- **Epistemic status:** #seedlings Proofreading is taking a step back after you [[Produce A Manuscript]] or [[Evergreen Notes]] with the eyes of a critic scanning the text for typos, checking the structure, and re-writing more cohesive sentences. To improve the skill, you have to read it as the reader that has no prior context, instead of being in your head thinking on what the paper is trying to say. It is impossible to avoid bias, but this process should be enough to spot holes in the argument or parts that were explained poorly because of context that sat in your head. This is why you must put distance from the writer side and the critic side, since the writer side will tend to have these flaws. To improve the quality and speed of your writing, you got to limit the reach of the critic side. Avoid over-optimizing every single word to be grammar error free or trying to figure out how to write a sentence perfectly. Switching between the writer and critic takes experience, but one good strategy is to have an outline visible, that way you know what you will have to write next and just edit the current written section. This helps you to not overwrite the next sections and expand on the current content. --- ## References - Ahrens, Sönke. _How to Take Smart Notes: One Simple Technique to Boost Writing, Learning and Thinking - for Students, Academics and Nonfiction Book Writers_. Createspace Independent Publishing Platform, 2017.