibility of humiliation.

Things like this!!!! -- need to be used sparingly as they dilute what you are inferring to. They can be taken the wrong way, bringing their own tone and sound angry or even smart arsey. This goes for over using ellipsis, which should be three dots only, not seven. Also, emoticons we use in text? -- not punctuation, :-0 okay? Good punctuation is imperative, it’s powerful. Imagine if I wrote, ‘Let’s eat nana’, instead of ‘Let’s eat, Nana?’ or ‘Wanted: one-night stand’ rather than ‘Wanted: one nightstand’. It matters to get it right or you could be in real trouble.

Sometimes missing letters or words can be catastrophic for a writer. A good spell checker won’t leave you hanging with ‘Boob’ when it was meant to be ‘Bob’, or ‘Joe Bloggs, rapist’, instead of ‘Joe Bloggs, Therapist’ or ‘White Ho reporter, Jane Bloggs’, instead of ‘White House reporter, Jane Bloggs’…see what I mean? Awkward.

The point is, we proofread our writing for grammatical errors and bad spelling, but punctuation is equally significant. It’s hard these days because many of us write blogs and those of us that do, write conversationally; the way we speak. I think that’s fine but in newsprint, newsletters, corporate documentation, websites and student uni dissertations, it needs to be formalised. Cut out the additional ellipses and use em dashes, forget the slang – dress up your language. I know we don’t say, in real life, things like, ‘please don’t hesitate to call me should you require anything further’, we say, ‘give me a call if I can help you with anything else…’ but that’s how we roll and what people expect, unless it’s a novel or piece of creative writing, then there is a colloquialism expectation and acceptance.

On occasion, grammatical errors are mistaken for spelling errors. This is when the spelling is actually correct but used inaccurately, such as ‘the plain descended rapidly’ rather than ‘plane’ or ‘breath easy’, instead of ‘breathe easy’. These are not spelling gaffes, they are grammar blunders, and they are not okay.  

There are plenty of freelance editors and proofreaders out there, it just so happens. I’m the best ;-)…whoops just broke my own rule. www.kirstieanders.com 

Shout out!

http://shoutout.wix.com/so/dKnPdeeb

Editing Diversity

Having so much access to American television here in Australia means we grow up seeing words spelt the way they spell them the United States. Different to us and mostly not acceptable for Australians to use at school, Uni or in business. Even our spell checkers default at the US spelling often. It drives me nuts when my daughter who is seven says, candy instead of lollies, flashlight instead of torch, drugstore instead of chemist, sidewalk rather than footpath and states she is taking a shower instead of having one. One thing that's easy to remember is that Americans use 'z' in many words, where we use 's' and even pronounce 'Z' contrarily. Examples of 'Z' usage; antagonize versus antagonise, analysed and analysed, appetizer and appetiser and so on. Americans often also shorten words by removing a letter such as, anesthetic and anaesthetic, archeological and archaeological, mold versus mould, favor as opposed to favour and behaviour and behaviour. There are word alterations like center versus centre, color versus colour, tire and tyre, plow and plough and so on and on. So, who have we to blame or thank for all this American drama? The nineteenth century, American lexicographer, Mr Noah Webster, of the dictionary fame. He supposed making the changes away from British language would make America more superior and set them aside. It has certainly set them aside.

The Oxford comma, Harvard comma or serial comma. There are supporters for and against the use of it. It is also known as the pretentious comma and at the end of the day is optional and up to the author unless following a particular style. We in Australia don't use it as often as Americans although there are arguments that it clarifies meanings within sentences that may be confusing otherwise. What is it? It is the comma positioned directly before the coordinating conjunction such as: and, or, or nor in a sequence of three terms or more. An example using the Oxford comma is: I have a recipe, a pot, and an oven. Not using the comma would look like: I have a recipe, a pot and an oven.

€‹The exclamation mark has been called the cheap whore of punctuation. My thoughts are, there is a place for it, but professionally it does not belong. The more the merrier also should not apply and as F. Scott Fitzgerald said 'Cut out all these exclamation points. An exclamation point is like laughing at your own joke.' It's a useful way of conveying emotions, irony, annoyance, or friendliness when used six at a time for instance as a text, or on Facebook, email or any other electronic means. In addition, this sets up the foundation for others to respond similarly with 17!!!!! or ???????, such as, 'I just jumped out of a plane and my parachute opened!!!!!!' Really?????? Cool!!!!!!' Ridiculous.

I love the logogram ampersand (&) which epitomises 'and' but when used correctly. Not for use willy nilly or in some haphazard manner. It does not save on your word count students. An ampersand originated from Latin of course, as et which meant and. An example of good use could be in a business title like Anders & Wallace Editing or in academic references such as (Anders & Judd, 2007). It wouldn't be appropriate to use to write something like, 'They put the bricks & mortar against the wall.'

Font use looks like fun. But there's a place for countless font practice like on a circus banner or in a comic. That's right people comic sans as whimsical as it is, should be used in a comic - and nowhere else. Particular fonts work better on hardcopy (times new roman, courier or fonts with feet/serif) and others better on screen (Sans-serif, Helvetica, Century gothic, Verdana, Arial or fonts without feet/sans serif). Although pixel resolution has changed you still need to consider small devices. I think use of a particular font or fonts can really affect readability so my advice is not to 'blend it up'. That's okay when making a mixed tape but not for a letter or other document. Keep your readers. Don't use impact for a whole page, or kitch it up with pages of Bradley hand and papyrus... well pffftt. I have no idea what wingdings is for.

As an editor and proofreader, my role is to sort through the diversity and confusion of the written word to guide and advise for excellent readability and credibility. 

http://www.kirstieanders.com

Credibility and grammar

Good grammar gives people credibility. It’s critical. You lose integrity if what you put on paper is incorrect or lazy. Using improper grammar in social media, in papers, emails, or websites makes other people assume that you are stupid. Your words and use of grammar portrays who you are; they reflect you, they get you hired, they help you pass subjects at university, and as a company they help people trust you. 

Hold back on dropping commas throughout your sentences like bombs over Hiroshima. Read it aloud. Does it sound good or does it sound like a machine gun? Details. Attention to detail is ensuring high standards, and giving your devotion and attention to the details of your work. It means that your end result is polished. 

As a writer, editor and proofreader I know it’s easy to make mistakes when rushing. Even wordsmiths need to pause and mentally work stuff out. My problem words are affect versus effect. My Apostrophes, colons and commas can be thrown around like a sock in a tumble dryer so get it proofread. Check your words for plurals, it’s women for more than one, not woman. 

A key aspect to remember is readability. If the reader has to slam on the brakes at something s/he scans or needs to go back to re-read because it was confusing – you’ll lose them. When we write ourselves, we have in our heads, how it’s supposed to sound. This could lead to ghost words. Words we think are there but aren’t. A Proofreader is brilliant at picking this up. A proofreader will also remove or suggest you remove superfluous words such as ‘that’. Less is more. People don’t want to read waffle. They want to get to the point. Know your their, there and they’re’ s, your and you’re, and it’s and its. Get it stuck in your head, but if you can’t, get a proofreader. Here, I can recommend one at www.kirstieanders.com  

Hated Expressions

Everybody has them. Expressions or phrases that drive you around the twist. According to Grammar girl, Stephen King’s most hated expressions are, ‘many believe’ and ‘some people say’.  I hate ‘they say’. Who are ‘they?’ I ask when someone says this to me, and get a blank stare cause they don’t know who the fuck ‘they are’ either? My partner hates, ‘at the end of the day’ because I say it frequently and in truth I don’t know why I do. I picked it up, just like ‘absolutely’.  My mum hated, ‘you can’t help bad luck’ which my Uncle says a lot. Dad despises, ‘that’s exactly right’…which I must confess, I hear fall out of my mouth more often than it should possibly. ‘I guess’…well do you know or don’t you? To me, ‘I guess’ is a fence sitter who uses it as a response to anything maudlin, it’s not definitive, it’s namby-pamby. It’s a dude wearing long white socks and sandals.

Since the launch of Facebook, (the social media we love to hate and hate to love), the phrase, ‘said no one ever’ and ‘that moment when...’ (you realise Ellen DeGeneres has a hotter wife than you [because why wouldn’t she? Obviously posted by bogan straight guy]), for example, have been favoured posts by many! Unfortunately these have crept into real life. Having a chat with a friend the other day I said, ‘sometimes blue cheese and pepperoni can be too much’ and she said, ‘said no one ever’.  She in turn hates, ‘you can’t have your cake and eat it too’…which of course you can…

’I’m not going to lie to you’…what? So now you’re not going to lie to me but every single thing you’ve said since we met has been lies? Is that what we’re saying here?

What about ‘we’re pregnant’? No, no, you’re not both pregnant, unless you’re both girlfriends and both pregnant. I CANNOT stand that. One of you is pregnant, that does not take the baby away from the other one but ‘we’re not pregnant’. Just no.  No, you’re really fucking not both pregnant.

‘Not a happy camper’, that’s said by a dad wearing those pulled up white socks and sandals isn’t it? Probably wearing a skivvy too.

‘I can tell you but then I’d have to kill you’. Fuck off. Really? Pops humour, not funny and way overused, just like ‘it’s not rocket science’…how would most people even know what rocket science is…it could, in fact be rocket science.  And people! ‘of’ shouldn’t really be used as often as it is.  ‘I should of taken the train’, instead of ‘should have’. ‘I Jumped off of the bed’…it’s simply ‘I jumped off the bed’. Work on that!

I predict the next hated phrase will be (and soon), ‘aint nobody got time for dat’. But my most hated two expressions of all time, king and Queen of hated phrases in fact are, of an evening’ and ‘my bad’. End of message. Just saying! www.kirstieanders.com