Spent $35 on a self-editing software for my first novel draft

It caught over 200 passive voice sentences I didn't even notice, but now I'm wondering if it made my writing too stiff - has anyone else dealt with losing your natural voice after using one of these tools?

2 comments

2 Comments

the_mia6d ago

Oh man, I totally feel this. It's such a weird trap to fall into, right? You want your writing to be clean but then the tool zaps all the life out of it. I've been there with a grammar checker and honestly I had to stop using it because I felt like I was writing a robot's diary. It's like the software sees passive voice as the enemy but sometimes passive voice just sounds more natural or fits the mood you're going for. Maybe try keeping the tool but only running it on certain sections instead of the whole manuscript at once. That way you catch the real clunkers without losing your flow everywhere else.

spencerw726d ago

But isn't over-polishing actually the problem though? If a grammar tool is changing your voice that much, you might be leaning on it too hard. I've used them for years and my writing still sounds like me because I only accept maybe one out of every ten suggestions it gives me. Passive voice has its place for sure, but most people overuse it without realizing it makes their sentences feel floppy and weak. Just pick and choose what changes to keep instead of blaming the tool for ruining your style.