As you edit at all of these levels, you will usually make significant revisions to the content and wording of your paper. Once you have identified a pattern, you can develop techniques for spotting and correcting future instances of that pattern. For example, if you notice that you often discuss several distinct topics in each paragraph, you can go through your paper and underline the key words in each paragraph, then break the paragraphs up so that each one focues on just one main idea. Proofreading Proofreading is the final stage of the editing process, focusing on surface errors such as misspellings and mistakes in grammar and punctuation. You should proofread only after you have finished all of your other editing revisions.
Content is important.
But like it or not, the way a paper looks affects the way others judge it. When you've worked hard to develop your ideas and present them for others on paper, you don't want careless errors distracting your reader from what you have to say. It's worth paying attention to the details that help you to make a good impression. Most people devote only a few minutes to proofreading, hoping to catch any glaring errors that jump out from the page. But a quick and cursory reread, especially after you've been working long and hard on a paper, usually misses a lot.