Proofreading: No Less than Perfect
Professional writing and self publishing demands professional
proofreading. Submitting an article for publication that is less
than perfect is unacceptable. Everyone commits errors now and
again. We're all no more or no less than human. Errors and typos
are unacceptable. Proofreading is your last chance to correct
them.
A would-be author recently noted that at least one mistake in an
article was necessary to keep it human. Not in my book. Any
mistake that distracts a reader, gives him pause or causes him
to lose his train of thought is counterproductive. Regaining
that train of thought is difficult. A prime responsibility of a
writer is to make reading easy for the reader. If a writer wants
the reader to pause, use the tools at his command: a comma
serves to give pause, a period for a full stop or perhaps an
ellipsis ... (to allow the reader to pause and think for a
moment). But to cause the reader to stumble and lose his trend
of thought altogether, especially in these fast times of the
internet (where somewhere else is just a click away) cannot be
the purpose of any writer.
Typos are annoying. Internet readers are unforgiving. One click
and they're gone. A single typo can lose a reader. Without
readers, what is the purpose of writing? Have respect for your
audience. Treat them with care. That is what keeps it human.
Publishing error free text keeps it professional.
When I come across the first typo or error, I'll give anyone
room to make a mistake. A second gaffe and I will stop to wonder
why the author did not take the time to get it right. Another
mistake and I wonder why the writer has so little respect for
his own work that he would want to expose himself to the world
with such a shabby appearance. Would he show up for an award
wearing his pajamas or naked? Another slip-up and the author
loses me altogether. Unless he has something so brilliant or
profound to say that I dare not miss it, I am out of there.
In the end, text must be no less than perfect. If you don't
respect your audience and your work, how can you respect
yourself? And without the writer's self respect, how can the
readers, have any respect for what the writer has to say?
In this fast paced Age of Information, there is another, less
personal, more logical reason to proofread carefully; it is the
last step in Quality Control.
Whichever approach you take, there is no room for sloppiness in
e-publishing. Relieved of the pressure of so many layers of
editors and proofreaders in the world of hard copy publishing,
writers must proofread their own work even though that may be
the most difficult work of all to proofread. It can be no less
than perfect.