Essay Editing
Before essay editing can be done, it is important to take a break from the completed document; doing so will refresh the mind, give some distance from the work, and facilitate the discovery of errors. Make sure some time is set aside ahead of a submission deadline so that essay editing is not rushed: do not underestimate how long essay editing may take.
Some tips for essay editing
An initial read-through of the document may indicate a few errors, however, a more thorough investigation may identify a number of recurrent problems. Before you start editing an essay, make sure you are aware of these recurrent issues so you are more likely to spot them when reading through. Alternatively, get familiar with word processing software and utilise functions such as ‘find and replace’, ‘autocorrect’ and the ‘add word’ function to dictionaries.
Review the question asked and decided whether or not the essay has answered it, it may be useful to paraphrase this question at the end of the introductory paragraph to ensure the essay stays on the right track as well as communicating to the reader that you have understood the question.
Layout and spelling
Check the layout of the essay paragraphs, as they should be separated by a space and an indent. A good essay is broken up into the following sections: an introduction, the main body of text, a discussion, and a conclusion or concluding sentence.
It can be difficult to spot errors if you are reading the document on a computer screen, words unfamiliar to the computer (often the case in specialised topics) will be underlined red even if they are spelt correctly. If you need free homework help try printing the document off and reading it on paper, mark any errors with a cross at the side of the page and change them on the computer later.
Finally, use a spell checker and double check that all sources of information have been cited and referenced correctly, consistency is key! If possible, ask a friend to proofread your essay, it doesn’t matter if they are familiar with the content or not, in fact it may be better if they aren’t. This way, they read the text for what it is rather than what it is trying to say.
Don’t forget, a good clear layout and correct essay formatting will be greatly appreciated by the reader (and marker) of your essay and this is likely to translate into a better overall mark.
If you need help with your essay editing you can ask a tutor for free that can help you on our full content editing service. Alternatively you can contact directly so that youcan discuss your requirements in more detail.