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Article:
Proofreading for Profits by: Roger C. Parker How to avoid mistakes that undermine your credibility You're probably already familiar with the spell checker built into your software. Some work automatically as you type, others only run when you activate them. Spell checking is just the start of your proofreading tasks. Don't let simple grammatical errors, or text omissions, sabotage your message. Here are some things to check for that go beyond the capabilities of your software program's spell checker. But, spell checkers are not infallible! Know what yours checks'”and what it doesn't check. Does it check text imported from other programs? Does it flag words containing numbers? Spell check limitations Monitor your spell checker's recommendations. Make sure each suggested replacement is a correctly spelled version of the original word, and not an inappropriate substitution. Double-check the spelling of proper nouns and industry-specific terms. Use care adding them to your custom spell check dictionary, or they will be misspelled forever! Grammatical errors Watch for homonyms'”correctly spelled, but misused words'”such as to, two, and too, or affect and effect. Most spell checkers are not context sensitive. Watch for singular nouns paired with plural verbs, and vice versa. Make sure you have used correct punctuation, like Em dashes ('”) to indicate duration, instead of two hyphens (- -). Check all dates, times, prices Have someone else verify dates, times, and prices. It's both costly and embarrassing to send out information that you have to immediately correct. Pay particular attention to numbers. Transposed numbers, i.e., '1
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