To edit, or not to edit?

by - May 19, 2015

Hello my dear followers,

It came to my mind today, that the hardest part of writing isn't to get the story out through our fingers into our laptops; oh, no, my dearies! The hardest is to re-re-read and re-re-edit your entire manuscript, from the very first page with the title to the last with the words 'The End'. In my own experience, editing, for a lack of a better word and I apologize for it, SUCKS!

I haven't met any author, amateur or professional, who enjoyed this phase. Usually, if you're a professional author and have a publishing house supporting you, someone (or someones), will grab your very polished manuscript, and give it a last review.

If, like me, you're as amateur as it can be, and have no money and no publishing house to back you up, you'll have to bribe friends and family, or complete strangers, to read your story and try and find Waldo (e.g., those damn typos!).

There's, of course, door number 3. And, that is, the Grammar Softwares. In my short amateur career as a writer, I've tried them all, I've worked with all kinds of softwares, webpages and apps. The three I'll present you, are my favourite, all for different reasons I will mention shortly.





Grammarly is a free page where you can upload your document and check for your spelling. You can add the Add-in to your browser, and Grammarly will help you with your emails and other text you might need to send to someone very special, and you don't want to make a fool of yourself by saying 'Their' instead of 'They're'.




Pros: It will explain you why there's an error, and give you suggestions on how to fix it. The add-in helps you check your spelling fast, without having to copy/paste your text from the browser to a writing software. It's very easy to use, and trustworthy.

Cons: The free version doens't allow you to actually check all the problems with your text; you'd have to buy the full version, and pay monthly.




 StyleWriter4 is another great tool if you're getting serious about your writing. This program is an amazing tool, a bit more complicated than other softwares but, believe me, once you get the hand of it, you can go a long way with your writing. It not only tells you what words are spelled wrong, but it also analyses complete sentences, and even the consistency of your writing, which, believe me, will be eye opening.




Pros: More complete editing, many features (at 1st you'll feel like its too much), a very thorough analisation of your manuscript.
Cons: Only 14 days evaluation period, after that you'll have to purchase it (it's really really worth it!)
Ginger is my personal favourite. Not only is it downlodable as an add-in into Microsoft Word, and to your browser. It's the simplest tool you'll use. It highlights your "bad words", and gives you the right form. Its best feature, for me personally, is that you can choose from editing in American English (US) or British English (UK). That helps me a lot on my novels!



Pros: Easy to use; differentiates US English from UK English; free to use.
Cons: Limited word correction per week I've been having some difficulties with the browser add in.


Keep in mind that NO software, as expensive and as complete as it may be, replaces a person. When someone reads your work, they'll discuss it with you the ups and downs, the problems and how you could fix them, the words you tend to overuse, and so on. No computer software is able to do that, at the moment. So, suck up to your friends and family, and some strangers who follow you on some writing platform online. They'll be glad to help you for free, and you could share a thank you on your Best Selling novel (just because, you know, you're not one of those big Hollywood stars who forget who helped you in the first place).


Happy Readings,
Sophie


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