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Why should I have my paper edited?
There are plenty of reasons to have your paper edited, but they all boil down to this: Whether you're learning English as a second language or you're a seasoned and skilled writer, nothing beats a second pair of eyes for making sure your document is clear, concise, and free of errors and ambiguity.
Sometimes knowing what you want to say to your audience can work against you. Usually, your audience won't be as familiar with the subject matter as you are, and it may not always be obvious that some additional context is necessary. Maybe you're writing about the negative consequences of Hamlet's pretend madness. You're familiar with the play -- but did you remember to mention why Hamlet is clucking like a chicken in the first place? Your editor's fresh perspective will help you find those details that are obvious to
you but may need to be spelled out for your audience.
It's also difficult to spot instances where your meaning could be taken a different way. Perhaps your neighbor keeps forgetting to return your bird-watching equipment. Saying, "I saw my neighbor in the window with my binoculars" should come off as a harmless, straightforward statement. But wait... who had the binoculars? Was the neighbor holding them, or were you being a creepy peeping Tom? Ambiguity in your paper can lead to some wild misunderstandings and will undermine your writing.
And, of course,
making sure your document is free of any grammatical, spelling, or punctuation errors is always important. Not only can an error-ridden document come off as unprofessional, but it can often cause your meaning to become unclear. Your editor will make sure every comma has its place, every "their" is there, and every sentence has a complete and coherent meaning.
Finally,
if you're using a style guide (think MLA, APA, or Chicago)
, you
co
uld go over every word of your references page to make sure you've italicized the volume number but not the issue number of the periodicals you've cited. Or
you
could l
eave the final quality check to your editor who, let's be honest, actually likes that sort of thing. Their personality quirk is your gain, so why not use it?
So often the difference between a mediocre paper and a great one is having a professional editor iron out the errors and inconsistencies.
Our editors are a great resource for lightening your workload with lightning speed.