How can I catch more errors when I proofread?

Question

I have a problem where I often proof my own writing and I don't catch all the errors while I am reading through it. I often miss entire words out of sentences or find myself repeating words. I can read a document several times and I catch new errors every time. Eventually, I'll feel like I've caught everything, but I find out after I've posted or printed it that I left out some word. The whole process takes hours instead of a few minutes. This process is so frustrating that sometimes I just give up. Does anyone have this experience writing and if so, what techniques have you developed that help?P.S: For some reason, I make fewer errors and my writing is a lot speedier if I write it out long hand first. For some reason, the word processor makes it hard to keep your train of thought going because you find yourself derailed by the formatting. I also found using NotePad to be a useful tool. Since it doesn't have formatting, it is less distracting. I also set the width of the Window to be very short. For some reason, my thoughts are less likely to get derailed and I make fewer errors.

Answer 1

My favorite tip for simple copy-editing errors is read your paper backwards. To clarify, I don't mean literally read it backwards word-for-word; I mean start with the last sentence, then second-to-last, etc. This should eliminate the "autopilot mode" into which you slip when you've read your own writing so much that you can predict what's next.

Answer 2

Hi there!

Try reading your paper out loud. Often times, your ears can pick up on a mistake that your eyes miss.

Also, walk away from your paper for a little bit. If you are working endlessly on a paper, your brain will become tired and you're more likely to miss a mistake. Take a few minutes to rest your eyes and regroup. Once you're able to go back with a fresh set of eyes, you may pick up on more mistakes.

Lastly, read your paper a little slower. It can be tempting to skim your paper because you already know the content. Take your time and try to read it as if it's the first time.

Good luck! Hope this helps!

Answer 3

Here are some basic tips for more effective self proofreading:

Try breaking up the document into paragraphs. Copy only one paragraph at a time into Notepad and read it out loud as you edit. Number your paragraphs and edit them at random so they sound cohesive together as well as on their own.

If you find you are repeating the same word often, use your thesaurus to find alternatives to your frequently used vocabulary. If you are omitting whole words or phrases, definitely read out loud, to a partner, who will aid you in identifying missed phrases.

Good luck to you!

Answer 4

Great question and as a writer I am there with you. I know that if you are writing things like novels you will probably never catch every single mistake but here are some tips I've found to help with that.

The first is to use Grammarly. There's a paid version but I use the free version and find that it really makes a huge difference. It can be added to MS Word and Google Docs (which are what I use for writing) for free and makes suggestions based on the context of the sentence. Its not always right but I find it works better than MS Word's spell checker. Link below.

https://app.grammarly.com/

The second tip is something you've already alluded to. When you edit your work, change the font. The reason you catch more when you go from hand written to typed is because your brain isn't glossing over the words as much since the fonts are different. Each time you edit, change the font to another (readable) font. Once you're happy with your editing you can swap it to whatever font you want it to be in.

The third tip I have is something I learned recently. Have a program read your writing to you. I use MS Word's reader for it. Since your brain skips words that look close enough to be spelled correctly, some spelling errors can be hard to catch. The voice reader speaks literally so its easier to detect a typo or if a sentence doesn't sound right. Also its hilarious to listen to.

Regarding your experience using a smaller window and Notepad so the screen isn't as distracting, I don't see why you can't use those as part of your editing process. I don't have that issue but I also have lots of practice reading through large pieces of coding when I'm programming so a block of text doesn't overwhelm me anymore. Depending on what you're writing you may go through several drafts using each technique once which will most likely give you the best chances at catching the most amount of typos. :)