<p>Lol I am a freelance editor just starting out and I like to read and advise for free. On one hand hopefully the writer benefits from my comments; On the other hand, I get some experience!</p>
<p>in addition to cc, talk to you real life flesh and blood friends for essay advice and help and see how the advices from cc and real people compare.</p>
<p>This is great advise</p>
<p>Ok,then, the one we can trust now is ourselves…</p>
<p>45 minutes - 2 hours to edit an essay? isn’t that a bit extensive? SAT writing graders spend no more than 10 minutes per essay. College admissions officers spend no more than 5 minutes reading your essay. taking 45- 2 hours to edit someone’s essays sounds like you are rewriting their ideas and completely correcting their grammar.</p>
<p>the purpose of your essay is to add character to numbers,grades,and ranking. you don’t need the perfect essay, just something that shows you are capable of handling college and have a mind of your own.</p>
<p>nice, that was some good set of rules to follow. In my opinion I would never send in my essay in a website in the first place.</p>
<p>thanks. we can all be a bit naive sometimes.</p>
<p>I think the answer is a simple one: If you have any doubts as to someone’s credentials or intentions, don’t send your work to him/her. </p>
<p>That being said, I don’t share the general cynicism that people can’t enjoy editing or that they should be viewed with suspicion; I think there are plenty of people (myself included) who really enjoy working with students and sharing ideas; but there are also people who have ulterior motives, so just be careful! Check post counts and ask around if you’re not sure about a newcomer. (Also check their posts on all the different sub-forums to make sure they’re not total wackos!) A great way to make sure editors are legit is to verify that they’re in college and have no motive to steal essays. Frankly, I wouldn’t send my work to ANYONE who wasn’t at least a sophomore in college if not an upperclassman; not only will they have more experience writing, but also they will have no motive to take your work. (To those editors, I suggest corresponding through your school email to prove you’re in college.) It’s a bit different for transfers, but again, the same rules apply: Check around the forums and do some research, but trust your gut if something doesn’t add up.</p>
<p>To the newcomers who want to start editing, establish credibility on the forums for a few months first and maybe show your work to another editor/moderator who can vouch for you if asked by students.</p>
<p>Forgot to mention:</p>
<p>Always get second, third, and fourth opinions! I can’t stress this enough. It’s likely your editors won’t all agree on everything (and in some cases will have very different views), but you’ll have a spectrum of ideas from which to choose as well as the benefit of having multiple sets of eyes to catch your mistakes and offer ideas. It will also put suggestions in perspective and you’ll be able to compare corrections across the board with third parties.</p>
<p>metalmethod741 is exactly right: Always have someone you know in the flesh edit your work (inasmuch as you value their opinion, of course). If you really want a good sampling of ideas, have your guidance counselor, English/writing teacher, family members, and friends read your work along with a CC editor or two. (Assuming these people are trustworthy and qualified; I’ve not had much luck with guidance counselors, but the others were all extremely helpful.)</p>
<p>good points</p>
<p>Why would a person even think of stealing another person’s essay? The colleges would find out b/c they’re submitted online and the person would get caught anyways, right? It’s a bit like a turnitin.com situation</p>
<p>Awesome thread! Thank You!</p>
<p>Great advice =) </p>
<p>Very glad to see I’m not the only one who suffers from paranoia from time to time.</p>
<p>Great advice.</p>
<p>@yankeedoodle</p>
<p>If someone stole an essay going to college X and sent it to college Y they probably wouldn’t get caught. But it’s a stupid, immoral thing to do.</p>