(I found this document in my files. It’s from the pre-spell check and pre-grammar checking software age. Use it to help with editing your writing.)

Writer’s Checklist for Revising Your Paper

1. What’s your purpose?
___ Why did you write this paper? Have you done what you wanted?
___ Who might be reading it? Picture your readers. Give one a name. How do you suppose that person feels or thinks about your subject?
___ How do you want your readers to react? Do you think they will?

 

2. What’s your point?
___ Find the phrase or sentence that best tells your main point. If you can’t find it, write one. Do you need to add it to your paper? (Maybe not.)
___ How many examples have you used to support your main idea? Count them. Is that enough? Can you think of one more?
___ Can you find anything in your paper that really isn’t on this topic?

       

3. How’s your structure?
      How many paragraphs do you have? Does each paragraph have one main idea?
      Make a short list of the ideas in your paper, from beginning to end. (This is an after-the-fact outline.) Do the ideas follow a logical order?
      Is anything out of place? Try reading your sentences or paragraphs in a different order. Sometimes it helps to cut them apart for rearranging.
      Look at your transition words. Do they tie your ideas together just the way you want? Are there any jumps where you need better transitions?
      Read your first sentence or two. Is the purpose of your paper clear? Have you hooked your reader into wanting to read more?
      Now read your last sentence or two. Do the first and last sentences sound as if they are from the same paper? If they say almost the same thing, can you find a way to make the last sentence even stronger?

 

4. How’s your word choice?
___ Have you used the same noun, verb, or adjective too many times? Are there other words you could use instead? Have you used a thesaurus?
___ Choose the two most important words in each sentence. Think about each one: Is it general, ordinary, abstract, or vague? Could you use a better word that is more specific, vivid, concrete, or precise?
___ Have you used any of the words below? Could you avoid them? (Maybe not.)
Adjectives That
Evaporate:		 Adjectives That
Exaggerate:		 Adverbs That Cripple and Bloat: Verbs That Just Sit There:
cute silly fantastic a bit be (is are was were)
nice stupid terrific rather have (has, had)
funny wonderful marvelous somewhat get
great interesting awful very seem
good beautiful horrible really make
bad important terrible actually do

 

5. How’s your style?
___ Read your paper aloud. Is it easy to read? Do you stumble anywhere? Is it hard to follow?
___ Do any parts of your writing sound wordy? Choppy? Repetitive?
___ Look at your sentences. Are they all about the same length? Can you find ways to vary the length?
___ Do too many of your sentences follow the same pattern? Can you rearrange some to get a different rhythm?
___ Do any of your sentences start with and, but or so? Can you cross out these words without changing your meaning? If not, can you combine these sentences with others?
___ Do any of your sentences start with there or it? Can you rearrange them?
___ Count the number of times you used and. Can you find other ways to link ideas?
___ What point of view did you use? Is it the same throughout?
___ What verb tense did you use? Is it the same throughout?

 

6. How’s your tone?
___ Is it a turn-off? Show respect for your reader. Watch out for a tone that says, "I think I’m smarter than you are."

Avoid:
__jargon        __cliches        __ slang, swearing        __unnecessary sarcasm
___ Is it feathers-and-flowers? Are you showing off? Watch out for a tone that says, "Look at my wonderful way with words!"

Avoid:
     pretentious words    __Adjectives on every noun   __ lots of -ly adverbs
___ Is it cardboard? Your paper should sound alive. Watch out for a tone that says, "This was written by a machine, not a person."

Avoid:

___ writing without any details or words that appeal to the five senses
___ verbs that just sit there ___ sentences in the passive

 

7. How’s your proofreading?
Spelling ___ Circle any words you aren’t 100 percent sure of. Look them up.
Tricky Words Double-check any of these words you have used:
___ there, their, they’re
___ to, too, two
___ its, it’s
___ are, our
___ your, you’re
Punctuation
___ Did you use the correct mark to end each sentence?
___ Any missing commas? Any extra commas you don’t need?
___ Quotation marks, if needed? And the correct marks with them?
___ Apostrophes, where needed? Any that should not be there? (Look closely at any possessives and plurals)
___ Have you used too many dashes, too many exclamation points?
Capitalization ___ Can you explain why you capitalized every word you did?
___ Are there any words you forgot to capitalize?
Agreement ___ Do all your subjects and verbs agree?
___ Do all pronouns agree with their antecedents?
Writing lapses ___ Have you left out any letters? Left out any words?
___ Have you written any words twice in a row?