For several months I had been using Microsoft Office Word for writing my blog posts. Even though the grammar check was sometimes a little too harsh for my liking, it got the job done. It’s a heavy app for pounding out blog posts, but I wanted to start working on improving my grammar and such, so it seemed like a good solution. Pages for Mac had some grammar features built in, but nothing as robust as what Word offered. So alas, I kept on using Word for my daily writing.
And then Chris Ames recommended a writing app for me to try out.
Hemingway Editor
After trying it a few times, I was in love.
The Hemingway Editor isn’t a word processor, so comparing it to Pages or Word doesn’t do it justice. It is not a publishing powerhouse like Scrivener, either. Hemingway is a unique writing app that I have really enjoyed using.
I first starting using the Hemingway Editor online. It started as a free online app and works just the same as the desktop app that’s been recently made available for both Mac and Windows.
How it Works
When you first start using Hemingway, you’ll want to begin in “Write” mode. This turns off all the “Edit” tools and data. I recommend turning it off while you write, to keep all the notifications from distracting you while you write.
Here’s a closer look:
As you can see, Hemingway measures your writing in a most unique way. It gives you a “Readability” grading, raw meta data, and then my favorite part:
Hemingway will highlight…
- Sentences that are hard to read.
- Sentences that are very hard to read.
- Adverbs you should consider revising.
- Words or phrases that could be simpler.
- And my favorite, passive voice.
You don’t need to change everything Hemingway flags. In fact, you may not be breaking any grammar rules! But, following Hemingway’s advice in these areas are sure to help develop you into a better writer.
New Desktop App
Using a desktop app is a far better plan than writing directly into WordPress or even the free online Hemingway Editor. Being able to write posts offline and save drafts locally is a great way to insure that I don’t lose blog posts! So when they released the Hemingway Editor desktop app, I jumped on it! It even includes a few other cool options that the free browser based solution does not:
- Save and open text (.txt) and Markdown (.md) files.
- Format with Markdown, preview it, and export to HTML.
- No Internet connection required.
Since I purchased the Hemingway Editor app (only $6.99), I have used it EVERYDAY! Once a blog post is ready, I just copy and paste the text into WordPress. It’s been super easy.
While I don’t always take Hemingway’s suggestions, I think it is helping me become a much better writer and blogger.
Emily Kantner says
I like the Hemingway Editor, too! Sometimes I feel like it wants me to use less vivid–and complex–verbs, but overall it’s a great tool.
Eric Dye says
Yes, I agree. I take some of the recommendations with a “grain of salt” and also consider my audience; but overall, pure awesome. 😀
Al says
Don’t want to sound snarky, but … it’s too bad Hemingway didn’t (or couldn’t) catch the need for an apostrophe in Writers in your headline.
Eric Dye says
Yeah, right! 😛 Perhaps I should consider writing my headlines in the Hemingway editor, too. 😉
Austin O says
This looks very similar to the site I’ve been using: http://fixtext.com
FixText seems to have a bit more information but both seem to do a similar job.