How to Mold Your Writing Into the Perfect Message

You’re reading an excerpt of Great Founders Write, by Ben Putano, writer, entrepreneur, and book publisher. He’s the founder of Damn Gravity Media, a publishing house that inspires and educates tomorrow’s great founders. Purchase now for lifetime access to the book and on-demand video course.

It took me years to get comfortable reading my own writing. It’s a lot like hearing yourself talk on video. You feel exposed and a bit like a fraud.

Because of this, I would never edit my work. I would fly through the draft and hit send without a second thought. I told myself my writing sounded more natural this way. If “natural” meant sounding like an illiterate caveman, then I nailed it. In reality, I was just hurting my credibility and confidence.

My most embarrassing lapse in editing came shortly after college. I was in my first full-time job as a consultant for a non-profit. My boss knew I enjoyed writing, so he asked me to create a promotional flier for an upcoming event. I was excited about the project … so excited, I failed to edit. Over-confident and over-caffeinated, I breezed through the assignment and printed out the final version for my boss. He returned it fifteen minutes later with more red ink than I’ve ever seen. I made typos big and small. I even misspelled our organization’s name!

I was completely embarrassed, but it taught me an invaluable lesson about writing. I pinned up that red-inked flier in my cubicle as a reminder to always edit my work.

Editing is more than just catching typos and grammatical errors. It’s about saying what you mean in the clearest, most effective way. In this chapter, you’ll learn my four-round editing process to help you nail every piece of writing.

I know what you’re thinking. Four rounds of editing? That’s overkill. I’m a founder, not William Faulkner.

But here’s the thing: It’s actually easier to edit four times than just once. This four-round edit will save you time in the long run. Let me explain why.

Much like deconstructing the writing process (see the section Simplify), the editing process can also be broken down into its component parts. Editing isn’t just one task—it’s four:

• Substance

• Style

• Voice

• Proofreading

First you edit for substance. Is your argument clear and compelling? Do you have your facts straight? Do you have the right stories and analogies to bring your piece to life?

Next you edit for style. Are you trying to sound formal or casual? Serious or funny? Expert or contrarian?

The third edit is for voice. Simply put, does your writing sound like it came from you and only you?

Finally, you proofread. This is where you check for grammar, punctuation, and spelling. (This is what most people think about when it comes to editing.)

It’s really hard to edit for substance while proofreading at the same time. They require two different types of focus. By reviewing one layer at a time, you’ll move smoothly and quickly through the editing process and feel more confident in the final product.

Let’s look at each of the four edits more closely.