The task of an editor is to enhance your writing in a variety of ways. Each editing service is different, depending on the service provider or freelancer you are working with, but editing services and the editors that provide them share important common aspects.
This article outlines what these common aspects are and, in the process, clarifies what a professional editor really does to improve your written work.
1. An editor avoids complex verb tenses
In English, the only two verb tenses you ever need to use are the simple past and the simple present. For example:
- They ran (simple past) or they run (simple present)
- I jumped (simple past) or I jump (simple present)
However, writers commonly use complex verb tenses, which obscure the meaning of the text (especially in long sentences) and lead to the inclusion of unnecessary words. For example:
- They may have been running
- I will have jumped
The last two examples, which are variants of the first two examples (with, of course, more complex verb tenses), may well be more accurate – depending on the context – in capturing the precise meaning of the time surrounding the action that took place.
However, they are difficult for readers to process. For this reason, one of the things a professional editor does when they perform an editing and proofreading service involves simplifying your language in, in this way, achieving greater clarity.
2. An editor adds cohesion phrases
Many writers produce difficult-to-understand text. This can be bothersome for readers because it creates friction and, moreover, means they have to spend more time reading, re-reading, and parsing the text.
One way that editors make it easier for readers to parse text, particularly when it is complex (e.g., in academic writing or scientific articles) is by including so-called cohesion phrases (also known as connectives or linking phrases). For example:
- As a result
- Due to this
- Consequently
- However
- Similarly
As the literal meanings of these words and phrases indicate, using them allows the reader to see the links/connections between adjacent sentences (thus the name connectives or linking phrases). Good editors know how and where to put these words and phrases to ensure better readability.
3. An editor uses a varied vocabulary
Even the best writers end up in a rut at some point. They may find that they use the same words, phrases, and expressions repeatedly. If this happens to too great an extent in a document, it can be distracting – and potentially even annoying – for your reader.
Another important issue that high-quality editors focus on, therefore, is to ensure sufficient variety in terms of the vocabulary used in your document. The keyword here is “sufficient,” which is – of course – not to say “excessive.” Excessively varied language can be, in many ways, just as distracting and annoying as excessively static language.
Professional Proofreading Services 