"The secret to good writing is good editing."

What an excellent first sentence, of this NYTimes article on how to edit your own writing. 

Simple great advice: “Never use a long word when a short one will do.” (From George Orwell's book, “Politics and the English Language”) 

What I'm probably most guilty of: "When you’re not quite sure what you want to say, it’s easy to ramble around a point, phrasing it in three or four different ways and then, instead of cutting them down to a single concise sentence, slapping all four together into a clunky, unclear paragraph."

Something I hadn't thought of but it makes sense: "The longer you can leave a draft before editing it, the better." That's probably why I catch so many mistakes in manuscripts when rereading a paper (that has already been submitted and so should be perfect) just before giving a seminar. Time has passed. 

Another good one: "If a word isn’t necessary in a sentence, cut it; if a sentence isn’t necessary in a paragraph, cut it; and if a paragraph isn’t necessary, cut it, too." Your readers will be grateful! 

There are more tips in the article. Definitely a good read. And yes, I reread this post before posting it.