Self-Editing Writing Tips Would Help You

If you want your writing to be polished, professional, and effective, you’ll need to develop a system for reviewing your work with a critical eye. Here are some concrete steps you can take to vastly improve the results.

10+ ways to improve your writing by self-editing

1: Put some distance between you and your work

2: Read like a reader, not like an editor

3: Limit your first edit

4: Now, you can edit

5: Perform a line edit

6: Take it apart

7: Return to the outline

8: Read it aloud

9: Remove emphasis, unless you really mean it

10: Run a spell check

11: Know yourself

12: Know your goal

13: Edit other people’s work

via techrepublic

Self-Editing Tips to Make Your Manuscript Ready For Publication

1. Avoid a lot of back story

2. Simplify your sentences wherever possible.

3. Avoid adverbs for the most part.

4. Avoid using the same word over and over in a paragraph.

5. Don't overuse names.

6. Limit the description in a dialogue tag.

7. Avoid participle phrases

8. No idle chit-chat.

9. Minimize use of the passive voice.

10. Use active, descriptive verbs.

11. Minimize use of the verb "to be" to keep the word count down.

12. Cut the verb preceding an infinitive if it's not needed.

13. Avoid using the word that when you don't need it.

14. Watch for pet words or phrases you tend to favor without even realizing it.

15. Avoid stall phrases that slow down the action for no good reason.

via ezinearticles

Tips for Self-Editing

Your first round of edits should be substantive.
The next stage is the stylistic edit, alternatively called a line edit.
With all the larger issues out of the way, you are now free to copyedit your work.
In the publishing world the next phase of edits would be called typesetting.
Proofreading your work once you’ve run through all the edits is an absolute must.
Also, keep in mind what your pet problems are; these could be habits like repeating phrases, misspelling words, or even leaving unfinished sentences.

via suite101

Self-Editing Tips for Legal Writers

Are the headings correctly numbered?

Are acronyms explained?

Are the parties referred to in the same way throughout the brief?

When referring to the parties, have you used proper form of singular, plural and possessive, e.g., "plaintiff," "plaintiffs," "plaintiff's," "plaintiffs'"?

Is your use of any contractions stylistically proper, given the type of work you're writing?

Have you relied too much on the passive voice?

Can any sentences be shortened by breaking them in two?

Are there footnotes that can be moved into the text or omitted entirely?

full list via illinoistrialpractice