Posts Tagged ‘professional editor’

So, you’ve finished your novel or your dissertation, and you want to give it that final read-through and polish…and what better way to do so than by using the spell-check function of your word processing program?

But wait, before we discuss ways to get the most out of your spell-checker, let’s remember that there are various word processing programs, all with their own particular spell-checkers. For simplicity’s sake—and because it’s the most commonly used—we’re focusing on MS Word here.

First, you have the option of turning spell-check on so that it reviews your spelling as you type. I highly recommend this, as it will save you loads of time later. It’s easy enough to do: Go to the MS Office button in the upper left-hand corner of your document and click on it. Then go to “Word Options” and click on it. To the left, there should be a list of various options, including “Proofing”. Click on that and you can customize how Word checks your document for potential errors. I’d recommend auto-correct for spelling errors—this would catch the most common typos, like “T-e-h” for “the.” Also, check that you want contextual spelling monitored and repeated words flagged. You can also have grammar checked and grammar-spelling verification. These are all good options to enable.
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