The Ugly Font (And Other Proofreading Tips)

Yikes, my computer screen is filled with an ugly font. Yet, this ugly font seems to make grammar or punctuation errors on the monitor jump out. Apparently, ugly fonts help proofreading because they make mistakes show up more clearly.

Perhaps because I'm not used to viewing that font, perhaps because the font emphasizes sentence structure rather than the flow of text, like standard fonts. I don't quite get the WHY, all I know is that ugly font approach works.

Book #1 is in the editing phase, and I'm altering sentence beginnings, grammar, and punctuation. To do this, it helps to focus on the structure of the sentences, thus the UGLY FONT.

Also, the ugly font is also sized to a large font size, so that the screen resembles a kindle page. So, I now have a large ugly font staring me in the face.

Another proofreading tip is to use a Text-to-Speech software to read the text back to you while you read along onscreen. So you have a better chance of finding mistakes if you both see and hear them. Dragon NaturallySpeaking has an accurate "Read That" feature. So, the combination of the Ugly Font and Listening while reading on the screen, does the trick.

Finally, proofreading by Point of View (POV) helps maintain that particular POV Character's voice. If you're writing in multiple POVs, then edit all the scenes and/or chapters for one character at a time. That way the style of the character's voice is maintained throughout that character's chapters.

Off to proof Book #1 in Ugly Font!

Not All Aspects of Revision Are One and the Same

The many aspects of revision, such as Redeveloping, Restructuring, Rewriting, Putting In, Taking Out, Editing, Copy Editing, Proofing, and Polishing, are not one and the same. Starting at an overall story developmental level, moving to structuring, the aspects of revision drill down until the writing blends into a seamless story flow.

Redevelopment

Developmentally, a story must make sense. Is the plot plausible? Would a particular character really DO that? SAY that? Does how the character change from the beginning to the end of the story make sense? Too many POV characters? Too few?

Redevelopment takes into account the entire story, such as characterization, pacing, plot arc, etc. (Redevelopment can sometimes lead to a major overhaul of the story, resulting in a reworking of the entire manuscript.)

Restructuring

Restructuring a manuscript may involve adding or deleting chapters and scenes. Reordering existing scenes.

This process may also involve changing POV characters, increasing conflict, and emphasizing story plot points.

Rewriting

When a manuscript doesn't work, sometimes it's best to set it aside and start over. A rewrite is taking what didn't work into account and starting all over again.

A rewrite may also include culling pieces of the existing story to blend into the newer version.

Putting In

The process of Putting In involves reviewing the first draft and adding and fleshing out your story and words. Some authors write skeleton drafts and end up putting in quite a bit of material to fill in the story with more descriptions and additional details.

Taking Out

Other authors write expansive drafts, which include lots of description, backstory, and plot tangents, then once finished, go back through and take out the material not absolutely necessary to the story. This process involves a lot of trimming and streamlining.

Editing

During editing, verbs are ramped and strengthened, paragraphs are lengthened and shortened, scenes are tightened by fleshing out or streamlining paragraph, sentence, and word length. Repetitive words and phrases are eliminated and addressed. A thesaurus and dictionary come in to play. Reading aloud or listening to the manuscript read by a text to speech software comes in handy during this phase. This is the stage where the flow of the writing is addressed.

Copy Editing

Examples of copy editing include correcting punctuation and altering sentence structure to vary sentence beginnings. 

Proofing

Final proofing involves catching any skipped words or punctuation during the copy editing phase.

Polishing

Involves a final read through, back to front, of the manuscript, to catch any awkward phrasing or hitherto before unseen dropped words.

Alexa's Current Revision Status

Currently, Book #2 in in the Editing stage, while Book #1 is entering the Copy Edit phase.