Hello, friend Summarized! this time we will discuss about the Editor. What’s editing? Why do we need to edit? How to make good and correct edits? Without further ado, let’s begin our exploration of editing and everything we need to know. Happy reading!
Editing, What Is It and How Is It Done?
Definition of Editing
According to the Big Indonesian Dictionary (KBBI), editing has four meanings, namely:
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- Prepare manuscripts ready for print or ready for publication by paying attention to the systematic aspects of presentation, content, and language concerning diction, spelling, and sentence structure.
- Plan and direct publication (newspapers, magazines) or arrange or assemble (films, tapes) by cutting and reassembling.
- Marry (girl).
- Attach (something) to the end of (spear, arrow).
In the context of writing, we will focus on the first and second meanings. Editing is the activity of preparing a ready-to-print or ready-to-publish manuscript, text or essay with due regard to presentation systematics, content and language and aims to improve the writing or manuscript to avoid errors in spelling, diction or sentence structure. Editing can also mean planning and directing publication (newspapers, magazines) or compiling or assembling (films, tapes) by cutting and reassembling.
The Importance of Editing
Editing is very important to do because it can provide the following benefits:
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- Improve the quality of writing or manuscripts to be published.
- Helping writers to communicate ideas or messages more clearly and effectively to readers.
- Build the author’s credibility as a source of accurate and professional information.
- Prevent misunderstandings or confusion that may arise due to errors in spelling, diction, or sentence structure.
- Meet the writing standards that apply in certain fields.
How to Edit
Editing can be done in the following steps:
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- Read the manuscript in its entirety to understand its purpose, content and writing style.
- Check spelling, punctuation, word choice, sentence effectiveness, paragraph cohesiveness, and discourse roundness.
- Comparing manuscripts with relevant reference sources to ensure the correctness of facts, data, quotations, bibliography, etc.
- Removing parts that are unnecessary or not in accordance with the purpose of writing.
- Adding parts that are lacking or needed to complete the contents of the writing.
- Rearranging the order of parts that are illogical or incoherent.
- Provide suggestions or input to authors to improve the quality of writing or manuscripts.
Editing Example
Here is an example of the script before and after editing:
Before Editing
The environment I mean is everything that affects the growth of humans or animals in general and the area where we live in particular.
After Editing
The environment is everything around humans or animals that can affect their growth and development, either directly or indirectly.
Conclusion
In this article, we have discussed editing, which is an important activity in preparing a manuscript or text before publication. Editing can improve the quality of writing, aid in clearer communication, build author credibility, prevent errors, and meet writing standards. In editing, steps such as checking spelling, punctuation, comparing with reference sources, deleting or adding sections, and providing input to the author can be carried out. Hopefully this explanation is useful for you. Summarized. If you have questions or comments, please write in the comments column. Thank you for your attention!
