How to Become a Better Editor

Wondering how to become a better editor? Whether you’re just starting your editing career or are an experienced editor, we have some tips for you – nine of them, in fact! And by reading this post, you’re already well on the way to one of them…

What Skills Does an Editor Need?

When it comes to working out how you might improve your skills, it makes sense to review what those are. And if you’re considering editing as a career, you’ll want to know what’s required.

In a previous post, we considered the hard and soft skills required by an editor. The hard skills include the aspects you’d associate with being an editor:

• A firm grasp of spelling, grammar, and punctuation
• A keen eye for detail
• A wide vocabulary
• A good working knowledge of word processing software

But there are other skills that might be less obvious – the soft skills – which are no less important:

• Good time management
• Strong organizational skills 
• Clear communication

With that refresher in mind, let’s have a look at how you might improve those skills to become a better editor.

9 Ways to Become a Better Editor

Here are our top tips, which you can use at any stage of your editing career:

1. Clear all distractions
2. Break up the task
3. Take regular breaks
4. Listen to the writer
5. Edit for the reader
6. Read aloud
7. Use (but don’t overuse) technology
8. Comment with compassion
9. Continue to learn

1. Clear All Distractions

Spotting errors and inconsistencies in a text requires concentration, so distractions are the last thing you need. One study, led by Gloria Mark, found that it takes 23 minutes to refocus after a distraction

To improve your focus and thereby improve your editing skills, remove things that might distract you. If you aren’t able to turn off your phone, try using its Focus mode to disable tempting apps while you work.

2. Take Regular Breaks

Your ability to concentrate can be diminished by distractions, but it can also suffer over prolonged periods. All that focusing on a screen – which is where most editing takes place – can put a strain on your eyes, too.

You can refresh your ability to focus and better spot small details by taking regular breaks. Try different techniques until you find one that works for you – but avoid filling your breaks with the distractions that you tried so hard to turn off in our first tip!

3. Break Up the Task

Some editors tackle everything in one go. While some may manage this successfully, such a strategy is not without risk: with so many issues to address, you could miss something, deal with an issue inconsistently, or put in a lot of work only to find that the document needs more of a rewrite by the author.

Try making a list of tasks, which you can tick off as you go, dealing with one at a time. You could start with the bigger picture first – just read the document and check that it does what it set out to do – and work your way down to the smaller details. If you leave checking for multiple spaces until last, for example, you will only have to do that once.

4. Listen to the Writer

It may be tempting to think, “I wouldn’t have put it like that” and edit accordingly, but you would run the risk of losing the writer’s voice in the process or, worse, altering their meaning.

Take time to listen to what the writer intended to achieve and to their own style preferences and tone of voice. Record that information in a style sheet so that you can apply it consistently.

5. Edit for the Reader

Having listened to what the writer intended to say, you need to make sure that it will be clear to the reader.

As you edit, think of the intended audience and consider whether the language used will be readily understood. Consider the amount of time they’re likely to want to spend – a blog post, for example, is more likely to be skim-read than a novel – so that you can better help the writer satisfy their reader.

6. Read Aloud

When you read to yourself, it’s easy for your eyes to skip along a line of text and take in the sense of the piece without seeing what’s actually there.

To help you to focus on each word and piece of punctuation, read the text out loud. If you don’t like the sound of your own voice, or it’s a lengthy piece and your throat is getting sore, make use of your device’s Read Aloud tool. You’ll be amazed how much more you can catch just by following this simple tip!

7. Use (But Don’t Overuse) Technology

The Read Aloud tool is just one of several ways in which technology can help you catch errors and inconsistencies. While software is no replacement for human input, it can help you accomplish some tedious tasks, allowing you to focus your attention where judgment is needed.

You could make use of formatting tools, macros, keyboard shortcuts, or specialist software like PerfectiIt to streamline some editing tasks.

8. Comment With Compassion

Remember that your comments are for an author who has put time and effort into their writing. Remember, too, that mistakes happen for all sorts of reasons – and that we all make them. It can be hard to ask for feedback on your work, and even harder to read it. You can make it easier by ensuring that your comments are polite and constructive.

Adopting a friendly but professional tone can go a long way toward building trust with your client. And it never hurts to include a comment about something you think they’ve done well – a simple, “I like how you explained this” can provide the necessary encouragement to a writer faced with pages of revisions.

9. Continue to Learn

Continuing professional development (CPD) is important in any career for keeping on top of any changes and discovering ways you can improve your hard and soft skills.

CPD can take a number of forms, such as reading (including blog posts – see? We said you were well on the way to one of them), watching online videos, listening to podcasts, attending presentations, or taking a course.

Becoming a Better Editor

Becoming a better editor is something you can do at any stage of your career. If you’re still at the stage of wondering whether such a career is for you – or if you want to brush up on your existing skills – why not give our Becoming an Editor course a go? You can even try out two lessons for free!