While by no means exhaustive, the simple editing tips provided here can help to build up a useful aide-memoire for today's modern authors.
REPETITION.
Even the best writers cannot readily keep track of the number of times they use certain pet phrases or the same vocabulary as they progress through their work. In the first draft, this is not a priority. Once such words have been identified during checking or a read-through, a trusty Thesaurus will offer useful alternatives and help to avoid repetition.
Remember: when making alterations, expressions can sometimes inadvertently be replaced with alternatives which may have also already been used elsewhere or are yet to be found further on. Thus a circular process can present itself.
FLUENCY, CONTINUITY AND CONSISTENCY.
It is always useful to read work aloud. It will soon become apparent where the language doesn't easily flow and a passage needs tweaking. Some authors read and record each chapter so they can judge fluency more easily during playback.
Writing a novel is not dissimilar to writing a play. Both consist of creating scenes which must run effortlessly into each other to continue the story. If specific references are made to time, manner, location, weather, clothes, belongings etc., such information must be 'tracked' for consistency until variations are stated.
Credibility also plays its part. Mentioning technology or inventions not in keeping with the time period or setting can sometimes cause embarrassing problems. "It was just after the Second World War. Sophie felt compelled to write about her experiences. She plugged in her laptop and..."
Similarly, in fiction, sequences of events, actions which have happened, or information which has yet to be divulged must all be kept in mind to avoid obvious flaws in the content of one's writing. Habits and characteristics used for the description or development of characters need to be consistent for those characters, unless a change is specified.
GRAMMAR, PUNCTUATION AND SPELLING.
Relying on a computer to check grammar, punctuation and spelling is not a foolproof method. Every author is bound to have a reasonable grounding here, but mistakes are easy to overlook. "Fragment-consider revising" often flashes up in green when there is a potential problem in relation to grammar. In context, however, what is written can be perfectly acceptable. Dialogue, for example, may call for slang or incorrect language, in keeping with the character's speech patterns. Here, advice from a computer does not always need to be strictly adhered to. A certain amount of flexibility is needed. Remember, it is the writer who is writing, NOT the computer!
A helpful tip relates to the use of 'who' or 'that'. For example: "The passengers, who were late, have just arrived". "The trains that were late have just arrived." Essentially, use 'who' for people and 'that' for things.
Punctuation is necessary to help the reader make sense of what is written. Commas are used in a list, or to show a natural pause or break or section in a sentence, and a full stop is needed at the end. Question marks and exclamation marks are self-explanatory and replace full stops, though they are easy to overlook if one is not paying attention. Speech marks are used for dialogue. These can also be forgotten, especially when closing each speaker's dialogue. New speaker, new line, is an age-old rule.
Paragraphs generally indicate a change or new development in a section of writing usually devoted to one idea and should start with an indent. This is often electronically done when publishing takes place. Initially, the writer may be directed to use a double space bar to signify a new paragraph.
Spelling mistakes will be highlighted in red for most documents written on computers. Choose carefully from the selection of alternatives given and then re-check the meaning to ensure you are using the correct word from those which have broadly the same sense or spelling.
Should one use 'piece of mind' or 'peace of mind'? I freely give this example as something I failed to spot when editing one of my novels! Unfortunately, it fell to a reader to point it out.
Common errors revolve around similar sounding words which are spelt differently. To illustrate this, I will refer to 'their' - denoting possession, 'there' - a place, and 'they're' - the shortened form of 'they are'. For example: "Their weekly routine suggests they're there every Sunday."
'Its' - reflects possession and 'it's' - is short for 'it is'. Generally, an apostrophe denotes a missing letter or letters, or suggests possession. "It's helpful to know its origin"
Their/his/her. Consider the following: "Should a writer have a good knowledge of their own language?" "Should a writer have a good knowledge of his/her own language?" "Should writers have a good knowledge of their own language?" Perhaps you can now see the correct answer(s)?
Here, I have merely tried to highlight random examples of common errors which I find useful to look out for when editing. Doubtless, as I continue to build up my list, more will follow.
R.S. Charles. (Author of "Whispering Palms.")
http://www.mymysterybooks.com
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