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Hey Reader,

Over edit. Under edit. Edit drunk. Edit sober. Edit until you can’t edit anymore.

I’ve been doing this professional editing thing for 6 years now. For 4.5 of those years, I edited well over 2,000 words a day.

Trust me, when it comes to editing mistakes, I’ve made them all.

Today, I want to share a comprehensive list of the mistakes I’ve made (and seen others make) so you can avoid them.

I hope this helps you get started, overcome annoying obstacles, and get to what matters: enjoying editing (so your writing gets better).

6 editing mistakes to avoid

1. Don’t try to learn & implement all the rules at once

Focus on one type of edit at a time until it becomes second nature.

For example, if you're learning to copy edit, don't try to catch all of your passive voice sentences while also looking out for redundancy.

Allow yourself to get good at catching passive voice. Then, move on to redundancy. And so on and so on.

Each step may take a few days or a few weeks. The timeframe doesn’t matter. The key is to avoid overwhelm. Give yourself permission to take it slow and do it right.

2. Don’t edit while you write

The more you try to edit your creative brain while it’s creating, the more you’ll struggle.

Your brain will short-circuit because it's trying to build and optimize simultaneously. You may eventually get something meaningful down on paper, but it'll take way longer than necessary. And you'll want to rip your eyeballs out in the process.

I covered this extensively in my "Stop editing while you write" issue. Check it out if you missed it.

3. Read your brief, outline & guidelines (if they exist) before you edit

You know how writers get writing block? Well, editing block is a real thing, too. You go to edit and...wait a second, what is this draft again? Why does this content exist? What's its purpose? What's the style?

I always review the "big why" before editing to avoid this.

If you have an outline (which I always do for long-form writing), read it before reviewing the draft. If you're writing for someone else, and they provided a brief, an outline, or guidelines, read those too.

This way, you're forcing yourself into the right headspace. And not editing on a whim, which may lead to stylistic whoopsies.

PS. I rarely have an outline for social because posts are so much shorter than long-form. But I still have a checklist and process. You can check that out here.

4. Read your content fully before you edit

Along those same lines, I always read an entire draft before I edit. And by read, I mean skim.

I intentionally avoid a copy editing scan. Instead, I look for big-picture stuff, like themes, narrative order, flow, style, example choices, and takeaways.

If anything seems off, I leave myself a comment to remind myself to circle on back later. (If you're editing someone else, leave a comment for them.)

Then and only then, I return to the top and do a more thorough, copy edit-focused read.

5. Stop when you feel 90% done

You're never done editing. Not truly. There is always something else you can change.

The best way through overediting-itis is to stop when you feel 90% done. Seriously, get the hell up and walk away.

Otherwise, you will tinker like a hobbyist with nothing better to do. (If that's you, by all means, edit forever.) But I bet most of you have jobs to do, lives to live, and money to make.

So, force yourself to stop when it feels good enough. The more you force this, the easier it gets. And the more you'll get done. Yay.

6. Don’t strive for perfection

Similarly, there is no perfect edit. Editing is both an art and a science. Copy editing is more rule-based than developmental (structural) editing is, and yet, you can still fix things in a multitude of ways.

This means...there is rarely a "right" edit.

Therefore, perfection does not exist.

Once you learn the fundamentals, the final decision is often preference-based. This is why if the best editors in the world got in a room, they'd likely make different edits.

Would one be better than the other?

Of course not.

Would readers prefer one over the other?

Of course.

Art affects people in different and unpredictable ways. All you can do is your best (and, of course, keep the reader in mind, because they matter more than anyone else).

Catch you next Friday!

Erica

PS. If you want to finally make social work for you, check this out:

I run a quarterly cohort called Platform Launchpad with my business partner, Kasey Jones.

It's for entrepreneurs, founders, or small business CEOs who have tons of professional experience under their belts but not much online authority. If this is you and you want to grow your business, open up new opportunities, and build your sphere of influence...

​We're running a presale for February's enrollment until EOD tomorrow, Monday, Feb 5th.​

Check it out if you're curious :)

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Just reply to this email if you want to know more about these options. I read and reply to every email because I have enough one-way conversations with my toddlers and chihuahua.

Erica Schneider

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