Great questions, G! Grammar is a vital aspect of a writer's craft and is something that is worthy of study! There are quite a few good and reliable grammar checkers today, some built-in, some purchasable. One does need to be aware of changing the writer's voice with some of these. I tend to prefer to let my writing sit a bit before I return to it for editing. That's not possible with Idol, so I do return to my Idol pieces and edit later. Editing IS a major part of the process for me and is never really done.
I feel like your wife a d I have that in common. I can read something and see the grammatical errors. I always attribute it to the fact that when I was younger, I used to read a lot...so now when I read other stuff, I'm mentally editing it.
My editing process is reading and fixing so that it sounds right and 9 times out of 10, my corrections are correct. Thats probably a horrible way to edit, but its the only way I know how lol
When I've had my stuff beta read, I never had grammar errors...but it was more of clarification of a point, or word usage.
I usually let my writing sit for a little while before I go back to it. Sometimes, reading it out loud will help let you know where your sentence weak spots are - if it comes across sounding odd or strained to you, as the author, then other readers will probably have the same response. This is especially true (in my opinion) when writing dialogue - it has to sound natural.
I’m a better proofreader and line-editor than overall copy editor. My main struggle is with plotting; it’s why I stick to short pieces and will likely never be a novelist.
I constantly revise while writing, but I always let mine sit overnight to make sure I'm at peace with it, and usually tweak it the next day. I also employ (enslave? they are not paid) my partner and/or the occasional child as a beta reader, if I'm feeling really conflicted. I used to do editing for others, and have done my fair share of it as part of my day job to simply meet publication requirements, so I feel like I mostly have a good eye for it, and I check various grammar sites, but sometimes if my brain is tired, I just miss entire words.
When I first started writing, I was a member of a writing/critique group that was excellent. I still have problems with showing vs telling and a few other things, but I gained a lot of confidence in myself through writing with them. The group disbanded shortly after I left it, and I haven't found anything else similar
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My editing process is reading and fixing so that it sounds right and 9 times out of 10, my corrections are correct. Thats probably a horrible way to edit, but its the only way I know how lol
When I've had my stuff beta read, I never had grammar errors...but it was more of clarification of a point, or word usage.
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I’m a better proofreader and line-editor than overall copy editor. My main struggle is with plotting; it’s why I stick to short pieces and will likely never be a novelist.
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