A Few Tips to Streamline an Effective Editorial Process

When editing a longer document, the process can often be overwhelming. Oftentimes, editors may feel the urge to edit every mistake as they find them, looking for every correction all at once, as quickly as possible with the incoming deadline at the forefront of their minds. However, this process, or more like lack of one, can lead to more editorial mistakes than the corrections that are intended. To ensure clean, concise, and accurate copy, here are a few tips to organizing the editorial process.

Tip #1: Tackle one editorial issue at a time in a document. Instead of editing clarity, coherence, unity, grammatical errors, spelling errors, and language choice at the same time, page by page, focus on one of these issues while reading through the entire document. This will help structure the editing, preventing one issue being left behind as the editor is distracted by fixing another.

Tip #2: Keep the copy clear of unneeded text. If the word, sentence, or paragraph doesn’t help build the main argument or achieve the document’s purpose, cut it, no matter how pleasing the syntax may be. These details will distract the audience from the main argument, leading to an ineffective document.

Tip #3: Have a clear editorial plan before editing a line of the document. Create a list of topics that need to be addressed in the task order, checking off each task after completion. This will lead to a systematic process that ensures a complete and effective edit, leading to an effective document and an appreciative client and audience.