Although consulting a human editor will make your job significantly easier, the college essay editing cost can sometimes be a burden. If you prefer self-editing your essay, you can use the following steps to help you ace your assignment.
It is challenging to identify errors and inconsistencies in your essay immediately after writing it. Make sure to take a break and return to your work later with fresh eyes. This will help you view your essay from different perspectives and identify problem areas. You can also do this by asking friends or family members to review your work and provide necessary feedback.
Start off with a comprehensive overview. This includes creating a cohesive structure and ensuring the proper flow of arguments. Make sure that all your topics and concluding sentences highlight the importance of your thesis statement. You can also cut-and-paste parts of sentences or paragraphs to build momentum throughout your writing.
After rearranging the major paragraphs to ensure a smooth-flowing structure, it’s time to cut the fluff. This may include repetitive information, filler content, as well as redundancies. Cutting out unnecessary information makes your essay concise and to the point, allowing your readers to focus on the key points of your argument.
It’s important to limit the use of jargon and ensure that your essay is accessible and easy to understand. While technical terms can be used in certain contexts, make sure to use them sparingly and accurately. It is important to strike a balance between technical and non-technical language. This will help you can write an essay that is both informative and engaging.
Avoid using lengthy run-on sentences that can be difficult to follow. Use clear, concise sentences that convey your ideas effectively. When it comes to academic writing, avoid using exclamation marks and em-dashes. They can be seen as highly informal and are usually used in stories or creative works.
Make sure to stick to your university’s formatting and style guidelines when writing essays. This includes using headings and subheadings correctly, and ensuring that the font size and style are consistent throughout your essay. You can also make key points stand out by using bold or italicized text when necessary.
The above pointers show how editing essays is tedious and can be time-consuming. As editing experts , we can make the editing process simpler for you.
To reduce your challenges while writing essays, we have created extensive resources for you. You can bookmark the following resources and revisit them to clarify any doubts about essay writing!
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What this handout is about.
This handout provides some tips and strategies for revising your writing. To give you a chance to practice proofreading, we have left seven errors (three spelling errors, two punctuation errors, and two grammatical errors) in the text of this handout. See if you can spot them!
Not exactly. Although many people use the terms interchangeably, editing and proofreading are two different stages of the revision process. Both demand close and careful reading, but they focus on different aspects of the writing and employ different techniques.
Editing is what you begin doing as soon as you finish your first draft. You reread your draft to see, for example, whether the paper is well-organized, the transitions between paragraphs are smooth, and your evidence really backs up your argument. You can edit on several levels:
Have you done everything the assignment requires? Are the claims you make accurate? If it is required to do so, does your paper make an argument? Is the argument complete? Are all of your claims consistent? Have you supported each point with adequate evidence? Is all of the information in your paper relevant to the assignment and/or your overall writing goal? (For additional tips, see our handouts on understanding assignments and developing an argument .)
Does your paper have an appropriate introduction and conclusion? Is your thesis clearly stated in your introduction? Is it clear how each paragraph in the body of your paper is related to your thesis? Are the paragraphs arranged in a logical sequence? Have you made clear transitions between paragraphs? One way to check the structure of your paper is to make a reverse outline of the paper after you have written the first draft. (See our handouts on introductions , conclusions , thesis statements , and transitions .)
Does each paragraph have a clear topic sentence? Does each paragraph stick to one main idea? Are there any extraneous or missing sentences in any of your paragraphs? (See our handout on paragraph development .)
Have you defined any important terms that might be unclear to your reader? Is the meaning of each sentence clear? (One way to answer this question is to read your paper one sentence at a time, starting at the end and working backwards so that you will not unconsciously fill in content from previous sentences.) Is it clear what each pronoun (he, she, it, they, which, who, this, etc.) refers to? Have you chosen the proper words to express your ideas? Avoid using words you find in the thesaurus that aren’t part of your normal vocabulary; you may misuse them.
Have you used an appropriate tone (formal, informal, persuasive, etc.)? Is your use of gendered language (masculine and feminine pronouns like “he” or “she,” words like “fireman” that contain “man,” and words that some people incorrectly assume apply to only one gender—for example, some people assume “nurse” must refer to a woman) appropriate? Have you varied the length and structure of your sentences? Do you tends to use the passive voice too often? Does your writing contain a lot of unnecessary phrases like “there is,” “there are,” “due to the fact that,” etc.? Do you repeat a strong word (for example, a vivid main verb) unnecessarily? (For tips, see our handouts on style and gender-inclusive language .)
Have you appropriately cited quotes, paraphrases, and ideas you got from sources? Are your citations in the correct format? (See the UNC Libraries citation tutorial for more information.)
As you edit at all of these levels, you will usually make significant revisions to the content and wording of your paper. Keep an eye out for patterns of error; knowing what kinds of problems you tend to have will be helpful, especially if you are editing a large document like a thesis or dissertation. Once you have identified a pattern, you can develop techniques for spotting and correcting future instances of that pattern. For example, if you notice that you often discuss several distinct topics in each paragraph, you can go through your paper and underline the key words in each paragraph, then break the paragraphs up so that each one focuses on just one main idea.
Proofreading is the final stage of the editing process, focusing on surface errors such as misspellings and mistakes in grammar and punctuation. You should proofread only after you have finished all of your other editing revisions.
Content is important. But like it or not, the way a paper looks affects the way others judge it. When you’ve worked hard to develop and present your ideas, you don’t want careless errors distracting your reader from what you have to say. It’s worth paying attention to the details that help you to make a good impression.
Most people devote only a few minutes to proofreading, hoping to catch any glaring errors that jump out from the page. But a quick and cursory reading, especially after you’ve been working long and hard on a paper, usually misses a lot. It’s better to work with a definite plan that helps you to search systematically for specific kinds of errors.
Sure, this takes a little extra time, but it pays off in the end. If you know that you have an effective way to catch errors when the paper is almost finished, you can worry less about editing while you are writing your first drafts. This makes the entire writing proccess more efficient.
Try to keep the editing and proofreading processes separate. When you are editing an early draft, you don’t want to be bothered with thinking about punctuation, grammar, and spelling. If your worrying about the spelling of a word or the placement of a comma, you’re not focusing on the more important task of developing and connecting ideas.
You probably already use some of the strategies discussed below. Experiment with different tactics until you find a system that works well for you. The important thing is to make the process systematic and focused so that you catch as many errors as possible in the least amount of time.
Then give it a try, if you haven’t already! This handout contains seven errors our proofreader should have caught: three spelling errors, two punctuation errors, and two grammatical errors. Try to find them, and then check a version of this page with the errors marked in red to see if you’re a proofreading star.
We consulted these works while writing this handout. This is not a comprehensive list of resources on the handout’s topic, and we encourage you to do your own research to find additional publications. Please do not use this list as a model for the format of your own reference list, as it may not match the citation style you are using. For guidance on formatting citations, please see the UNC Libraries citation tutorial . We revise these tips periodically and welcome feedback.
Ascher, Allen. 2006. Think About Editing: An ESL Guide for the Harbrace Handbooks . Boston: Wadsworth Cengage Learning.
Lane, Janet, and Ellen Lange. 2012. Writing Clearly: Grammar for Editing , 3rd ed. Boston: Heinle.
Einsohn, Amy. 2011. The Copyeditor’s Handbook: A Guide for Book Publishing and Corporate Communications , 3rd ed. Berkeley: University of California Press.
Lanham, Richard A. 2006. Revising Prose , 5th ed. New York: Pearson Longman.
Tarshis, Barry. 1998. How to Be Your Own Best Editor: The Toolkit for Everyone Who Writes . New York: Three Rivers Press.
You may reproduce it for non-commercial use if you use the entire handout and attribute the source: The Writing Center, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill
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When I chose to freeze my eggs — something that took me two years to mull over and decide — I sought out the consult of women my age who had already done the same. A frequent warning I got was about a common physical side effect of the process: “Covering the bloat” was something I was repeatedly told I’d have to deal with. So naturally, when my timeline was set in stone, I put together a wardrobe for work and play that I hoped would do the trick.
But then, once I was in the thick of the process, something surprising happened. I realized that I didn’t care how I looked. At all .
Let me back up to one of my earliest memories — it’s relevant, I promise. It was August 1994, my third birthday party, and my parents graciously gifted me the presence of my favorite movie stars: Aladdin and Jasmine. I used to watch “Aladdin” every day, sometimes multiple times a day, so I’ve been told. I loved the fairy-tale aspect, and I idolized Jasmine — maybe because I hadn’t seen Middle Eastern beauty represented anywhere else.
When actors dressed as Aladdin and Jasmine showed up at our house, I froze. I remember thinking, “I can’t believe these people are in my home, and they’re here for me!” I could barely smile or speak — I just kept staring at them in awe, starstruck. After singing a couple of songs in front of my friends and me, it was time for cake (probably my favorite part). My mom set out the cake along with crudité and other bites for the parents, and while I was thinking, “I can’t wait to eat that cake,” I heard Jasmine behind me squeal in excitement. She must have been as eager for cake as I was! We have something in common , I thought excitedly. Then she said, “Ooh, cucumbers!”
That moment has been ingrained in my psyche since I heard those two words. I remember thinking that if I want to look and be like Jasmine, well then I, too, need to prioritize the cucumbers over the cake.
And yes, I was only 3 years old, but we all have a first memory we can’t forget.
My brain was wired around food and body image from a young age, hitting its peak distress in my late teens and early 20s. My insecurities around my body took up so much room in my brain.
As an adult, I’ve done a lot of work to feel more comfortable in my body, and to stop being so hard on myself — but that seed of negativity never fully went away. I’m the type of person who asks to avoid seeing the number on the scale when I get weighed at doctor’s appointments, and if I accidentally see the number, mental havoc rules my week. I’m also the type of person to have an intense HIIT workout routine for both physical upkeep and mental release. So, I’ll be honest — when the time was approaching for my egg freezing cycle to begin, I was anxious about not what my body would feel, but how I would feel about how it looked.
What I never expected though was to completely embrace my body — mentally, physically and emotionally — throughout egg freezing, despite the fact that, yes, I was bloated and also had to limit physical activity. For two weeks I injected myself with hormones 2-3 times a day, combining the solutions on my own, feeling quick bouts of injection pain and periods of fatigue, and traveling to doctor’s appointments constantly. After each shot, ultrasound or blood draw, I’d await my body’s reaction. Would I feel run down? Stressed? Anxious about any expansion around my stomach? I waited, but that’s not what happened. I mostly felt … strong. I was surprised and delighted by what my body was capable of. The strength I felt made me feel immensely grateful for my body and what it could endure. I felt empowered. The experience also, frankly, made me angry at myself for all the times I criticized my body’s appearance in the past, and all the time and energy I wasted on that way of thinking.
I mostly felt … strong. I was surprised and delighted by what my body was capable of. The strength I felt made me feel immensely grateful for my body and what it could endure. I felt empowered.
Body image is a construct. It is an idea of what society deems to be subjectively appealing and has been supported by the media over decades and generations. I’m so glad society is evolving and becoming more welcoming of all shapes and sizes, but you can’t rely on internet culture and the news cycle for acceptance, especially since what is acceptable is constantly changing. It needs to come authentically and wholeheartedly from within.
I wanted to freeze my eggs in my 32nd year, and I did just that: My egg retrieval was on my last day of being 32. For my 33rd birthday — exactly three decades after that birthday party I remember as a girl — I started the year with a clean slate, freeing up that space in the back of my mind that used to be hyper-focused on what I looked like, for something new.
I vow to be less critical of how my body appears, and more in touch with how it feels. I vow to be mindful of the cucumbers and enjoy the cake, and maybe I can help other women be less critical of their bodies, too. Our bodies endure and are capable of so much. They hold so much power and strength. We should own the power of our bodies. We should be grateful for them. After this experience, I know I will be.
Donna Farizan is a contributor for TODAY's fourth hour with Hoda and Jenna.
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Fix mistakes that slip under your radar. Fix problems with commonly confused words, like affect vs. effect, which vs. that and who vs. that. Catch words that sound similar but aren't, like their vs. they're, your vs. you're. Check your punctuation to avoid errors with dashes and hyphens, commas, apostrophes, and more.
When you edit, be sure your thesis statement is strong. A strong thesis will answer the prompt or guiding research question, but it will also be succinct. It should be clear, so eliminate any wordiness. You should also ensure it aligns with the rest of the essay.
This variation helps to keep the reader's attention and allows for a more engaging narrative flow. 9. Revisit your essay after a break. Give yourself time: After completing a draft of your essay, step away from it for a day or two. This break can clear your mind and reduce your attachment to specific phrases or ideas.
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2. Prune long sentences and paragraphs. Whether you've exceeded your word count or not, long sentences and paragraphs should be edited because they can be trickier to read, and risk being boring or hard to follow. Try, therefore, to keep sentences to a maximum of two or three clauses (or segments). Avoid long paragraphs by starting a new one ...
Here, our expert writing services suggest 10 powerful editing tips to help you transform your essay from good to great. Tip #1: Strengthen Your Thesis. When editing an essay, make sure your thesis statement summarizes your main argument and tells the reader exactly what you'll be proving. A strong thesis is clear, specific, and debatable.
1. Helps correct structural inconsistencies. Effective editing helps detect structural and tonal inconsistencies that don't fit in with a particular paragraph or the essay as a whole. These inconsistencies can then be rephrased, restructured, or completely eliminated from your essay. 2.
Try to keep the editing and proofreading processes separate. When you are editing an early draft, you don't want to be bothered with thinking about punctuation, grammar, and spelling. If your worrying about the spelling of a word or the placement of a comma, you're not focusing on the more important task of developing and connecting ideas.
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3. Draft your version, focusing on expressing the same ideas in a new way. Use different vocabulary and sentence structures. 4. Review your rewritten paragraph alongside the original to check for accuracy and completeness. 5. Edit for clarity, flow, and coherence, making sure the new paragraph stands well on its own. 6.
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My brain was wired around food and body image from a young age, hitting its peak distress in my late teens and early 20s. My insecurities around my body took up so much room in my brain.
Overuse of passive voice. Subjective or inflated language. For a more comprehensive edit, you can add one or multiple add-on editing services that fit your needs. ⏰ Deadline. Same day delivery. 📄 Texts. Papers, essays, dissertations, manuscripts. ⭐️ Rating. 4.6 based on 13,690 reviews.