Business Report Guides

Appendix A

Guides for Effective, Efficient Editing

The following techniques can help you find errors in content, format, grammar, mechanics, and usage.¹

• Let your near-final draft rest for at least a few hours after writing. Do tasks unrelated to your report draft. When you return to the draft, you can edit from a fresh viewpoint.
• Check for content lapses first. When in doubt about facts, search the Internet if doing so makes sense. Use two or three reputable websites to cross-reference information, avoiding overreliance on Wikipedia. In reports that will be posted and read online, check that all your links work and that e-mail addresses are accurate.
• Look for the kinds of errors you are most apt to make. If, for example, you often misuse apostrophes, ...