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Proofread: How I Write a Blog Post {Part 2}

source: veggie1215 flickr

source: veggie1215 flickr

OK. So, after I write my post, I have to proofread it. Now, before we begin, I have to tell you (and this won’t be a surprise if you have read my blog for any length of time). I am not the Grammar Police. I’m all for the correct their/there/they’re and for using loose/lose appropriately. But you will find many a dangling participle and sentences ending in a preposition in these here parts.

It’s just how I roll.

I find it to be more conversational. I tend to write the way I actually speak. (Don’t you think, people who know me in real life?)

Anywhoo. THE POINT IS, grammar doesn’t have to be perfect but it does need to be tidied up a bit! So, the first thing I do is read my post OUTLOUD. It is amazing all the mistakes you will hear when you read aloud.

Here’s a few things I always listen for:

1. Duplicate words. I tend to overuse words. Amazing, awesome and so are my faves. If I see a duplicate word, I pull out my handy dandy thesaurus and come up with an amazing new word.

2. Non-Sentences. For some reason I am in the habit of writing incomplete sentences. For no good reason.

3. That. Did you know you almost never need to use the word “that”? Try it. You’ll see.

4. Strange Paragraphs. Short paragraphs are the way to go. Even if your post is super long,  several short paragraphs will help people keep on reading. (This is only a guess, as I’m not sure if people actually read every word of my posts!) But because I am very short-paragraph-oriented, I end up having strange breaks in my paragraphs. I always have to rearrange first and closing sentences.

After reading my post out loud in my dashboard, I usually click PREVIEW and read it again on the preview page so I can get the feel for it on my blog. This will usually show me a few more mistakes. Then after I do everything else (like Parts 3-10 of this series) I probably re-read the whole thing about 5 more times. I’m not joking. And about half the time after I publish, I still read with an editor’s eye to make sure I didn’t miss a thing!

If you are insecure in your commas, grammar and sentence structure, you MUST READ Jessie‘s series, Before You Hit Publish. Jessie is an editor by trade (she edited Truth in the Tinsel for me) and clearly explains some basic editing you need to do on every post. You will glad you read it–and probably refer back to it often!

I’ll see you tomorrow for Part 3: Making Your Post STICKY!

Comments

  1. See, now I’ve read THAT if you’re unsure about using the word “that”, THAT you should use it. I think I read THAT in On Writing Well by Willaim Zissner, but don’t quote me on THAT. ;o) Apparently I’ll have to check into THAT some more.

    I completely agree with you though. I always think it sounds better without it. Really.

    Totally rambling here, but this is something I think about all of the time in regards to homeschooling–all of the different rules in the English language. How on Earth are we supposed to teach our children how to speak and write correctly when the rules are changing all the time!?

    • Interesting. My friend Becky has an author-friend and that’s where I heard that THAT thing. It feels like an unnecessary word. I’m gonna have to look it up now.

      The thing about LEARNING grammar: when I was in school I never learned grammar b/c I was always in the advanced reading group or AP class. So, we always did writing, etc. I never learned the basic rules. I just *know* them from reading I guess. SO WHO KNOWS?!!!

      • Oooh! Thanks for the link! And what you said about learning grammar–I’m sure you’ve heard of the Charlotte Mason homeschooling method–that’s what she believed. That children memorize the word more than they use phonetics to sound each word out. Interesting stuff! I love talking about all of this writing stuff! Great series! 🙂

  2. I think this is a great blog series, Amanda! I like that you are writing what works for you and to me, it seems completely manageable. Yesterday’s post was great and something I need to do more often: just write.

    Excellent and very helpful reminder to read the post outloud before publishing it. I have enlisted my hubster to read the majority of my posts, but a personal “read-aloud” would help me on the days he isn’t available.

  6. This is very true. I do the same thing with my blog posts – except for the reading out loud part, but that’s a great idea too. I read and re-read my posts over and over before publishing and sometimes even STILL find mistakes on them!

    Also, I definitely always check them again in Preview mode. That’s an excellent tip. I don’t know why but I always find more mistakes when I check it that way! It’s also a great time to double-check the formatting around pictures, etc. It seems to always look differently there than it does in my writing screen.

  7. I had to laugh on #3 – I usually have to go back and take out several “that” words! Glad I’m not the only one. I read to myself, but not out loud – I will give it a try. Great series!

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