Self-edit Your Way to Publication Success

Cynthia Saver, MS, RN

Writer’s Camp Counselor

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Don’t be shy about editing your own work.

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As you finish typing those last few words of your manuscript, it’s tempting to breathe a sigh of relief, call it a day, and plan to submit your work to your target journal the next day. It’s fine to take a few minutes (or even a few hours) to congratulate yourself for finishing your manuscript, but you’re not quite ready to take that final step of submission. First, you need to perform a self-edit of what you have written.

What is Self-editing and Why Should You Do It?

Self-editing is identifying gaps and errors that you might have missed during writing. However, mistakes won’t be missed by the expert eyes of peer reviewers and journal editors. Just as you take care to put your best foot forward during a job interview or another important event, you want to take care to ensure these experts’ first encounter with your work is a positive one.

Like a fine wine, it’s best to let the manuscript “breathe” a little before you start editing. This step allows you to view your work with a fresh perspective and helps you avoid “top-down processing,” which can cause you to overlook errors.¹ For example, read the following out loud:

I love
Paris in the
the springtime.

Now look at the text more closely. Did you say the extra “the”? If not, it’s because your brain recognized the phrase and filled in what you’re familiar with even though it’s not what’s actually there. Top-down processing can also cause you to mentally insert words that aren’t there because you expect to see them. For example, you might mistakenly believe a sentence missing a word is correct because you complete it in your mind.

The point is that it’s easy to overlook errors because you “see” what you expect to see. It’s an object lesson in the need to slow down and carefully review what you’ve written. One way to do that is to use a checklist of questions.

Critical Questions to Guide Your Self-edit

Examine your manuscript at three levels, each one with a narrower focus. Here are some yes/no questions to guide your assessment.

A bird’s eye view: Look at the manuscript from a broad perspective.^2,3

• Does the manuscript meet the intended purpose? After reading the article, refer to the beginning where you explained the purpose to see whether you followed through with what you said you were going to do.
• Is there a take-home message for the reader? What do you want the reader to think, do, or feel after reading the article? The manuscript should answer a reader’s question of “so what?”; in other words, it should convey, “Why is this information important to me?”
• Is the tone appropriate for the readership? An article for American Nurse Journal will be different in tone from Nursing Research. By now you should have read several articles in your target journal to gauge tone, but it’s a good idea to double check.
• Is the organization of the article logical? To assess for organization, check the structure. One resource is the Equator Network, which contains a database of guidelines for writing different types of articles.⁴ For example, Standards for QUality Improvement Reporting Excellence (SQUIRE) provides guidance for articles reporting quality improvement projects. These guidelines often come with a checklist you can use to verify you fulfilled guideline requirements.

You may also want to consider a technique called reverse outlining. Take the topic sentence (or write a one-sentence summary) of each paragraph, then review to determine whether the flow of your manuscript is clear.⁵ This technique is also useful for identifying areas of redundancy.

A closer look: After the broader perspective, dive deeper into your work.^2,3

• Does the opening make the reader want to learn more? Authors often take time to “warm up” their writing, which can lead to excessive introductions. Trimming the first few paragraphs and giving readers a reason to keep reading will make the manuscript more powerful.
• Are citations and references used where appropriate but not overused? You don’t need to cite a reference for generally known information but ensure you’re providing citations for key points. Refer to past articles in the journal to get a sense appropriate referencing. Also, make sure that the reference you are citing supports the key point you are making.
• Is there consistency? For example, check for switching back and forth from first person (I, me, my), second person (you), and third person (nurses, physicians). In addition, terminology and abbreviations should be consistent throughout the manuscript. It is also important to check the tense of verbs throughout.
• Is the text free of bias and respectful towards the subject of your manuscript, especially if you are discussing nursing care or patients? For instance, you want to use phrasing such as “patients with diabetes” instead of “diabetic patients.”
• Are transitions used to move from one point to another and from one paragraph to another? You want to guide the reader from point to point.
• Is active voice used when appropriate? For instance, “The nurse should check vital signs every four hours” instead of “Vital signs should be checked by the nurse every four hours.” Even research journals now encourage some use of active voice, although the methodology section is typically still in the passive voice. You don’t necessarily want every sentence to be active or, conversely, passive; try to have a blend, with prioritization given to active voice.
• Are there excessive words that can be cut? Eliminate needless words that drag down the manuscript. Don’t make sentences unnecessarily complex. If you have to read a sentence twice to understand its meaning, rework it. If you’re having difficulty finding the right words, consider using an artificial intelligence (AI) tool such as Edit GPT. You don’t want to use AI to write your manuscript, but it can be helpful for addressing short pieces of text you’re struggling with.

The Next Step

Have one or two trusted colleagues review your work and provide feedback. Be sure one of your reviewers is a member of your target audience. For example, if you are an oncology nurse writing an article about managing chemotherapy side effects for home care nurses, have a home care nurse review your article. In addition, if you have extensive experience in a field and your article will be read by those with less experience, ask a less experienced nurse to review your work.

The reason for this step is the concept “curse of knowledge,” meaning that it is often difficult for us to remember what it was like when we didn’t know something we now know.⁶ As authors, we need to ensure our work is clear to others who may not have the knowledge we have.

Up close: At this stage, you’re ready to proofread your manuscript.²

• Are titles and subheads spelled correctly?
• Are the levels of heads (Title, Levels 1, 2, 3) formatted and placed correctly?
• Are all names (e.g., organizations, people) spelled correctly?
• Is each table, figure, or other graphic correctly referenced in the text (for example, Table 1 is called out in the text before Table 2)? Are captions and legends correct?
• Are credits or permission for materials obtained elsewhere included where needed?
• Is the content in tables aligned properly?
• Are spelling, grammar, and punctuation correct?
• Is the math correct in all calculations?
• If a source is cited within the text, is the complete reference to the work also provided in the reference list at the end of the article?
• Are references formatted in the correct style?

Completing a final proofread will ensure that simple errors, such as a pie chart not adding up to 100% without any explanation why, are corrected. It’s a good idea to first proof from the start of the manuscript, take a break, and then proof from the end, reading each paragraph. This helps avoid what I call “proofer’s fatigue.”

Conclusion

Once you have self-edited at the three levels described, you’re ready to submit your manuscript per the journal’s guidelines. After submission, take a break and enjoy the satisfaction that you completed your writing project.

References

1. Cherry K. What is top-Down Processing? June 30, 2026. Accessed July 30, 2026. https://www.verywellmind.com/what-is-top-down-processing-2795975
2. Saver C. Writing skills lab. In: Saver C. Anatomy of Writing for Publication for Nurses. 5th ed. Indianapolis, IN: Sigma Theta Tau International; 2024; 89-101.
3. The ultimate self editing checklist: 8 steps for 2025. Natural Write. n.d. Accessed March 4, 2026. https://naturalwrite.com/blog/self-editing-checklist
4. Equator Network. Enhancing the quality and transparency of health research. Accessed July 20, 2026. https://www.equator-network.org/
5. University of Wisconsin-Madison. Creating a reverse outline. The Writing Center. n.d. Accessed March 4, 2026. https://writing.wisc.edu/handbook/reverseoutlines/
6. Jones K. The curse of knowledge: a cognitive bias all teachers should be aware of. Evidence Based Education. November 14, 2023. Accessed March 4, 2026. https://evidencebased.education/resource/the-curse-of-knowledge-a-cognitive-bias-all-teachers-should-be-aware-of/

Author: Cynthia Saver

Reviewed and Edited by: Anjie Raber and Leslie H. Nicoll

Copyright © 2026, Writer’s Camp and Cynthia Saver. CC-BY-ND-4.0

Citation: Saver C. Self-edit your way to publication success. The Writer’s Camp Journal. 2026; 2(3):15. doi:10.5281/zenodo.22083319

ORCiD: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-9959-6013

Portions of this article were first published in Cynthia’s Writing Mind blog on the American Nurse Journal website.