Hi all, I recently came across the Hemingway Editor app (http://www.hemingwayapp.com/). It seems handy, but I can't decide if it's really worth $20. Additionally, I'm hesitant to use it for fear that it might subtly change my own writing style. For technical writing, it seems useful, but I can't make up my mind about it for creative writing. Does anyone have experience with it (or another similar app/software)? What are the pros and cons you all have found using these apps? Thanks!
Just speaking for myself: I wouldn't use it during original writing. In editing though all bets are off. If I already have a product that I consider roughly ready, I might run it through this editor to pick out possible troublesome issues.
2nd this. I don't think what it does is good for writing – it's editing and proof reading. It's distracting. Write with something else, and when you're finished, load it in there and let it help you to make it better. You have to decide if this is worth it for you. Judging from the examples, I'm not sure it would be worth it for me. It forces a certain writing style, and if you follow it blindly it subdues your own, though it could give some pointers. It might be worthwhile for business document creation and technical writing. (NB: So far, I have not seen an app yet that is helpful for style or grammar when it comes to creative, artistic writing.)
its also obsessed with silly shit like eliminating adverbs, adjectives and the use of the passive voice ... personally I don't want to eliminate about a third of the words in the English language from by writing, nor do I want soft ware to highlight every instance of 'was' - pro writing aid is the best of editor software i've used and even that threw a lot of false positives
Thanks for all the feedback! Yeah, I wasn't planning on using it while writing. I have the first draft of my novel done and have gone through and edited it myself. A blog I was reading for tips on snagging a LA suggested running it through Hemingway Editor. I'm in agreement with you all though that it seems like something that would change the writing style of whatever material is fed into it. I'll stick with good, old MS Word and my own little brain!
I was unfamiliar with the editor (or app) until my wife pointed me to it. For those unfamiliar, it is a a website (http://www.hemingwayapp.com/) where you can paste your writing and get feedback on all sorts of grammatical items such as sentences that are hard to read, the use of passive voice and so on. I've used it a few times now, and I have to say that I feel the results are mixed. It seems fine in pointing out some faults in my writing, especially if I have sentences that are too long or difficult to read. Other items appear to be very hit or miss to me, such as when I use the word minimum and it tells me that it's too complex and and to use small or least when neither of those would make sense. Anyway, just wondering if anyone else uses (or has used) the app and what your thoughts on it are?
No app is going to replace the human touch. I trust myself more as a writer than I would any app. Although this seems interesting, I don't think I would give something like this so much weight. I don't rely on technology like this when it comes to writing. It sort of presents itself like some sort of shortcut. I have found there are no shortcuts when it comes to good writing.
I use Pro Writing aid now but I was thinking about getting the Hemingway app also. The Hemingway app works with Medium (website) so I thought that might be interesting to try out. I still won't change or improve everything they suggest but I do the there is some benifts in using theses apps. especially when it comes to the passive ve vs active voice and eliminationgall the unneeded words.
no short cuts - I agree with you there but I do think some of us can find basic learning opputunities within these apps, at least that has been my experiance.
It tells me that 'surely' isn't forceful, 'shall' is too complex, and it really seems to hate it when you say 'all of.' ETA: After using it for a bit. It's fun to throw things in there and see what comes up, but I don't think it and I would be a good fit.
Its fine if you want your work to sound like Hemingway - its bugger all use to a serious writer who has any other style
I've played around on the app and didn't find it to be very helpful, either (although I tried to convince myself it was a time suck I could justify more than others). That said, it can be useful to see your work marked up in a different format. When I reached the thousandth round of edits I know I was skipping over some parts as I read. This did force me to slow down.
Interesting. Fiddled with it a bit. I could see it being helpful when I go to edit purely bc it points out all the adverbs, and in editing I plan to pay attention to how many of those I am using. Also passive voice. But overall I don't think it will be all that much help.
Prowritingaid has a web interface that can be used from any web-enabled device: https://prowritingaid.com/en/Analysis/WebEditor/Go# Having both apps seems overkill to me.
I tried it and found it very frustrating to use. It had a lot of grammar errors. Pasting a fair sized document was virtually impossible. It would truncate the document in mid sentence.
