Editing is usually one of the last steps in creating a final draft. Carefully read over your manuscript for style and sense, and correct problems in grammar, spelling, and punctuation. Consider whether you have made use of the techniques of emphasis and subordination, conciseness, parallet structure, and sentence variety to make your meaning clear and your writing interesting. Also review your word choices.
Although you will undoubtedly edit some sentences as you develop your composition, don't become distracted by editing concerns before you complete your first draft. Ideally, editing and revising should be done in separate readings of the manuscript, because revision focuses on the larger elements of content and organization, and editing focuses on sentences and words. (See also the The Composing Process.)
You can edit on hard copy (paper) or on the monitor screen. If your computer has programs for checking spelling, grammar, or style, use them. These programs do not catch all errors, however, or necessarily improve the text. Ultimately, you are responsible for what you write. If you know that particular types of problems—such as consistently misspelled words, omitted commas or apostrophes, or sentence fragments—recur in your writing, draw up a checklist of these problems and consult it before turning in the final drafts of your papers.
