Proof is in the puding (sic)

Ladies and gentlemen of the proofreading jury, I hereby present the case in point for thorough proofreading:

• Winners — Two Wirral school-children are among the prizes in a rail safety poster competition for Arriva.
  From the Wirral Globe
• Low Self-Esteem Support Group will meet Thursday at 7 to 8:30
  p.m., Please use the back door.
  Source unknown
• Free farm puppies: eat anything and are fond of children.
  From a ‘free ads’ sheet
• Famous Spiritual Healer — The Souths leading healer Andrew McKellar Has moved to Burridge. Could all patients passed, present & future kindly make a note of the new phone number.
  From the Independent on Sunday [blimey, even the dead have to have mobile phones now]
• We practice an esoteric form of transcendental medication.
  From a newsletter that I read recently
• Also, I would be extremely greatful for any advise or details of good proofreading curses…
  From a recent email I received. The sender enquired about jobs with MediaMinister [a splendid example of the need to brush up on proofreading skills]

As you will have gathered by now, proofreading is an incredibly important step in the writing process. Sadly, it's one that is often overlooked. Never mind the idea of saving costs, you could end up not saving face.

Safeguard your reputation. Ask me to proof your next piece before it goes to print or is uploaded to the web.

”...Her friendly nature and dedicated professionalism make her a pleasure to work with, and Tracey’s strict attention to detail is, in her own words, ‘down to having an almost unnatural obsession with words and accuracy’!"
— P Wagstaff (more…)