Do You Read What You Write?

1. 78

   jainismusposted 13 years ago

   Do you read your articles after they got published on hubs, blogs etc. or in print media?

   replyreport
   1. 62

      Richard Craigposted 13 years agoin reply to this

      Not really.  Sometimes I look back at them to help me with new ideas but that's about it.

      replyreport
   2. 59

      MelissaBarrettposted 13 years agoin reply to this

      I read my hubs for correctness, most of my other online writing goes through an editor... I may go check out the formatting, but I assume that the editor catches any typos.
      
      As for my print stuff, I used to frame it. *grins* Now I read it and file away the tear sheets.

      replyreport
   3. 59

      Dave Mathewsposted 13 years agoin reply to this

      That's a pretty stupid question. How can anyone in their right mind write something without reading it.

      replyreport
      1. 82

         Gordon Hamiltonposted 13 years agoin reply to this

         For those who have actually bothered to read the poster's question in full, this is a totally stupid comment...

         replyreport
   4. 72

      cdub77posted 13 years agoin reply to this

      Are you referring to the process of revision or something else?

      replyreport
   5. 60

      Mussyposted 13 years agoin reply to this

      it is very necessary to revise whatever we write because sometimes we make very silly mistakes.

      replyreport
   6. 71

      Kris Heeterposted 13 years agoin reply to this

      Yes, I will go back a week or so after I wrote something and will sometimes edit or add.  It often inspires me to write on a related topic. 
      
      I pulled some stuff I wrote 2 years ago for some clients and I was amazed at how many articles I had written that I had forgotten about!

      replyreport
2. 76

   Uninvited Writerposted 13 years ago

   I often read what I write after the fact. You'd be surprised how many things you missed show up weeks later.

   replyreport
   1. 70

      ithabiseposted 13 years agoin reply to this

      That's right. The best writing happens in revision. Sometimes it's not just what is missed but what can be done better or added. I know many people just don't like revision, but it is what turns ho-hum into bestselling material.

      replyreport
3. 97

   Cardisaposted 13 years ago

   I read them for two reasons (1) to see if there are any errors and (2) to see if they sound good, if there are any changes I could make to make them read better.

   replyreport
   1. 59

      Hollie Thomasposted 13 years agoin reply to this

      I've noticed that if I read after I've spent loads of time writing them, I miss the obvious typos and errors. if I read them the next day, I spot the mistakes. Tired eyes, me thinks.

      replyreport
      1. 97

         Cardisaposted 13 years agoin reply to this

         The same thing happens to me. Sometimes I see the mistakes while replying to a comment. Or on a whim I read weeks later and feel so embarrassed about the typos...lol

         replyreport
         1. 59

            Hollie Thomasposted 13 years agoin reply to this

            Me too. They always say read your own work out loud and you'll notice the errors, not if you're tired you wont. Sometimes not even tired, you've been looking at your own work for so long, you miss the obvious. (well, I do anyway)

            replyreport
            1. 59

               Hollie Thomasposted 13 years agoin reply to this

               You see, apparently I've said that twice and didn't even know.

               replyreport
         2. 59

            Hollie Thomasposted 13 years agoin reply to this

            Me too. They always say read your own work out loud and you'll notice the errors, not if you're tired you wont. Sometimes not even tired, you've been looking at your own work for so long, you miss the obvious. (well, I do anyway)

            replyreport
4. 86

   Pcunixposted 13 years ago

   Sure. 
   
   Here's the really funny thing though:  I've been putting stuff on the Internet since 1996, and of course I've forgotten about some of it and stuff has been copied..
   
   A couple of times I have found something while browsing and while reading it I'll think "I really like the way this guy writes!"
   
   A few minutes I realize that I should, because I wrote it :-)

   replyreport
   1. 59

      Hollie Thomasposted 13 years agoin reply to this

      Have you been copied lots? Doesn't that make you feel a bit angry?

      replyreport
      1. 86

         Pcunixposted 13 years agoin reply to this

         Sometimes..  It depends. If it is something that is a good money maker for me, I care, but even then I only get angry if they give me a hard time. An awful lot of copying is just ignorance - they honestly don't know it is wrong.
         
         If they steal stuff that has never done anything for me, it's hard to work up much emotion.
         
         This whole thing is something I don't pay enough attention to in general.  I wish they'd add it to Analytics or GWT, because I usually only find stuff by accident.

         replyreport
         1. 59

            Hollie Thomasposted 13 years agoin reply to this

            So if you believe they don't copy intentionally, do you just mean the odd phrase? I always think of plagerism as word for word.

            replyreport
            1. 86

               Pcunixposted 13 years agoin reply to this

               No, I mean they often have no idea that they did anything wrong.  I have had people insist that only print articles and books can be copyrighted, for example.  When I directed them to pages that explained reality, they apologised and removed the copy.
               
               A lot of people are just very ignorant. 
               
               Some people in other countries think that they can't be punished (and sometimes it is more difficult).  I have had one person who was surprised that his ISP demanded a takedown after I sent a DMCA notice.  Real thieves can also be ignorant :-)

               replyreport
               1. 59

                  Hollie Thomasposted 13 years agoin reply to this

                  Ok, I get it. They haven't realised that other media can also be subject to plagerism?

                  replyreport
5. 60

   LindaSmith1posted 13 years ago

   Have somebody read it back to you.  But, with technology today, record yourself reading it, then play it back to yourself as you read along.

   replyreport
   1. 97

      Cardisaposted 13 years agoin reply to this

      It's not the same Linda, you wont see the typos that way.

      replyreport
      1. 92

         Jean Bakulaposted 13 years agoin reply to this

         I always read for typos, but then the next day I do it again, and always find at least one more. Maybe because I write late into the night and am not fully alert! I also go back to my old hubs every now and then. The rules about Amazon capsules, links, and RSS feeds have all changed since I have been here. Plus many of my first hubs were really awful, and I rewrote a few of them!

         replyreport
         1. 97

            Cardisaposted 13 years agoin reply to this

            I find typos months later.

            replyreport
            1. 86

               Pcunixposted 13 years agoin reply to this

               I do also.
               
               I read, I re-read, but sometimes things slip through.  Shrug..

               replyreport
6. 70

   Tusitala Tomposted 13 years ago

   Regarding your question as to whether I read through stuff I've previously written.  For the most part I do.  Not always.  However, what I have found, is if you haven't read it for a long time - I'm talking years here - you often get quite a bit out of it.  For these writings represent how you felt earlier in your life.
   
   On my bookshelf I have around a dozen books, all written by me.  Some of them go back decades.   I started to read them, and kept on doing so, a few pages or a chapter or two, and found I was enjoying them despite knowing how the story went or what the advice to the reader was (depending on the type of book)
   
   My recommendation.  Keep everything you write. We can do this easily now.  You never know, what you regarded as trivial or insignificant could turn out to be something that could make a reall big, and positive difference in your life somewhere down the track.

   replyreport
   1. 100

      mary615posted 13 years agoin reply to this

      I keep a notebook that has printed copies of everything I write.  Hey, when I die, my kids may make a fortune selling my stuff!

      replyreport
7. 0

   Arlene V. Pomaposted 13 years ago

   I am always looking for errors because I'm good at making them.  Unless I have a copywriter or an editor, I won't relax.  Always check your work before and after it's published.  Your eyes and brains can always pay tricks on you.  Trust me.

   replyreport
   1. 0

      Arlene V. Pomaposted 13 years agoin reply to this

      As a writer, it's careless not to read what you're putting out there.

      replyreport
   2. 65

      Lisa HWposted 13 years agoin reply to this

      The "playing tricks on you"  thing is so true.  I read and read again, run the spelling thing a couple of times, and some things still slip through.  What I don't do, though, is then routinely keep going back to re-read and re-read.  Once I've posted the thing, that's it unless I have some reason to go back and check it again.  Things do get through, and I'll admit I'm not the "OCD-like-perfectionist" on here that I am when I do writing under other circumstances.   I don't tolerate my own grammar/typing "issues" if/when I find them, but neither do I freeze all activity unless/until I'm 100% sure there's not a single flaw anywhere in anything.    (which is why I got one e.mail from someone who said something like, "Do you even edit?"      )

      replyreport
      1. 97

         Cardisaposted 13 years agoin reply to this

         There are some people on HP who are so darn mean. That email could have easily been "I noticed you have xxx instead of ccc, I just thought I would point it out".
         
         I can see the person looking down their noses and saying "do you even edit?"

         replyreport
         1. 65

            Lisa HWposted 13 years agoin reply to this

            They ARE mean!        (I didn't even add the rest of what this clown wrote.  )   She was right, though.  The sentences were awkward.     (But, as you say, a person doesn't have to be a you-know-what about a couple of typos and a couple of awkward sentences.     )

            replyreport
      2. 75

         wildernessposted 13 years agoin reply to this

         I've made it habit to proofread, publish and then come back in a day or two to proofread again.
         
         Near the end of the month I'll also go back and proofread everything from the month before.  That seems to give me time to "forget" and thus actually read the thing instead of skim over the errors.  I usually find one or two.

         replyreport
8. 60

   paradigmsearchposted 13 years ago

   "Do You Read What You Write?"
   
   Yes, someone has to. No one else will.

   replyreport
   1. 59

      Hollie Thomasposted 13 years agoin reply to this

      Not true, PDS.

      replyreport
      1. 60

         paradigmsearchposted 13 years agoin reply to this

         

         replyreport
9. 60

   LindaSmith1posted 13 years ago

   LOL paradigmsearch and it is obvious from the state that a lot of the hubs are in, the writers don't read their own work.

   replyreport
10. 86

    melporposted 13 years ago

    I read my hubs from time to time to check for grammatical and spelling errors. If you read some of your published hubs I am pretty sure that you would be surprised how many grammatical errors and spelling errors you will find. Proofreading is a very important activity in writing. I also read my hubs to see how they sound when I am reading them.

    replyreport
11. 60

    LindaSmith1posted 13 years ago

    melpor  I found some errors tonight when reviewing some that I want to redo. My laptop keys are breaking so it is really easy for a letter to show up several times, etc.  Or, when I read them again, later, I  may  decide I want to make a change. But to just write, not check anything is what some do and that is nuts.

    replyreport
    1. 97

       Cardisaposted 13 years agoin reply to this

       I find that my earlier hubs have more errors because I must have been anxious and eager to start publishing. My latest hubs have less typos.

       replyreport
12. 61

    ikechiawazieposted 13 years ago

    i read my hubs after publishing.

    replyreport
13. 60

    howtohandbookposted 13 years ago

    Yes, regularly. It motivates me a lot and I keep on writing with great motivation.

    replyreport
14. 39

    prism3xposted 13 years ago

    yes, I go back and review what I have written and find myself editing.

    replyreport
15. 61

    Night Magicposted 13 years ago

    I always read mine over for spelling and grammar.  I've even went back a week later and found errors.

    replyreport