Grammatical Corrections Burn: How to Make Suggestions Professionally

Writers often forget we have had years to develop a thick skin when it comes to suggestions. We’ve had our drafts torn to shreds, work we’ve poured our hearts into stomped on, and what did we do? Probably cried about it the first time, but we picked up our pens and went back to work. After so many years of being corrected (sometimes brutally), we tend to forget how difficult it was to handle correction in the beginning.

We have to remember: Non-writers have not had the luxury to build up a thick skin over the years. They are not callous to corrections. Unfortunately this often means direction from a more experienced writer is not welcome.

I have personally cringed many a time watching work go to print that could be significantly better than it was. And it wasn’t that I didn’t make suggestions, didn’t cover the copy with ink… It was that the suggestions I made were not welcome. When their suggestions are rebuffed, most writers fall back on: “Everyone thinks they can write because they have a keyboard,” and go off in a huff mumbling about dangling participles.

The reality is actually quite different. We forget that to write is to create, and what we create is almost as precious to the creator as their own children. Non-writers feel the same way. We have to remember we are correcting their child.

People respond with fight or flight when they are protecting their offspring. So if you threaten their child, you will either be attacked with pitchforks or ran from like an erupting volcano. Neither will lead to your corrections being considered.

So how do we approach someone whose work needs a few helpful hints? Offer the traditional compliment sandwich:

1. Start with what they did well in the piece.
2. Make your suggestions (politely, with a positive attitude).
3. Remind them how well-written you found the piece, and you are happy to have been part of the creation process!

I have also found it is helpful to be able to explain the reasons for the edits. Personal writing preferences are debatable, but most rules of grammar are fairly solid. (There may be the occasional comma controversy, but grammar is not a matter of personal opinion!)

Hopefully with time and professionally conscious corrections, workplace cultures will eventually embrace collaborative editing with less snipping and more support. Have you experienced difficulty with making edits to a coworkers copy? I’d love for you to share your story and how you handled the situation.