Making Corrections After Publication On the Internet

Thank goodness, blog posts have it all over the newspapers when it comes to making corrections after publication.

The web has many of us writing and publishing so fast that often work is posted before it has been properly edited. I see blog posts and articles every day with simple spelling and grammar mistakes, even on well established media sites.

Writing at internet speed.

While I could bemoan the state of the world today and complain that we are becoming a nation of sloppy writers, I also understand the law of diminishing returns. There are only so many times you can look at a work before it no makes sense for the money you will be paid to spend any more time on it. And when it comes to breaking news, vetting an extra twenty minutes to catch a misspelling may mean you lose top page rank to a competitor who ran with less than perfect grammar.

Unfortunately, just as our words have become so quickly written and forgotten, they have also become semi-permanent. Everything you write with your name on it, including blog comments and forum posts, has the potential to be retrieved and judged for years to come.

If you do publish some work before it is perfect, a reader may come along and point out your imperfections. If you can correct these imperfections, it behooves you to do so.

When Making Corrections After Publication:

Don’t blame the messenger or get defensive. When someone points out an error, take it like a friendly indication that your fly is unzipped. Perhaps you won’t always be pleased with the way a mistake was brought to your attention, but be glad you know and can make the correction if you choose.

If you can, correct it. Your words are going to be around for a long time. If you can fix errors, or you can talk someone else into making corrections on her website, your public reputation will be better for it. Some sites/situations don’t allow for making corrections after publication and sometimes the error will be too small to trouble another to correct, so take care of all the errors you can.

Resist the temptation to belittle your error. I recently saw a professional writer respond to someone pointing out his error by stating, “I do that all the time.” I suspect he didn’t realize that it sounded like he felt his carelessness could be excused by its frequency. When writing for pay, you can expect that all potential employers take your writing seriously and believe you should do the same.

Learn from it. Nothing is more aggravating for new readers than seeing a writer make the same mistakes repeatedly. Although some fans find the quirks of their favorite writers endearing, you may never develop a fan base if you often make the same simple errors. Consider making a self editing checklist so you catch the mistakes you tend to repeat.

Ideally, you will make fewer mistakes over time, but when you do it is best to accept criticism graciously while making corrections after publication.

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