In the first place God made idiots. This was for practice.
Then he made proof-readers."
~~Mark Twain
I'm going to touch on a big grammar issue today--the human brain. Ever get frustrated that you've read your dang manuscript a bazillion times and still miss some mistakes? Some of my problem is I can't NOT edit, which just makes new typos.
When it comes to language, our clever human brains can be our antagonists. The following is my case in point:
Can you read this?
Olny srmat poelpe can.
cdnuolt blveiee taht I cluod aulaclty uesdnatnrd waht I was rdanieg. The phaonmneal pweor of the hmuan mnid, aoccdrnig to a rscheearch at Cmabrigde Uinervtisy, it deosn't mttaer in waht oredr the ltteers in a wrod are, the olny iprmoatnt tihng is taht the frist and lsat ltteer be in the rghit pclae. The rset can be a taotl mses and you can sitll raed it wouthit a porbelm. Tihs is bcuseae the huamn mnid deos not raed ervey lteter by istlef, but the wrod as a wlohe. Amzanig huh? yaeh and I awlyas tghuhot slpeling was ipmorantt!
In one training I attended, we were told to read through the project three times looking for different things. An important key is giving it a break because reading something over and over can result in missing the obvious. If you go do something else or put it down for the night and come back to it fresh the next morning, stuff can jump right out at you that you'd have missed the day before. Checking for specific things, such as facts, numbers, dates, etc. rather than reading the entire project will often catch problems otherwise missed. I like reading it aloud. My hubby likes to be read to, so he's a great guinea pig and patient when I suddenly stop to fix something.
So are you one of people who can proof things flawlessly? Do you have any tricks that makes it easier?
I can totally relate to this. I so wish I could magically make my brain take in every mistake and right the wrongs. I admire anyone with editing fortitude. If you ever find that trick, I would really like to know.
ReplyDeleteOh, Jen has said what I wanted to say... I'm somehow speechless now....
ReplyDeleteJen and TL - Grammar is a challenge exactly because ours is a living language, so it's a moving target.
ReplyDeleteThe only way to do a good proof read of your own work is to let it sit for a few days (preferably longer). It's amazing what the eye glazes over. I can't believe I was able to read that paragraph in your post.
ReplyDeleteFlawless victory every time! Or, actually, I miss a lot every time. :)
ReplyDeleteThis explains so much! I just thought I was unobservant. Yesterday I found a mistake, I wanted to write "pursing" but I wrote "perusing" instead. It made for a funny sentence :) Thanks for the post.
ReplyDeletePerfect timing of this post. This is the problem I'm facing with my current WIP. I keep rereading the same thing and don't catch something until the fourth or fifth time. So frustrating. This first read through I was looking for specific words I over use. This second read through I'm trying to correct inconsistencies and do additional research.
ReplyDeleteL.G. - I wish I had that option at work! Sometimes I'm limited to just taking a short break. Deadlines. Dang them.
ReplyDeleteLibby - don't we wish?
Angie - exactly, Angie. Like leaving out the l in "public". Can be a little embarrassing depending upon who catches the error.
Mel - good luck with that. Since I can't not edit when I'm supposed to be proofing, I've enlisted the aid of a friend and coworker who will do it for m.
For a great line-edit, I just give it to my mom. She has eagle eyes. :)
ReplyDeleteFor those without my mother (poor deprived souls), I hear changing the font can help you spot things you missed before.
Lvoe taht scbmerld wrod pgrpaarh--I've seen it bfroee and it's aazmnig erevy tmie. (Hm. Srohretr wdors dno't srcmlbae so wlel.)
that was an interesting experiment and cool facts!
ReplyDeletethanks =)
This really IS interesting. I mean I kinda knew it but haven't actually thought much about it.. I guess it's easier for me to edit something right after I read it for the first time. With my work, i miss the obvious. If I read another's work 10 times, i can no longer discriminate between words, punctuation and sentences, lol. A trick? Just give it a rest, read something else, and go back to it, but most of all: DO NOT HYPER-EDIT like some people do (points to self). It's a surefire way to get blocked.. Thank you for this! :)
ReplyDeleteGreat post - I an always gobsmacked by how easily I read the jumbled letters and yet how easily I missed the obvious typo. I like reading it over a couple of times and then leaving it a day and checking again. I'm not sure how my posts come across as in Australia we follow English English so our spelling is a little different to US spelling - that might throw some people when I use Mum instead of Mom or colour not color. Hey and thanks for giving Bryce an award, he passed it on to me, so the kangaroos send their thanks, (and so do I!).
ReplyDeleteI LOVE the quote "The strongest drive is not sex or greed. It is one person's need to change another's copy." So true. I always read my stuff out loud if only to my dogs. I also break into sections, read 2-3 sentences then do something else for a moment (like check my Facebook) read 2-3 sentences then check Twitter. It sounds like it'd take forever but isn't much different from letting it sit for a few days really.
ReplyDelete:)
Walking away. It works every time. I am always surprised at the clarity I have upon returning. We each gave Bryce the same award at the same time! Poor guy.:)
ReplyDeleteRobin - I've used that font change technique (learned it from Ian Bontemps). It works (if I can resist editing, which I can't)--yet.
ReplyDeleteTara - I was amazed I could read that thing. Though one of Robins' words made me look very closely.
Lyn - definitely have to worry about over editing. Ugh
Cheryl - we Americans can thank Ben Franklin for dropping the u's out of our common words. I've always liked to tease my British and Aussie friends.
Amber - I'll have to try that some time. I tend to bounce in and out anyway and felt back, like I was a slacker or distracted. Now I can claim it as an editing technique.
Rebecca - Oops. Too funny. Does that mean he has to give it to double the people?
I no exactly wat you meen abut editing. I can reed my novle 100 times butt reed write over the erors.
ReplyDeleteI don't have any trick--none. When I'm writing something the first time, if I notice something I fix it right away. Other than that it's just a matter of repeated reads, other people reading it and even then there are typos. Three people aside from myself have read though it and pointed out things they noticed. Also my agent has been through my ms multiple times and I KNOW there are still typos hiding in there. Think of this, even by the time your ms has been gone over and over with your editor, it STILL goes to a copy editor (I'm pretty sure they don't get paid for nothing.)
ReplyDeleteIt always amazes me too, how many times I can go through something and miss a simple, darn, typo, or a dozen. :)
ReplyDeleteAwesome post.
M.K. - rofl For me some days are worse than others.
ReplyDeleteBecky - too right. I just haven't met a sentence I didn't want to do differently, which creates more problems.
Kimberly - And how many people can read that same sentence with the typo and not pick up on it.
I pride myself on only sending my beta readers the most polished manuscripts I can produce, and without fail I get them back bloodied up with the dreaded red marks of TRACKED CHANGES. I go through it line-by-line and I still miss countless things. Such is the reason I LOVE editors! ;) Great post!
ReplyDeleteTHIS.
ReplyDeleteI have been editing like mad this month, and it's SO easy for the words to turn into mush and to see what I expect to see, especially if I've read it so many times. Plus, I create new edits when I fix or rewrite old edits. O_O I'm so grateful for proofreaders!
Donna, I love your grammar lessons! I hope to one day be as good as you at them.
ReplyDeleteI tagged you in my blog:
http://www.jamesduckett.com/2011/06/tag-im-it.html
Reading through for different things works for me. I might go through just to see that all the words are in the right places, then I'll read to see if the conversation makes sense, and if I have stray words in there. The last think I read for is sensory details. I do this for every chapter I write (crazy, I know) but it leaves me with a very clean manuscript at the end.
ReplyDeleteI just wish Word and Webster's dictionary were as smart as me. I mean really, why don't they have all the words in them that I have floating around in my head? As for grammar, I apologize ahead of time is all I can do.
ReplyDeleteI just found your blog and am now hooked on Grammar Friday! Shhh - don't tell anyone, but I'm a technical writer without a working grammar brain. If it sounds wrong, then it probably is. Proof reading: whew - what a can of worms! I do the reading out loud. My eye catches "differences" so I find obscure things like a missing period or an extra space. I usually come across at least one typo in every book I read. I love having my mistakes pointed out, but don't really care for subjective comments.
ReplyDeleteLove the Mark Twain quote, but I thought he said it about Congress, not proofreaders. But I guess when you think about it, it works both ways. Just sayin.
ReplyDelete