Software based writing "assistants"?

[eatenbywo1ves]

Haven't had time to look into whats all out there as far writing aides and my fictionally correct English is for shit (at least I think it is).

Any ideas?

[WBDaddy]

22 minutes ago, eatenbywo1ves said:

Haven't had time to look into whats all out there as far writing aides and my fictionally correct English is for shit (at least I think it is).

Any ideas?

I mean, there are grammar checker programs out there, but if you try to run them in auto mode, they can sometimes fuck things up worse than they were before. 

[eatenbywo1ves]

Was afraid of that, guess I need to just read up on the topic instead of being lazy.

[Alex Bridges]

I looked at one called Grammarly, and I downloaded the free version. It’s AI based and learns how you write.

The problem is it’s really for business purposes and only works on documents under a few thousand words. I guess that works if you run it a chapter at a time.

[Cute_Kitten]

There's a lot of text to speech software out there as well. But even then it still needs proof reading with a human eye. Though not proof reading can result in amusement sometimes. 

[WBDaddy]

4 hours ago, Alex Bridges said:

I looked at one called Grammarly, and I downloaded the free version. It’s AI based and learns how you write.

The problem is it’s really for business purposes and only works on documents under a few thousand words. I guess that works if you run it a chapter at a time.

My 2nd wife tried to use that to proofread her books.  Didn't do anything to fix the 3rd-grade reading level or the utter failure to provide enough details to make it sound like anything but a series of newspaper headlines. 

[Ohmo]

Pro Writing Aid is an excellent package for improving one's writing.  Prices range from free through several levels of monthly subscriptions to a one-time payment that lasts a lifetime.  It integrates with most word processing programs/apps including Word and Scrivener.  My personal and professional recommendation is to to check it out

Caveat:  Using any writing aid does not replace careful proofreading.

[ValentinesStuff]

You also need to go carefully over what changes are made. I used one once, and discovered that it had rewritten a sentence so that the meaning was directly opposite of what I had written originally.

Also note that most people do not speak in grammatically correct English, or likely any other language.

[ausdpr]

The built-in spell check in Word or Google Docs (free) is reasonably good these days. You can always paste some writing in there and see what it highlights.

[BoTox]

ProWriting Aid is also available in Google Docs. It helps with a lot of my writing but I fight it on some things. I disable those rules that cramp my style.

Also, it can point out words you overuse. My downfall is "just" as in "She just wet herself" and "I just need another chance."

[Ohmo]

I am changing my recommendation made awhile back.  My lifetime license for Pro Writing Aid expired, which upset me no end.  When asked about this I was told I had to log into my account, that I did not have, to get a response.  Although the product is good, the business operates under false pretenses.  Stay away from businesses like this.

Microsoft Word editor is pretty good, and is included with the product.