You can edit using one of many approaches, some working better than others depending on your particular strengths. My personal preference is editing assertively using a proofreading software, with a decisive resolve to enforce strict guidelines.
Why work with guidelines? Because good copy can vary. One writer can compose long, flowing complex and compound sentences while another sticks to short and quick statements, both of them turning out excellent quality writing (not to mention successfully passing your writing tools’ stringent standards). If you’re trying to improve the copy, filtering them through a set of guidelines that fit the medium, the readers and the original writer will ensure they both live up to a specific standard.
See, certain readers respond to certain things better than others. In a similar way, those who follow a particular publication or medium will have specific expectations from the pieces they read. All of these will comprise your set of guidelines and should be accounted for in whatever piece you’re editing.
Like all guidelines, these principles are a suggestion – ones which would make sense to follow in the big picture. However, they can be done away with. If giving them up fits in better with a specific piece of writing, don’t hesitate to do so. Similarly, if the original writer’s work actually fosters better clarity than what the standard guideline can achieve, it’s usually wiser to keep your hands off.
