Online Editing Resources
Mar 21, 2021 14:02:49 GMT -6
Post by ScienceGirl on Mar 21, 2021 14:02:49 GMT -6
Check back on this thread periodically, because I'm going to add to it as I discover more resources and refresh myself on BBCode.
This article describes six sites that can help with editing and grammar as you write.
If anyone has used any of these or others, feel free to comment. I'm planning to make a list of their pros and cons and set this thread up to be a bit more organized with the list.
For now I'd like to put a plug out for Grammarly, because it's the one I use. Here's a video that shows its features:
Grammarly was one of those sites that felt too good to be true. Their advertisements pop up pretty much every time I'm on the web. But they had a free package and it was a Chrome extension, so I gave it a shot. Now, I literally use it for every professional email, all my work documents--pretty much anything.
The free version does spelling, punctuation, and grammar. That was great in itself. But I finally sprung the $139 for the Premium (or $11.66/month) because it offers so, so much more. You can get word choice suggestions, fluency and flow, formality assessment, clarity, and tone. It catches repetitive words and patterns in sentences. It even monitors my Facebook posts LOL. And, it teaches you why it makes the suggestions so you don't make as many mistakes in the future.
Just for some reference, if you run your WIP through an editor, most will charge something in the neighborhood of $0.01/word. They might give discounts for higher word count. For example, 2500 words might cost $25.00, but a 3500 word chapter edit might also cost $25, and a whole book edit might cost $500.
Also, know that with freelance editors, you often don't know what you are getting experience-wise. I'm a freelance editor myself, but I honestly don't have any credentials to back it up other than editing experience and a small stint I spent with my former publishing company. My science degrees focused on technical writing and not fiction. So I'd feel like it was a ripoff to charge someone $1000 or $1500 for a whole-book edit. But I have a friend who has an English degree and a masters in Creative Writing, and she does have the credentials to back it up. Those are her prices.
Now, those prices often are for a single pass. Some editors will give multiple passes as part of their package, but even then, you want to send them as polished a piece as you can. Here's why.
It is very hard to analyze an excerpt for effectiveness of plot and character development when you keep getting tripped up over missing punctuation and poorly written sentences. Every grammar mistake is a "stop" for an editor, even if they aren't doing line-by-line content. It draws their attention away from the story. Even from the best editor, you will not get the quality of feedback you desire when they have to trip over bad technique. You're paying for more than that.
So that's where a site like Grammarly comes in. If you can eliminate some of those basic spelling and grammar errors before workshopping your piece, then you'll receive better feedback on the story itself.
As for its limitations--Grammarly is not going to pick up on things like if you use the wrong eye color for a character or call someone by the wrong name. It can't replace the human eye. So you should still trade critiques and even seek out professional editing if you are serious about publishing.
This article describes six sites that can help with editing and grammar as you write.
- ProWriting Aid
- AutoCrit
- Grammarly
- Hemingway Editor
- Wordrake
- After the Deadline
If anyone has used any of these or others, feel free to comment. I'm planning to make a list of their pros and cons and set this thread up to be a bit more organized with the list.
For now I'd like to put a plug out for Grammarly, because it's the one I use. Here's a video that shows its features:
Grammarly was one of those sites that felt too good to be true. Their advertisements pop up pretty much every time I'm on the web. But they had a free package and it was a Chrome extension, so I gave it a shot. Now, I literally use it for every professional email, all my work documents--pretty much anything.
The free version does spelling, punctuation, and grammar. That was great in itself. But I finally sprung the $139 for the Premium (or $11.66/month) because it offers so, so much more. You can get word choice suggestions, fluency and flow, formality assessment, clarity, and tone. It catches repetitive words and patterns in sentences. It even monitors my Facebook posts LOL. And, it teaches you why it makes the suggestions so you don't make as many mistakes in the future.
Just for some reference, if you run your WIP through an editor, most will charge something in the neighborhood of $0.01/word. They might give discounts for higher word count. For example, 2500 words might cost $25.00, but a 3500 word chapter edit might also cost $25, and a whole book edit might cost $500.
Also, know that with freelance editors, you often don't know what you are getting experience-wise. I'm a freelance editor myself, but I honestly don't have any credentials to back it up other than editing experience and a small stint I spent with my former publishing company. My science degrees focused on technical writing and not fiction. So I'd feel like it was a ripoff to charge someone $1000 or $1500 for a whole-book edit. But I have a friend who has an English degree and a masters in Creative Writing, and she does have the credentials to back it up. Those are her prices.
Now, those prices often are for a single pass. Some editors will give multiple passes as part of their package, but even then, you want to send them as polished a piece as you can. Here's why.
It is very hard to analyze an excerpt for effectiveness of plot and character development when you keep getting tripped up over missing punctuation and poorly written sentences. Every grammar mistake is a "stop" for an editor, even if they aren't doing line-by-line content. It draws their attention away from the story. Even from the best editor, you will not get the quality of feedback you desire when they have to trip over bad technique. You're paying for more than that.
So that's where a site like Grammarly comes in. If you can eliminate some of those basic spelling and grammar errors before workshopping your piece, then you'll receive better feedback on the story itself.
As for its limitations--Grammarly is not going to pick up on things like if you use the wrong eye color for a character or call someone by the wrong name. It can't replace the human eye. So you should still trade critiques and even seek out professional editing if you are serious about publishing.
You add them to your profile as you do them around the forum.
