Why Editing Matters

Before you hand in your work, take the time to polish your writing. Editing and proofreading are essential steps that help you clarify your ideas, fix mistakes, and make sure your writing says exactly what you want it to say.

While revising focuses on improving the content — like strengthening your argument or reorganizing paragraphs — proofreading is all about catching spelling, grammar, and punctuation mistakes. 

Writing multiple drafts gives you the chance to refine your thinking, improve structure, and avoid accidental plagiarism by making sure your work has been rewritten and improved often enough to truly be in your own words. A well-edited paper shows your best work, which is why it's worth the extra time.

Editing Strategy #1: Revising with your ARMS

Once you have written your rough draft, you should revise your paper before writing a second draft. When you are revising, think of the acronym A.R.M.S. to help you remember what you should be doing at this stage of the editing process.
A
ADD new words, sentences, even entire paragraphs
GOAL: Add information to strengthen your argument or add further explanation to make your ideas clearer.
R
REMOVE words, sentences, paragraphs, information, etc. 
GOAL: Get rid of details that are unclear, repetitive or otherwise damaging to the flow and clarity of your argument.
M
MOVE information around
GOAL: Make your writing more organized, so ideas are clearer and/or your argument is stronger. You might reorder your main points so that you end with the strongest part of your argument, for example.
S
SUBSTITUTE new words or phrases
GOAL: Improve your writing by replacing things that sound informal, cliche, confusing, boring, or repetitive. 

Editing Strategy #2: Proofreading with your CUPS

Before you begin preparing your good copy, you should take the time to proofread your draft. When you are proofreading, think of the acronym C.U.P.S. to help you remember what you should be doing at this stage of the editing process.
C
CAPITALIZATION
Make sure that you have capitalized all the words that require capitalization: names of months, days of the week, titles, the start of each sentence and proper names.
U
USAGE
Fix any words that have been used incorrectly. Does that big word mean what you think it does? Do your nouns and verbs match? Have you been consistent with your pronouns?
P
PUNCTUATION
Double check that all your periods, commas, question marks, quotation marks, semi-colons and exclamation marks are in the right place.
S
SPELLING
Correct spelling mistakes

Editing Strategy #3: Try an AI Tool

You can't use AI to write the essay or story for you, but you can use it to help with editing, but you must  acknowledge it in your citations. Remember to choose your prompts carefully, so the work you hand in is still reflects your own ideas and understanding. Here are some examples to help you:
Grammar, Spelling, and Mechanics
“Can you identify any grammar or punctuation errors in my writing and explain the rules I should follow to fix them?”
“Are there any spelling or capitalization mistakes in this paragraph? Please point them out and explain why they're incorrect.”
“Which verb tenses or subject-verb agreement issues might be incorrect in this paragraph?”
Style, Clarity, and Tone
“Are there any awkward, vague, or unclear sentences in my writing? Please explain what makes them unclear.”
“Does my tone match the assignment and audience? Are there any parts that sound too informal or inconsistent?”
“Are there words or phrases that are repetitive or overused in my paragraph?”
Organization and Flow
“Do my sentences and ideas flow logically? Can you point out any parts where transitions are weak or missing?”
“Does my paragraph stay focused on the topic? Are there any off-topic or unrelated ideas I should look at?”
“Can you help me identify any parts where the paragraph jumps too suddenly or where the logic breaks down?”
Revision Suggestions
“What are the three biggest improvements I could make to make my writing clearer or more effective?”
“What questions would a reader still have about this topic after reading my paragraph?”
“What parts of this paragraph are strong, and what parts are weak? Please explain why.”

Editing Strategy #4: Peer or Teacher Feedback

Sometimes when you have been the only one looking over your writing for a while, it is very helpful to get another set of eyes on it. 👀 

​Ask a friend, family member or teacher to: 
  • 🧐 Catch mistakes you might have missed
  • 😵 Make suggestions about how to improve clarity, flow, or structure
  • 😒 Identify confusing, boring or repetitive parts of you writing
  • 🤔 Ask questions that will help you clarify and strengthen your argument
  • 🥰 Tell you what is great and shouldn't be changed in your final draft