You believe you’ve written strong, clear words. You think you’ve spelled and punctuated it all correctly. You’re pretty sure you’ve said what you meant. You’ve had someone check it.
You’re ready to publish it. Or are you?
Before you go ahead and put your writing out there for the world to see, ask yourself if you are sure about the following things:
- Was the feedback you received constructive and objective? (Or was it from a colleague who was too busy or a family member who loves everything you do?)
- Are you really seeing what you think you wrote? (Or is your closeness to this writing blinding you to tiny errors?)
- Have you conformed to the rules—not just grammar rules, but the style rules of your company?
- Is the meaning in your writing as clear as it can be?
- Have you been objective (and, if not, will this affect your credibility)?
- Does your writing avoid the curse of ambiguity?
Above all, ask yourself this: if you had to deal with a legal matter, a severely blocked toilet or a fifth birthday party for your child’s entire class—would you:
a) do it yourself?
b) hire a professional?
Getting your writing professionally copy edited will take the hassle out of your day and ensure your work is well received and conveys the meaning and image you intended.