Trouble with proofreading? Try this tip...
Real estate writer, Marte Cliff, offers some great advice below concerning proofreading.
I'd like to offer another tip as well:
Type everything in Microsoft Word first, and (before transfering to another app) use Word's "read aloud to me" feature. I love this feature because it reads exactly what you have written on the page - not what you "meant" to write. Moreover, sometimes what you actually write, sounds pretty nonsensical when it's read back to you by an un-biased third party.
As you may or may not know, I offer a service that provides a weekly blog post for agents
who need to keep the blog on their website "alive" but don't have (or take) the time to consistently write something themselves.
Earlier today I wrote this Sunday's post, and I read and re-read it before clicking on "save."
The next step for me is always to test the message.
I did that, and when the message appeared in my in-box, I read it again.
I found not one or two, but three typos that had escaped me just minutes earlier.
These were errors that spell check wouldn't find - like writing "a" when I meant to write "as."
The same thing happens when I write an Active Rain post in Word, then paste it over here. More often than not, I'll find a typo that I missed before. Sometimes I don't find them until I've hit "publish," so always re-read then.
I have no idea why this works, but for me, it does.
Moving the text from one format to another changes something - and I (usually) spot my errors.
I won't say I always find all of them, because now and then something slips through - as anyone who has kindly written to alert me to errors knows.
The best way to catch errors is to have someone else proofread your work, but if you don't have someone handy to do so, try moving it to a different format.
I also have a question...
Is it just me, or is it easier to make typos when the font is tiny?
It seems like it shouldn't matter, but if I have to type in a ten-point font (as in some mailing programs) I make far more errors.
And one more question: Why do mailing programs - and Active Rain - make the default font so small? Are they trying to save space? Why?
marte@copybymarte.com
www.copybymarte.comPriest River, Idaho
208-448-1479
Call on Copy by Marte for:
Custom Web Copy....Agent Bios....E-mail Campaigns
Community Pages....Postcards....Custom Prospecting Letters
Articles....Blog Posts....Print AdsPLUS
Pre-written real estate letters that save you time and money -
and keep you in touch with your prospects.
Comments(2)