MY FAVORITE CRUTCH

We all have our unique way of working. Some people enjoying writing in longhand (sorry, that would kill me), some buy software that helps them outline and remember bits of research, or some have a favorite place they like to write. I too have a crutch!

***Before for I go any further, let me offer this disclaimer. Nobody anywhere at any time for any reason is paying me a red cent to say this.***

My favorite writing crutch is a proofreading program called Grammarly.  Grammarly is web-based, but can be installed into Microsoft Word (and other word processing programs) if you like.

The interface is clean and user friendly and seems to catch a decent amount of my typing errors. I’d be lying if I said it was perfect, but I’m not looking for perfect, I’m looking for help.

Here’s how Grammarly works. You upload or paste a text file into the program and it combs through it for typographical and grammatical errors.  On the right hand side it has a bar where any errors or anomalies are displayed for your review while a number on the bottom grades your work for the number of found errors. As is normal, 100 is the target score.

As you deal with the errors on the side bar, the grade level adjust accordingly. Comma usage is a big one for me! Other features you can turn on is a vocabulary enhancer that will suggest better, more targeted words and a plagiarism feature to double check your manuscript. The second item does little for me since I write fiction, but cool none the less.
One last feature I appreciate about the program is you are sent a weekly status update showing usage and word count as well as several other cool statics.

This is not magic, but for someone like me who typos a lot, this is a terrific tool to add to the kit! The cost ranges depending on the promotion they’re running, but you can test drive it for free. For me, this is money well spent.