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  1. Such great advice! I have found each of these suggestions to make a big difference (the breaks especially)! The one you reminded me of that I skip, is reading aloud. I really want to commit to that. Thanks!

  2. Hi Laura,
    Glad you confirmed these are helpful! The read aloud one is the one I skip, too, and if I do, I regret it!

  3. “Those of us who get stuck in the “this is not good enough” or “this is not perfect” thought category can easily be derailed by the taunts of the enemy.”

    Yes, this is absolutely true. Reading aloud has sent me to Ye Olde’ Drawing Board more than once because the voice I heard did not sound familiar.

    I feel disheartened when reading a blog wrought with errors; particularly when the topic of the piece is the art of successful blogging! Thank you for these tips for preventing that dismal feeling of, “I can’t believe I missed that.”

    1. Believe me, I have fought the “this is not good enough” thought for a long time. But I can say after battling for years using God’s Word as my defense, I’ve gotten to the other side…usually.
      Thanks for your comments.

  4. Jennifer Muller says:

    My friend, whose book I edited, had four words for me when I asked her to read a blog post I was working on: “The Spirit isn’t there.”

    I had read so much about editing while working on her book that when it came to my own writing, I went over and over it until I killed it. Don’t do that.

    1. mel chitwood says:

      Jennifer,
      Your comment is such a good reminder not to over-edit! We want to see the spirit, don’t we? What do you think causes us to over-edit? Being hard on ourselves? Perfectionism?

      1. Jennifer Muller says:

        Good question, Mel. For myself, I’d say part of it is a lack of knowledge and confidence. I would say I know enough to know there’s a lot I *don’t* know.

        So I second guess myself. Editing my friend’s book, I googled endlessly. Sometimes I needed to double check the grammar. Other times I knew something wasn’t right, but I didn’t know why or how to fix it. So I did my homework.

        I was reading a blog this morning where the author said don’t treat the grammar rules as the be-all and end-all. For instance, you know they say to avoid adverbs. He said, in effect, use the best word that fits. Don’t kill your writing just to fit the rule. Don’t over-use them, but don’t feel like you need to completely avoid them.

        1. I like this – use the best word that fits. And I sure know that feeling of looking up rules! Editing definitely gets easier the more you do it, just like anything else.

          1. Jennifer Muller says:

            That’s encouraging!

          2. Jennifer Muller says:

            Melanie in reading one of your older posts, I realized I already shared my over-editing blunder. Sorry for the repetition!

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