The Hemingway Editor: Everything You Need to Know

 

The Hemingway Editor is a helpful tool for writers. It enhances the clarity and readability of your writing. It is named after the famous author Ernest Hemingway.

 

The editor highlights very hard sentences, excessive adverbs, and passive voice. It encourages a more concise writing style.

Even if you are a professional writer or a beginner, the Hemingway Editor is a valuable resource. It will enhance your writing and make it more powerful.

 

Embracing this tool means committing to clear communication. Your message will have a lasting impact on your readers.

In our last article, we discussed how to become an SEO blog post writer. In this blog post, we will look at a Hemingway editor tool to help you as a professional writer.

 

What is the Hemingway Editor?

The Hemingway Editor is an app or tool that analyzes your writing. It improves the readability and clarity of your writing, grammar, and choice of words, and offers suggestions for improving simplicity, conciseness, and perfection.

What sets the Hemingway editor apart is the way it analyzes every sentence in your write-up and makes suggestions on how to improve on it.

 

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How to Use Hemingway Editor

Hemingway Editor is easy to understand and simple to use. Here are the basic steps:

Visit the Hemingway Editor website by clicking on hemingwayapp.com. This is where you’ll find the free online editor.

1. Open the website – you can do this with your phone browser or desktop.
2. Paste your text – Copy and paste your text. You can paste up to 1500 words of writing into the main editor window. Also, you can write new content directly in the editor.
3. Review highlights – Hemingway will analyze your text and highlight issues in different colors. Look closely and observe each color to see suggestions. Ensure to check the highlighted adverbs, passive voice, and hard-to-read sentences.
4. Check the readability score – check on the right for the overall readability grade level. From grade 6 down to 1 is acceptable. It shows the article will perform well on search engines.
5. Edit your work– Now, go back through your text and implement the suggested changes. Split up lengthy sentences, remove unnecessary adverbs, and change passive voice to active.
6. Export/publish – If using the desktop app, you can export your writing or publish directly to WordPress and Medium.

 

Free vs. Paid Hemingway version

 

The main differences between the free and paid versions are:

 

The free version does not have the feature to export or save your work.

The paid version has features for you to save and export your documents. In addition, you also have the option of publishing your work directly to WordPress or Medium.

Both versions offer the full Hemingway Editor analysis.

In a nutshell, for a short writing piece and quick help, with the free version, you’re good to go. But, if you’re writing is long, or planning to publish online, the paid version may be worth your investment.

 

READ ALSO: How To Become a Freelance Writer Without a Degree: My Journey From Novice to Pro

 

 Can the Hemingway Editor Really Improve Your Writing?

Yes, if you’re a beginner in writing or probably looking for a free or affordable app that will help you improve your writing, the Hemingway Editor could be a useful tool.

The app is good at recognizing hard, very hard, and wordy sentences. Also, it tells you about your usage of passive voice and adverbs.

This notwithstanding, it is good you know how to do the writing and learn to effectively self-edit. Tools like the Hemingway Editor can help you, but they won’t write for you.

 

What do the colors mean in Hemingway Editor?

 

The Hemingway editor displays different colors for different mistakes. This feature makes it easier to quickly scan through your work. Here is a brief explanation of what each of the colored highlights means:

 

Purple highlights: Indicates other word choices that simple are and easier to understand.

 

Tips on how to fix this

Look at the suggested substitutions, but don’t immediately replace purple words, which are not necessarily “errors”.

Replace unnecessarily complex or obscure words with similar words.

But leave purple words that fit your writing style.

 

 

Green highlights: Indicates a sentence is written in the passive voice.

 

Tips on how to fix this

Rephrase sentences in passive voice to active voice if possible.

 

Red highlights: Indicates a sentence that is very difficult to read.

 

Tips on how to overcome this

Break the sentences into 2 or more shorter sentences

Isolate independent clauses – convert dependent clauses into new sentences

Rephrase wordy sentences

Rewrite using a more straightforward sentence structure

 

Yellow highlights: Indicates a sentence that is hard to read.

Tips on how to overcome this

Break apart sentences connected by lots of commas and conjunctions like “and”, “but”, and “because”.

Split sentences of over 20-25 words.

Avoid 4+ clauses connected with commas or semicolons.

Evaluate if the long sentence is clear or will be clearer in simplification

 

Blue highlights: Indicates an inappropriate adverb.

 

Tips on how to overcome this

Delete the adverbs and leave the sentences like that without trying to add extra meaning.

Replace some adverbs with stronger verbs.

 

 

What do the grades in Hemingway Editor mean?

 

The grade level tells you the level of education a person needs to understand your writing. A lower grade level means the text is easier to read and understand, while a higher level means the text is more complex and difficult to understand. The higher the level, the more complex the writing is.

 

Always aim is to have a lower grade level to make your writing more readable and accessible to a broader audience.

 

If you’re into academic writing and the grade level is high, the article is okay. But if you’re a freelancer trying to pitch clients on freelancing websites with your writing, you should always strive for a lower grade level.

 

Conclusion

In conclusion, the Hemingway Editor is a great tool for writers of all levels. Its simple yet powerful features provide a unique and effective way to improve the clarity, readability, and overall impact of your writing.

 

By highlighting tough sentences, excessive adverbs, and passive voice, the Hemingway Editor encourages a more concise and straightforward writing style, reminiscent of the renowned author for whom it is named.

 

Even if you are a professional writer looking to improve your writing or seeking guidance as a novice, the Hemingway Editor is an essential resource that will help you improve your writing.

 

Embracing the Hemingway Editor means embracing a commitment to clear and powerful communication, ensuring that your message will resonate with your audience and leave a lasting impact.