[ ] general outline (Does the content follow a logical flow?)
[ ] figures - text alignment and linkage (Are all figures consistently labeled and properly addressed in the paper?)
[ ] Proofreading
[ ] check clarity
[ ] simple comparisons
[ ] mistakes
[ ] grammar issues
[ ] tenses
[ ] commas
[ ] misplaced/dangling modifiers
[ ] problems with relative clauses
[ ] articles
[ ] others? your personal list? TODO
[ ] Re-reading for improvement
[ ] eliminating redundancy
[ ] finding better wording
[ ] improving vocabulary
[ ] keep your reader in mind (What is your reader likely to know or not know already? What is your reader likely to expect you to include in each section? )
[ ] read abstract, intro and conclusion (Re-read the introduction and then the conclusion to be sure you have addressed all the concerns and questions you raised)
[ ] Related work
[ ] unified tense
[ ] unified structure
[ ] refresh URLs before submission
[ ] format check
Section-level checklist
[ ] key sentences of each section (Can you identify the key sentences in each section that emphasize the most important pieces of information you want your reader to remember? (Are they well-written and well-placed?))
[ ] order of definitions + usages
[ ] missing content of section (Does each section contain what it needs to contain in terms of content?)
[ ] structural repetition (Do you repeat content only when necessary?)
Paragraph-level checklist
[ ] paragraph outline flow (Are paragraphs organized appropriately and in the appropriate order?)
[ ] flow (Read the first and last sentences of each paragraph to see if the flow is logical and transitions work.)
[ ] outline paragraph for the sentence needed (David: explain the big picture.)
[ ] transition between paragraphs (Are there transitions between topics when necessary and/or links between paragraphs?)
[ ] common paragraph structure (In cases where your paragraphs have a different internal structure (ie. chronological, general to specific, etc.), do you stick to it?)
[ ] individual paragraph checks
[ ] (Does each paragraph have a clear, unified topic to which all sentences in the paragraph stick?)
[ ] (Is this topic clearly expressed or made obvious in the first 1 – 2 sentences of the paragraph?)
[ ] search for paragraphs that are too long (>1/2 column length)/too short (3 sentences) (Do any of your paragraphs contain less than 3 sentences? Are they typically longer than ½ of a typed page (200 words)? If so, can they be re-organized or are the atypical lengths justified?)
Sentence-level checklist
[ ] Simple (check every time)
[ ] Length (15 – 25 words is average)
[ ] Subject – Verb – Object is typical order
[ ] Limit compound sentences (full sentences linked with and, or, but, etc.) and “front loaded” sentences and/or vary the structures
[ ] Parallelism: check lists of nouns, adjectives, phrases, etc.
[ ] Avoid needless formality and complexity
[ ] Limit passive voice (approximately 25% passive as a guideline, for cases where action and not agent are important)
[ ] Use verbs rather than verbal nouns (ex. “The study analyses…”)
[ ] Use negative formulations only when necessary (not only… but also)
[ ] Put old information before new information in your sentences
[ ] Try to make the subject the actor and the verb the action in the sentence
[ ] Make sure that readers can easily locate key sentences in your work that express important main ideas for them to remember!
[ ] Advanced
[ ] Subject + verb could have come sooner (ie. active verb could have been used or subject could have been shortened).
[ ] Sentence contains repeated or otherwise unnecessary words, phrases, or ideas (redundancy and/or nominalization)
[ ] Phrases or ideas are introduced without clear link to the previous material
[ ] Sentences contains components whose relationship to each other is either unclear to the reader (ie. dangling modifiers) or is not ideal (ie. parallel construction needed)
Whole paper checklist
Section-level checklist
Paragraph-level checklist
Sentence-level checklist
[ ] Simple (check every time)
[ ] Advanced