Ghostwriter Dad

Ghostwriter Dad is a fantastic resource for ghostwriters or those people interested in hiring them. Well written content delivered once a week. Please subscribe (for free) by RSS or Email. Thanks!

The posts on your blog or well written copy on your site – both are equally as important as any other type of writing you would use to represent yourself or your business. An online business is judged by the quality of its copy, newsletters, emails and advertisements.

I have seen plenty of bad advice bandied about by Internet gurus declaring the increased importance of links over quality content. I now regularly encounter the opinion that punctuation and proper spelling are not particularly important online, and that writing your article in a sprint and then adding quick once-over with spell check (almost as an after thought) is more than enough.

To each his own, but for me – no way, Jose. The quality of my writing is a rippling reflection of the character of my thought.

When I encounter a blog with a scattered mess of carelessly crafted copy, I bounce by quicker than a bumble bee landing on a withered rose bud. If I find nothing in the text, then I will never have the chance to find out if there was something for me buried in the blog. It is difficult for me to embrace the idea that online writing is frivolous, where copy can be quickly and carelessly crafted since it is quite obviously as disposable as a passing thought.

But I value my ideas, whether they are forgotten tomorrow or not, and I endeavor to give all my copy equivalent consideration.

People should of course be able to express themselves honestly, and a journal blog is not the same as a business blog. However, when we lower our collective standards we do our future few favors. Not everything must be worthy of a Pulitzer, and I do agree that online standards can be a little softer, but I also believe correct grammar and punctuation are important. Proper punctuation and syntax are the road signs to language. Even a few slight pot holes can render written work unreadable.

Sure, content is king, but content isn’t only about ideas, it is also about the care and craftsmanship behind the copy. Throwing words on the page as fast as you can, just to hit publish isn’t any more considerate to the reader than the carpenter who builds a chair with loose screws for someone to sit on.

Print and online copy are not the same, and of course there are plenty of mistakes that slip through the proofreading net. I’ve made plenty. Copyblogger has 60,000 readers, takes their business seriously, and still publishes the occasional typo. There isn’t a soul breathing fortunate enough to have never made a single mistake. But there is a difference missing something and never having tried to catch it.

If something is worth doing, it’s worth doing well. If business owners want clients to value their content, perhaps they should give it value first.

{ 5 comments }

proofreading Few ghostwriters would ever say proof-reading’s fun. Although a good edit does little to invite party hats or balloons, it is essential to effective writing. Whether you are sitting down to write the great American novel or a landing page you hope will make all your dreams come true, a writer mustn’t only write, they must also make certain their words follow all the proper road signs of well articulated language.

Have you ever been reading a blog post or web copy so riddled with typos, grammatical errors, and faulty punctuation, that you immediately bounced from the site with barely a second thought? Bloggers need their readers and few online businesses can afford to be so careless. Proofreading is far easier when you have a system, or at the very least a simple set of rules to follow. Here are my ten quick tips for effective proofreading.

10 Quick tips for effective proofreading

1. Wait. I always allow a bit of breath between the rough and the edit. This can be as little as an hour, but it is often more than a day. Whenever I edit too soon, I find myself more focused on what I just wrote than I am at gathering errors. By allowing distance between rough draft and edit, you will approach your writing with fresh eyes, easily able to catch any errors.

2. Trim the fat. All writing has fat. Stephen King’s rule, which I rather like, is Final Copy = Rough Draft – 10%.

3. Embrace the quiet. Proofreading requires precision. I can write well, even with music in the background, my children juggling toys, and the neighborhood basketball game going into overtime right outside my window, but when it’s time to edit I require both time and quiet. Proofreading is diligent and detailed, and deserving of your focus.

4. Use color. Specifically, use a sheet of colored paper as a guide while you edit. This sheet will help you to keep your eyes fixed on the lines as you’re working, the colored paper will coax your creativity. If you don’t have colored paper, you can always use a ruler, but there’s something about a sheet of colored paper that seems to sweeten the senses.

5. Read your work out loud. I cannot stress this enough. Even if it’s just your own solitary voice bouncing against the walls of an otherwise empty room, you should ALWAYS read your work out loud. Reading out loud will help to highlight any errors, missing words or lapses in syntax you might have otherwise missed.

6. Press print. Don’t get cheap when it comes to the ink. A double spaced printed copy of your work is easier to edit. Reading on the computer screen is tiring on the eyes, and tired eyes always make the most mistakes.

7. Read backwards. My daughter thinks this one’s hilarious, but it works for me every time. When you read a document backwards, the sudden unfamiliarity of the copy will allow you to catch things you might have otherwise missed. If you’re simply giving your writing an edit, straight through from beginning to end, it is all too easy to fall into the same old rhythm and start reading with automaticity, forgetting entirely that you were supposed to be proofing.

8. Use colored ink. Your copy is in black, your corrections shouldn’t be. If you’ve already gone ahead and printed your work, good for you. Take it one step further and use a red or green pen to highlight your corrections.

9. Rest when needed. If you have a lot of copy to proof, you should make sure you’re resting your eyes every 10 to 15 minutes. Otherwise you will find yourself crashing right into the wall of diminishing returns.

10. Pass the copy. The last thing I do when I have important copy that requires perfect proofing, after I’ve done my best to give it green lights all the way, is pass the copy off to my partner. Sometimes even our most diligent efforts still benefit from a second set of eyes.

Proofing might not be a party, but it is imperative to powerful writing. Take the time to give your copy the care it deserves.