"To write is human, to edit is divine." -Stephen King

When I was 12, I was assigned a history project to write the diary entry of a Georgian gentleman in the style of Samuel Pepys. But what to call my protagonist? I consulted my Dad who came up with the name ‘Wyndham Fartingale’. He was extremely proud of this, found it hilarious. My history teacher didn't find it funny at all.?I was severely reprimanded and sent away to correct my puerile humour.?

I pondered long and hard on how to check my buffoonery (still pondering) but how could I put things right? Eventually, I painstakingly went through and inserted an ‘h’ into the surname, effectively renaming my diarist, Wyndham Farthingale. I didn’t think I’d get away with it but to my astonishment I was let off with a caution. What a difference an ‘h’ makes! Editing had saved the day.?

It's very difficult to edit your own words. Whether that’s your Opus One or getting the right tone in an email to colleagues moaning about out-of-date milk in the fridge. There’s the tendency to throw a lot of words down and go from there when you're facing an empty page and a deadline. But culling words you’ve dredged from yourself, lived with for a while and grown fond of is hard. You can't gain the necessary distance to edit yourself neutrally and with perspective.?That’s where a good editor comes in (shout-out to my esteemed DrumRoll colleagues, Max Curtis, Sam Hailey and Melissa Edwards).

A good editor:

?? Sees things you've missed.

?? Uses fewer, better words deftly (and goes easy on the Oxford comma).

?? Proofreads for typos, consistency and grammatical errors with hawk eyes through a magnifying glass.

?? Gives you an outside view and another perspective.?

?? Rouses the passive voice.

?? Is sensitive to your style, tone and personality - adding not taking away from the original.

?? Is a fresh pair of eyes - spotting mistakes you’ve become unwittingly blind to.

?? Strips out waffle.

?? Confirms if what you’ve written is good enough, accurate, appropriate and wise.

?? Would seriously question the name ‘Fartingale’.

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Words from Helen Taylor, one of our Employee Engagement Consultants?