I’m currently going through a Grammarly phase and it is helping me. I had mentioned that to him a week ago. Today he asked me the following question, which per his permission I am going to share with you.
Hey Brett, Read your article on Finally a Good Day. Excellent imagery. I am wanting to improve my abilities as a writer.
Last night I got a suggestion on using an app called Hemingway. I wanted to get your opinion on the app. Grammar is not my strong suit and I did not do well in English. Knowing the difference between a verb, adverb, noun, conjunction and all the other uses of adjectives, ect are confusing for me. I like Grammarly, but wonder if the Hemingway app would enhance or confuse??? I spend a lot of time trying to eliminate as much redundancy as possible. I use common introductions to hit a point home. I want to improve as a writer, but have a hard time writing on a 6th grade level as the person suggested last night. Any thoughts on the Hemingway app, redundancy, my style of writing and writing on a 6th grade level?
Thank you. craig
I’m going to share my response, but would like to ask you as a visitor and a reader,
- What are your thoughts?
- Which grammar or writing tool do you like best?
- Why do you like it?
- What are some of the positive things you like about it?
- Do you feel that using it has improved your writing?
I would love it if you could take the time to either complete the quick poll or leave a comment at the bottom of this post or both!!!
Take The Poll – Grammarly vs After The Deadline vs Hemmingway App
(estimated time for completion 4 – 68 seconds)
My Response to Craig on my experiences with Grammarly and After The Deadline
My experience has given me just a little wisdom here. 
…
I have two high-level thoughts here and would love to see if your future experiences are similar or if you find some new kernel of wisdom.
First, I find that it is best to only use one of these tools at a time. I like using Grammarly right now, but I find that I have to turn it off in my browser for short periods of time as it sometimes conflicts with other apps in my browser or apps running on my own site. My site uses a wordpress.com tool that is powered through jetpack on my softduit.com site. It is called After The Deadline.
The two apps do something similar. I do not think they run well together at the same time. It is like having to people standing over both shoulders giving slightly different instructions at the same time.
We have to pick one coach and run with it.
So my advice would be to pick either Grammarly, After The Deadline or the Hemmingway app that you mention and just run with it. Just run with one of them! Not more than one.
Second, Each of these apps approach things slightly differently. I think that writing with just one of these for a few months or even a year or two can teach us and train us to improve our writing significantly.
Regardless, there comes a time when we need to shift our abilities and train ourselves in a new discipline. That’s often a good time to switch to a different tool.
So in my humble opinion and in my past experience, I find it useful to drink theKool-Aid and use an app and just love it for all its worth and see how much it can help you grow. When you have learned all you can or are starting to stagnate, then find the next app. It may or may not be ‘better’ but it will be different and that can help you grow too!