If I Only Had 15 Minutes to Edit an Article, This Is What I Would Do

An editing speedrun case study

The other day, I recorded a YouTube video where I wrote an entire article in under 30 minutes. Call it a writing speedrun.

I’ve also been experimenting with speedrunning my editing.

Since I sometimes contract with other freelance writers to create content for my websites, I limited myself to an hour for revisions.

Before then, I simply edited the entire article from top to bottom. But under my self-imposed deadline, I quickly rethought my strategy. I started to think about how I prioritize what I edit first, second, third, and so on.

That’s when a question popped into my brain: If I only had 15 minutes to edit an article, what would I do?

This story is my answer.

⏰ 0–5 Minutes

In the first 5 minutes, I would focus on the highest priority items. After all, what if I run out of time?

If I had to spend the entire 15 minutes on a few things, this is my shortlist.

The first thing that I would fix is the title. I’d make sure it targeted the intended topic and keyword. I would double-check the spelling, grammar, and punctuation.

Since I want the title to be as clickable as possible, I consider adding parentheticals, power words, and numbers.

For example, let’s say the topic was How To Teach Your Cat To Fist Bump.

I think that’s a great title as is, but I might add: “Solved with Pictures". Then I’d make sure the entire title is less than 60 characters. That way, the full title shows up in Google search results.

If I still had time left in the first 5 minutes, I’d move on to the image.

Let’s say my contract writer did not add an image. In that case, I’d quickly make one with Canva. I’d download the image and add it to the article.

If I still had time left, I’d find a relevant YouTube video and add it somewhere appropriate in my article.

Usually, I like to add it right after the first subheading or two. That way, if someone gets the answers that they want quickly, the video might keep them on the page a little bit longer.

Therefore, I make more money from display ads.

⏰ 5–10 Minutes

Between the 5 and 10 minute mark, I’m starting to feel antsy as the deadline approaches. I wipe the blogger sweat from my brow and keep grinding.

Time is really of the essence now, so I toggle my focus on the next most important areas to make my article a success. What I would do is concentrate on format and links.

First, I’d make sure that all of my subheadings followed the right structure: H1, H2, and (if necessary) H3.

Mostly I’m making sure there are no H3s ahead of an H2 (aka, nothing is out of order). This internal structure makes it easier for Google to crawl and understand the content on your page.

I’d also ensure the subheadings include variations of the target keyword and that the article is organized by relevance and interest. I always want the most relevant and interesting subheadings higher to the top (or closer to the beginning) of the article.

Not only do I think this is a better user experience, but it also makes it more likely that the reader will stay on my page longer.

With any remaining time in this second set of 5 minutes, I’d now add links.

The two kinds of links that I add to my articles are:

• Internal links
• External links

One of the best ways to keep a reader on your site longer is to get them to read more than one article. That’s why I would link out to approximately three related articles that already exist on my website.

I also include external links.

I typically link to the source material at the very bottom of my article to prevent readers from clicking away from my website. Remember, I want them on my website as long as possible so that the display ads refresh a few times.

Each time the ads refresh, I make more money.

I only link to high authority and respected websites, for example, research databases and government websites. I also add external links to affiliate programs or products in the majority of my articles (approximately 80%).

It’s another way for me to add value while possibly boosting my income.

⏰ 10–15 Minutes

Now let’s move on to the last 5 minutes in my editing speed run.

It may seem impossible to get all this done in 15 minutes, but I promise you it is very possible. With a little practice, I have no doubt that you could accomplish everything we’ve talked about previously in the first 10 minutes.

In the last 5 minutes, I’m now looking at the actual content on the page.

Since I believe in a top-down approach, I start with the introduction. Most of my articles respond to simple informational searches on Google.

Therefore, I keep my introductions very short and to the point.

I may add one or two sentences as an introduction, then I immediately summarize the entire article. I give the best and most complete answer to the topic or search question right upfront.

This is so that I can hopefully win the Google snippet, which will give me the most monthly search volume for my topic or keyword.

I want my introduction short and my summary the most helpful and complete answer on Google — in under 300 characters.

This very well may take me the entire 5 minutes, but if I’ve done a good job of writing the article in the first place, I can finish this task in one or possibly two minutes.

I’d spend the remaining three minutes quickly reading through as much of the article as possible, dashing off small spelling, grammar, and punctuation edits.

I scan the first few subheadings and get through as much of the content as possible.

If a sentence doesn’t seem relevant, seems off-topic, or simply fluff, I delete it. There is zero time for anything but snap decisions. Sometimes I’ll add a small word or phrase that makes sense.

Most users don’t even read the entire article, so it’s okay if I don’t reach the end before my time is up.

However, if I had more time, I’d go line by line through my entire blog post, making sure everything looks and sounds good.

What If I Still Had Time Left?

What if, by some incredible miracle, I did such an amazing job writing the article, that I still have a few minutes left for editing?

What would I do then?

Here are a few things that I might focus on:

• Adding a table of information
• Telling a personal or relevant story
• Adding a case example
• Including more examples or templates
• Adding a quote
• Including an entirely new but short section that targets the topic from a new angle.

As an example of that last bullet, let’s go back to my topic, How To Teach Your Cat To First Bump.

Since this wasn’t an editing speedrun, I gave the article more time.

After going over all of the steps of the teaching process (with pictures & video), I added the following sections:

• Can I teach my cat to fist bump if she is blind?
• What to do if my cat still doesn’t want to fist bump?
• When is the best time to teach my cat to fist bump?
• Can I teach my cat to fist bump another cat?

You get the picture. I simply expand into related subtopics of my main topic.

By doing so, I write a longer and more helpful article, which not only helps it rank higher in Google but also makes me more money through display ads.

Final Thoughts

I hope you found the idea of an “editing speedrun” an interesting thought experiment. While fast is not always better, I find that applying artificial deadlines can help us approach old problems in new ways.

What would you do if you only had 15 minutes to edit an article?

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