Two Systems for Editing Your Writing

The systems of editing I use to help improve my writing.

Photo by Andrew Neel on Unsplash

Editing is a painful process.

You pour hours of hard work into writing only to have it ripped to pieces by your editor. If you edit yourself, you may feel unsure of what steps to take to make the work feel polished.

Which begs the question — what is a good editing process? Should you edit as much as possible every time?

Here’s how I like to edit my writing pieces on Medium.

System 1: My Favorite Piece Kind of Editing

My first system for editing is when you edit your favorite kind of writing.

Maybe you wrote something you loved. Maybe you wrote something longer that you believe deserves more attention. Usually, this system is reserved for the kind of writing that you believe deserves more attention.

I try to write these pieces once a week. So I can devote more time to editing and polishing it.

Here’s what System 1 involves:

• Write it and take at least a four-hour break from it before returning to it
• Reread 4–5 times (aloud) for clarity
• Check word choice and conciseness