The First Priority in Editing

Until recently, I thought that the first step in editing was to look for errors. The perfectionist in me wants to fix those things first, but I have come to realize that this can be a waste of time. This does not mean proofreading for errors is not important (it definitely is), but timing matters in the editing process.

I read something in Ann Janzer's book, "The Workplace Writer's Process: A Guide to Getting the Job Done," that I had never considered before. She pointed out that taking the time to fix errors or improve word choice should happen last because there could be sections that end up being omitted completely (2017).

This makes so much sense, yet I have spent many years not editing this way. Here is a little story to illustrate what I mean. Once upon a time, I was feeling ambitious, so I mended all of the holes in all of my daughter's clothing only to discover that she didn't want to keep some of them. Then I tried to give those items away and no one wanted them, so they ended up being used for rags instead, unhappily ever after.

Thankfully, that story is fiction.

The first priority in editing is to determine the purpose of the written work. Who is the intended audience? Especially in the case of informational literature, can the readers quickly identify whether or not the information is something that applies to them?

For example, if there is a list of websites that someone produced to help college students plan ahead for a future career, but the title at the top read, "Helpful Information Sites," the opportunity to reach the target audience could very likely be lost. Instead, a better title could be a question the students might already be asking, such as, "Where Can My Degree Take Me?" or "Which Career is Best for Me?" or "How Do I Prepare for the Career I Want?" Any of these could be followed with the subtitle "Check out these helpful sites:" as an answer to the question, or this could be left off altogether.

If that page also was just a list of websites with instructions under each one on how to find information about future careers, most students aren't going to feel motivated to look up each site and follow lengthy step-by-step directions. Long lists of instructions can appear complicated at first glance, so there is value in being concise. For website navigation instructions, listing the words to be selected and then putting an arrow in between could be better than writing repetitive sentences of directions. For example, "Select Students > Info by College > What Now?" is much less overwhelming than "Select 'Students,' then 'Info by College,' then click on 'What Now?'"

Make it clear what information is available and how that information would be helpful to the intended audience. Then make sure it is organized, has good flow, is concise, and finally, accurate.