Denise Warner

Editing your own writing

Learning to edit your own writing is an important skill for every college student. It is a separate process from writing. Here are some techniques to help you learn this skill.

A.    READ OUT LOUD

After you have written something, read it out loud to yourself or for someone else. You may discover things that you thought were there, but are missing. You may also notice grammatical mistakes. Fix the mistakes that you notice by adding or changing information.

B.    READ SENTENCE-BY-SENTENCE

Read one sentence at a time. Check each sentence to make sure it is complete. Use the underlining technique:

1. Underline the subject of each sentence.

Remember, a subject can be one word, or it can be a noun phrase.

2. Underline the verb twice.

Remember, underline all parts of the verb and any adverbs.

3. Put preposition phrases in parentheses (preposition phrase).

Remember, the subject of a sentence will never be inside of a preposition phrase.

4. Mark each coordinating conjunction with a plus sign +.

Remember, the word “and” can join two nouns, two verbs, two phrases, or two independent clauses (compound sentence).

5. Mark each subordinating conjunction with a hashtag # sign.

Remember, the subordinating conjunction is the first word of a dependent clause.

6. The rule of 3! If your sentence has more than 3 clauses, revise it.

Remember, a comma cannot separate sentences! You need a comma and a coordinating conjunction.

Remember, two clauses must be joined correctly with a comma and a coordinating conjunction or with a subordinating conjunction. If they are not joined correctly, they must be separated correctly with a period (.) and a new sentence that begins with a capital letter.

C.    CHECK PUNCTUATION AND CAPITALIZATION

1. Each sentence must begin with a capital letter.
2. Each proper noun (the name of a person or place) must be capitalized.
3. The pronoun “I” is always capitalized.
4. Each sentence must end with a period.
5. A comma alone cannot separate two sentences. You need a comma and a conjunction.

D.    CHECK FORMATTING

1. The whole page must be double-spaced including the heading.
2. Only indent the first line of a paragraph. All other lines must be even with the left margin.
3. Use a size 12 font.