Spot Aynthing Wrong?

Proof Reading Tips by Fingertips Typing Services

There’s no foolproof formula for perfect proofreading every time. But these six tips should help you spot errors before anybody else does.

What do proofreaders do?

A proofreader is a person who spots the details and checks for any errors (typos, spellings, punctuation) before the document goes to print or online.

What skills do you need to be a proofreader?

1. Concentration – Get rid of distractions and potential interruptions. Switch off your phone, turn off the television or radio and stay away from the email.
2. Put It On Paper – You read differently on screen and on paper, so print out a copy.
3. Read Aloud – If you read aloud, your ear might catch grammatical errors that your eye may have missed.
4. Watch Out for Homonyms – These are words that share the same spelling or pronunciation, but have different meanings. For example; mixing up accept with except or complement with compliment.
5. Watch Out for Apostrophes and Contractions – People often mix their and they’re, its and it’s, your and you’re and so on. Also, remember that the apostrophe is never used to form plurals.
6. Read It Backwards – People often become word blind, especially if you have been working on something for a while as the brain automatically “corrects” wrong words inside sentences. In order to break this pattern you can read the text backwards, word by word.

Here at Fingertips Typing we offer a proofreading service, for more information please email us at info@fingertipstyping.co.uk

 

Top 5 Tips on Content Writing

I wanted to share with you some of my tips and secrets to writing good high quality content, it is not an art, it is a skill that you need to master and work through daily.

I am lucky as it is my day job to write interesting and compelling articles, but if you are new to blogging, content or article writing it can be a little daunting as to where to start.  It is important to remember that writing quality content takes dedicated effort.

Here are my top five tips to being successful:

1. Research – Always be on the hunt for ideas and information, as ideas pop into your head write them down or save an audio file of your thoughts so that when you get back to your desk to get writing you can clearly remember what you were thinking of at the time. Choose your research source carefully, when looking for referencing material and accurate information. THINK: Is your source reputable, a respected resource will give your article more weight than several unknown resources.

2. Use your voice – Don’t try to be someone else, let your personality shine through, after all you are unique, creating your own style of writing will ensure that your work stands out from the crowd.

3. Organise Your Information – Create an outline of how you want the article and the information you are trying to get across flows, so that it is easy to read and understand. Planning your content and what you are trying to achieve is extremely important, what is your reason for creating the content, if you can’t think of a good reason then park it and come back to it later.

4. Think of a quality title – Your title is just, if not more important than the content of your article or blog, as it is the first thing your readers will see. If you cannot connect with them straight away, then you content will remain unread.

According to Copyblogger[1] 80% of people will read your headlines, but only 20% of those people will read the rest of your content!

Examples of titles that perform well:

• Top Ten Lists
• How To
• Interviews
• Secrets of

5. Edit – You would never submit the first draft of a dissertation or coursework, so why would you do the same with an article or blog. Proof read and edit in several rounds of review to make sure your content is written well.

Final Thoughts

Writing interesting and persuasive content isn’t easy, but by following the steps above you will make your life easier.  It is important to remember that you can’t be everything to everyone, so make sure you know who you are and what you want to do.

Keep your message clear and concise so that it is easy for your readers to understand.

Good Luck!

Author: Cerri Killworth, Fingertips Typing Services

[1] Source: http://www.copyblogger.com/magnetic-headlines/

Our Top Proof Reading Tips

Getting your copy mistake free essential for good communication, regardless of what you are writing, be it an article, a white paper, website content or client proposal.

Many people just do a spell check or grammar check and leave it at that but it is far from fool proof.

Here at Fingertips Typing Services we offer proof reading as a service, our team do this work day in, day out. So, we have put together our top tips on improving your proof reading ability:

1. Tidy desk, Tidy mind – A lot can be said for having a clean and tidy desk space, mainly the fact that the less you have going on around you, the less likely you are to be distracted, so clean up your act!
2. Concentrate – Sometimes this is easier said than done, but proof reading take s a lot of concentration so proof read when you are fresh. Get away from distractions and potential interruptions. If this means locking yourself away in a room, then so be it. Switch off your mobile phone, turn off the television or radio and most importantly stay away from your email and social media, which is one of the biggest time wasting activities out there!
3. Schedule time – Proofreading is a specialist task, not something that can just be slotted into your day. Give it the time it needs to and deserve.
4. Print out a hard-copy – I am all for saving the planet, but pwe do read differently on screen and on paper. Try reading what you have written aloud as your ear might notice errors that your eye may have missed.
5. Beware of the their, there, they’re – Otherwise known as Homonyms which are words that share the same spelling or pronunciation, but have different meanings.
6. Double check your apostrophes – This is one of the biggest areas people fall down on, where should that little apostrophe go in a word. Misplacing an apostrophe can really hurt the credibility of your text. Never use an apostrophe to form a plural.
7. Punctuation – This is where reading aloud comes in handy, it makes you focus on capitalised words, where commas and natural breaks in the text should be allowing your reader to pause and breath.
8. Read it backwards – It may sound crazy, but looking at a word backwards will help you spot whether you have made a mistake, as your mind will automatically correct a mistake you have made.
9. Get someone else to proofread It – Another person will have no preconceptions, so will spot things that you may have missed. They will also be in a good position to evaluate whether what you have written makes sense or not.
10. Double check — once for technical accuracy, once for sense.