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Ten Rewriting and
Editing Angles for anyone who writes anything.
The Key to Rewriting Effective Letters, Emails, Proposals, Assignments, Thesis, Dissertations, Web page text and Reports et cetera.
Q. Why use rewriting, and not writing?
Simple. It is extremely rare for anyone to come up with an 'effective' composition the first time. At best, it's a quick draft and will need to be rewritten at least twice. Rewriting calls attention to how we express the ideas in our draft as effectively as possible. When we rewrite, we are much more critical that when we draft, as drafting involves just getting the ideas recorded, and not necessarily in order of presentation.
So, for any document, from a simple love letter to a complex business tender to be effective, rewriting is necessary.
Q. What is the key to rewriting effective emails, letters, reports, and proposals?
A. Follow the four Cs of effective writing: Be clear, concise, complete, and correct. This cardinal rule applies to any type of writing. For any writing to be effective, remember that what's important is not what you wrote but what your reader 'thinks' you wrote; that is, how your reader interprets your message.
Q. Huh? Is that all there is to rewriting?
A. Well, yes. But the question is not what but 'how.' How do you achieve the four Cs?; and that's not so simple. Writing is a challenge. Rewriting may be less of a challenge, but it's still a demanding task and needs proficiency and skill.
Here are ten keys to effective rewriting:
Rewriting tip 1
Target the
subject. If 'sales convention' is the subject, place it at the beginning
of the sentence, not later.
Rewriting tip
2
Your reader comes first. Use 'you' not 'I' or 'we.' Focus the sentence
on what your reader needs to know or
do?
Rewriting tip 3.
Winnow out or reduce superfluous
words. Get to the point. Unnecessary words confuse your reader. Do away
with 'noise.'
Rewriting tip
4.
Use the active voice wherever possible. This means placing
your subject at the beginning, followed by a verb and make it do
something. The active voice is more concise, clear and direct. However, do
note that in some circumstances, the passive voice is preferred to create
the right tone.
Rewriting tip
5.
Give tautology the boot permanently. Tautology is defined
as useless, stuffy and unoriginal words or phrases never used in
conversation.
Rewriting tip
6.
If the action is the crucial part of the sentence, place
the verb at the beginning.
Rewriting tip
7
Do not pile up your modifiers [words which qualify a noun or
verb.] While modifiers may help reduce the length of a sentence
[sometimes], they can also baffle your
readers.
Rewriting tip
8
Buzzwords do not wow or incite. Mostly they annoy or
repel.
Rewriting tip
9
After rewriting, proofread, proofread, proofread. Then edit,
edit, edit. There's hardly anyone who can produce perfect writings at the
first, second or even third attempt. Whether you call it editing, revision
or rewriting, it is something every writer - and I mean every - has to do
or outsource. [Note: Editing and rewriting are not synonymous. Rewriting
goes much deeper than editing.]
Rewriting tip
10.
In all stages of writing, from drafting to editing and
rewriting where necessary, a good command of the language is mandatory.
Always have access to a good dictionary and thesaurus, whether hard copy
or online. But be cautious. Synonyms do not
always share exactly the same meaning. Check the dictionary before using a
word you're not totally familiar with.
Contact us if you need or want to outsource your editing and rewriting projects.
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