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Editing Tools for Authors

written by Haley Whitehall November 14, 2016

Editing is part of an author’s job. Many authors will admit it is the part they hate the most about writing. This necessary evil can often separate the amateurs from the professionals. Authors have a responsibility to put out their best work, and this is not just confined to their manuscript. Professional emails and blog posts should be edited as well. But how is it possible to give everything an editing pass without breaking the bank? To help authors out, there are several free and cheap online editing resources for authors.

Hemingway is a free app that analyzes your text to improve readability. Authors either write inside the app or they can copy and paste their text into the box provided. The app color codes the edits which are great for visual authors. By eliminating lengthy phrases for shorter ones the text becomes clearer and more powerful. This app also points out adverbs and passive voice for the author to rewrite and dispose of.

After the Deadline is a free open source editing software. The program checks spelling, grammar, and style. It is more effective than the spelling and grammar checker in Microsoft Word. It uses artificial intelligence and natural language processing technology to pinpoint writing errors. These errors are underlined for the author to see and then suggestions are provided as to how to fix them.

Grammarly is another super-charged Microsoft Word editor. Grammarly searches for spelling, grammar, and context errors as well. Grammarly is compatible with Microsoft Word, and is also very internet friendly. It will edit your emails, Facebook posts, etc. The free version is very handy, or you can upgrade to the paid version and Grammarly will edit even more of your mistakes. Grammarly isn’t just an editor; iIt points out your most common mistakes and offers advice on how to fix them to become a better writer. It is easy for an author to get so caught up in their writing that they are unaware of these continual errors.

Want more in-depth editing than Grammarly has to offer? Try ProWritingAid or SmartEdit. After your register for an account with ProWritingAid, it is possible to copy and paste up to 3,000 words at a time to be edited on their site. The free version gives 19 reports including an overall summary of the text. This program points out clichés, overused words, redundancies, vague words, and other areas besides the basic spelling and grammar check. If you want to edit more than 3,000 words at a time the subscription is $40 a year, and discounts are given if you subscribe for more than one year at a time. The paid version is compatible with Word and Google Docs. Another benefit of the subscription is that the program will point out even more errors and areas to strengthen in your manuscript.

SmartEdit is similar to ProWritingAid. There are two programs to choose from. One is for Word users and the other works without Word. The program costs $57 and ten dollars more for the one that is compatible to work inside of Word. This is a one-time purchase price. Unlike other editing programs, this one was designed with creative writers in mind and is meant for novelists and short story authors. Besides having the features mentioned in the other programs this one does things like counts profanity usage, dialogue tags, foreign phrases, etc.

It should be noted that an automated program should not take the place of a human editor. When it comes to a manuscript these tools are meant to help authors with their first pass. It is important to have your manuscript as clean as it can be before having it professionally edited. Some freelance editors even charge less if the manuscript is very clean. There are so many editing programs out there that it can be overwhelming. These are great programs for an author on a budget.

Editing Tools for Authors was last modified: November 16th, 2016 by Haley Whitehall
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Haley Whitehall

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1 comment

Wil Forbis November 14, 2016 at 2:12 pm

I recently discovered Hemingway and it’s definitely useful. It’s given me a real kick in the pants in regards to overuse of adverbs.

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