In order to get an actual breakdown of the proofreading, however, you need to register.

And in order to register, you need to give them payment information for a 7-day free trial with automatic billing if you don’t cancel your subscription before then.

SO! In order to save any of my fellows the trouble of doing that, I have done it and am presenting a detailed summary of how well (or not) it works!

TL;DR: it is terrible for fiction, might be good for academic or professional paper writing.

Let’s begin with the interface.

So that’s how it looks. The right-hand side menu gives an overview of how much it found wrong, and also allows you to click to a specific category of errors to navigate through them specifically.

Since I’m just going through all of them, I’m just using that little ‘Next’ link on the error-info window to progress through the list.

Also, you can see it shows the text which was flagged as an ‘error’ in this context highlighted red, with an explanation of the error and a brief grammar lesson thing.

The ‘Long Explanation’ is basically just a less-brief grammar lesson, so I ignored them because I am grammatically educated.

Now, moving on to the actual grammatical analysis.

Okay, that’s interesting. I admit, it’s a kind of odd turn of phrase on my part, so I can see where that comes from. However, the ‘a’ is actually an article on the ‘half dozen’, not on ‘roses’, so it’s fine.

Fairish point, but I’m using it to modify an adjective, not a verb. It’s exactly where it’s supposed to be.

Haha! I didn’t even know “faulty parallelism” was a thing, actually, in the sense of the term. I just call it verb agreement (which is not the same as subject-verb agreement), but I guess this is why I am not a grammar teacher.

Anyway, JOKE’S ON YOU, “being” is a gerund here so my parallelism is not, in fact, faulty.

…er…….. no. “Perfumed” is an adjective here, and so is “origami”. The noun is “orchids”. (To be fair(?), it is a sentence fragment, so maybe that confused it.)

Nice try but no, it is in fact supposed to be an infinitive right there. Sorry.

I sat here for a few moments just going “omitted words? What?”

And then I realized it thinks the subject of that sentence is “myself”. Ha? No?

My complex sentences apparently confuse the heck out of the poor thing.

It says the subject is the word “her”. Can you find the word “her”? HERE’S A TIP: It’s not even remotely a subject. (I actually had to read it three times before realizing “oh, wait, THAT’S the word they think is the subject?”)

…Huh. I didn’t know that. This warrants further investigation. Potentially good catch.

No, that’s not a comma splice, it’s a… I forget what the word for it is. I do it a lot, though. I just call it an introductory phrase.

It’s totally fine, although I think maybe there should be a comma after “Now”?

That is not doing any of the things you think it’s doing; it’s being a serial comma. Then again, you didn’t realize ‘being’ was a gerund, so…

Grammarly does not like my asides, it appears.

Well, I just reviewed it and I can assure you that there are no commas here between the subject and the verb. (Because there’s no subject.)

Okay so this is in retrospect a terribly written sentence, but it is not in fact a comma splice. It should be rewritten anyway.

Yeah… that’s a sentence fragment. I got nothin’.

Oh well that’s okay, this isn’t formal writing! (I skipped all the other ‘And’ ones because boring.)

Yeahhh that’s a sentence fragment alright.

Also a sentence fragment!

As it turns out, I use quite a lot of sentence fragments in dialogue, so I skipped the rest of them because it was getting tedious.

Okay, okay, that is a horrible sentence. It is. I admit it. But it’s not a sentence fragment. (I know, I know, it sounds like one, but it’s not! ‘His amusement’ is the subject!)

Hmm. Interesting thing to catch! I rather approve. In this particular case, however, it is actually relevant. I could theoretically have said “Is this an elaborate joke?” but the “some sort of” gives it a particular impact.

Also, I think they are going more for writing things such as “that is sort of nice”.

Ooh, another one! That’s fair. I could scrap ‘generally’. I wonder if the effect on the tone would be too much.

“Oh it’s this sentence again.”

Grammarly still does not like my asides.

And it’s still confused as all get-out by my gerund “being”. (I copied the whole thing for the passive voice this time so you can see it, but shan’t for the next few.)

This is, in fact, the passive voice. But I think it’s a legitimate use. “A quiet sound from behind me distracted me from my musings.” No, the passive is better there. It keeps the emphasis on “I”, which is where it should be.

Same as the last one. Interestingly enough, I appear to have used the passive voice for partly the same reason both of these times. This one, however, I also used it for the subject agreement with the second clause.

…yeah no that’s not the passive voice this time, it’s just past.

That’s a copula.

That’s still a copula.

“Hey it’s that sentence again!” Is it the passive if you have an implied doer, i.e. what the thing is being done by? Questioning minds would like to know.

Haha, Grammarly does not like my apostrophes. It yelled at me all four times!

Oh boy. Well, this isn’t formal writing, so…

It yelled at me for every single contraction, which I decided really did not need to be posted.

I am sensing this was definitely not designed to accommodate fiction.

…interesting! I like it! This would potentially be very useful indeed.

It caught all of my uses of ones you would expect; very, nice, good. But…

Simple? Really? You think “easy” is less vague and overused than “simple”? Really?

Boring is a perfectly fine word, I shall have you know!

And that’s that. I am definitely going to be cancelling my account; it is really not worth the kind of money they are charging at all. Even if you are writing formal papers and whatnot. (I hope it’s not too difficult to unsubscribe, blah.)

The chart itself is available here

The analysis follows below!

Ascendant Sagittarius (6) semi-sextile Sun/Saturn (7 Sco) square Moon conjunct Uranus opposes Chiron

People initially see him as honest and curious. He comes across as individualist and often gives the sense of being a “revolutionary for truth”. His outer persona often conflicts with his deeper feelings, causing an inner tension which he can channel as an outward motivation. He has the potential to unite the two (inner feelings and outer persona) but only with effort and discipline.

Past traumas lurk in the background, a constant risk of throwing him completely off-balance and pulling his outer persona completely aside.

Midheaven Virgo (25) conjunct Venus quintile Uranus square Neptune quincunx Lilith

He is recognized as an excellent problem-solver, particularly when it comes to aiding distressed young women. His success stems from his ability to “think outside the box”, but his great imaginative and creative energy can lead him down the path of impractical solutions – sometimes to the point of ridiculous. He also has a tendency to come up with solutions that will succeed, but at the expense of himself.

1st House - Sagittarius

Curious, truth-seeking, driven to exploration

Uranus (7 Sag) square Moon (9 Vir) semi-sextile Sun/Saturn/Mercury (7-8 Sco) conjunct AC (6 Sag) conjunct Jupiter (12 Sag) weak quintile MC (25 Vir)

Fire House, Fire Sign, Air Planet

He has a seemingly endless curiosity for things outside the sphere of “normal life”, especially those relating to unique or unusual aspects of himself. He feels most comfortable when travelling and exploring, especially when Things Go Wrong. However, he needs to have an anchor, a home and a family to go back to.

He also has a sense of obligation to challenge the status quo, a righteous paladin for Truth. Others viewing him as a rebel or revolutionary tends to feed into his identity as the same.

Jupiter (12 Sag) square Moon (9 Vir) conjunct Uranus (7 Sag) weak

Fire House, Fire Sign, Water Planet

Considers “truth” to be an abstract/hierarchical ideal, of great value. Drawn to abstract/intellectual faiths and is often driven to show others what he finds as the truth.

Neptune (27 Sag) sextile Pluto (29 Lib) square MC (25 Vir)

Fire House, Fire Sign, Water Planet

Highly imaginative, sense of identity tends to drift away from a root in reality and into imagined possibilities

Has the potential to use his imagination and creativity to entirely reinvent/transform his identity.

This creative imagination and unrealistic sense of self conflict with the practical nature of aiding others, but he thrives on the challenge of “doing the impossible”.

2nd House - Capricorn

I guess it just sort of enhances the concept of wealth and values as primarily material? Prefers skills with structure and rules?

Earth House, Earth Sign

3rd House - Aquarius

Highly idealized concepts of education and learning, difficulty in connecting to immediate family

Lilith (25 Aqu) quincunx MC (25 Vir)

Air House, Air Sign, ? Planet

Difficulty in communicating his innermost emotions, especially in regards to Certain Women In His Life

4th House - Pisces

He finds mental and emotional refuge in escapism and/or self-delusion.

Water House, Water Sign

5th House - Aries

He charges into “battle” (literally or otherwise) out of the desire for praise, admiration, positive attention. He also takes great enjoyment in practicing the martial arts.

Fire House, Fire Sign

6th House - Taurus

He is very practical and generally reliable when it comes to the mundane everyday business of living; keeping a job, buying groceries.

Chiron (1 Gem) r opposes AC (6 Sag) weak

Earth House, Air Sign, ? Planet

He tends to let his own physical well-being fall by the wayside, caring and focusing more on the injuries or illnesses of others.

7th House - Gemini

Has trouble maintaining stable relationships; romantic, platonic, and antagonistic. Liable to flip-flopping.

TN Node (16 Gem)

Air House, Air Sign

8th House - Cancer

Defensive/protective of his deepest/most intimate relationships. I’m not sure how to tie philosophy/occult to a sense of home…

Water House, Water Sign

9th House - Leo

Charismatic leader, travels to far places and wins their admiration/attentions

Moon (9 Vir) sextile Sun/Saturn/Mercury (7-8 Sco) square AC/Uranus/Jupiter (6/7/12 Sag)

Fire House, Earth Sign, Water Planet

He desires and strives for the praise, esteem, or even worship of the community, and even more highly for those he considers family. He can be very successful at it, as long as he stays honest about who he is.

The common perception of his character as somewhat rebellious and reputation for shaking things up can make some uneasy, but it also gives him a certain energy/magnetism that draws peopl to him.

Venus (19 Vir) conjunct Mars (21 Vir) semisquare Sun (7 Sco) conjunct MC (25 Vir) weak

Fire House, Earth Sign, Earth Planet

He wants to be loved by many and finds that it generally is true. People tend to be drawn to him, wanting to help him or do nice things for him. Sometimes, though, he finds it difficult to strike a balance between gathering a flock of adoring fans and being true to his own identity and purpose.

He also has difficulty in understanding that others can view the world differently from him.

Mars (21 Vir) conjunct Venus (19 Vir)

Fire House, Earth Sign, Fire Planet

He is very competitive when it comes to the attentions and esteem of others. Especially women.

10th House Virgo

His greater calling is to live in service of others, particularly as a problem-solver.

Earth House, Earth Sign

11th House - Libra

Wants to be and works best as part of a group, hates being alone/excluded. Maintaining good feelings towards one another in a group is important to him.

STELLIUM! Not a very big one, but a very focused one. His life is very much focused on his friends and companions.

Pluto (29 Lib) sextile Neptune (27 Sag)

Air House, Air Sign, Water Planet

He is intensely passionate about helping his friends, especially when they have a problem that needs to be solved or fixed. To that end, he has a wellspring of inspiration and creativity that gives him the ability to come up with unexpected and unique solutions.

In his desire to solves all of their problems, however, he can sometimes delude himself into thinking they need help when they don’t.

Sun (7 Sco) conjunct Saturn/Mercury (7/8 Sco) semi-sextile AC/Uranus (6/7 Sag) sextile Moon (9 Vir) semisquare Venus (21 Vir)

Air House, Water Sign, Fire Planet

His identity is built around his social relationships and groups, and ties in deeply to his emotional connections with others – connections which he very much cares about, and which can either strengthen his sense of self or drain away from it.. He views his functional role in groups as being a source and gatherer of information, not only feeling happiest when fulfilling that role but seeing it as an obligation.

While he considers mutual positive opinions of each other and a generally harmonious social balance to be important, he has significant difficulty in actually maintaining such a status. The other members of his groups tend to see him as the least likely to go along with the others, whether out of stubbornness or out of having a “better idea”.

He also is motivated to take the ideas and wishes of his friends and make them a reality; sometimes going to great lengths to make this happen.

Saturn (7 Sco) conjunct Sun/Mercury (7/8 Sco) semi-sextile AC/Uranus (6/7 Sag) sextile Moon (9 Vir) semisquare Venus (21 Vir)

Air House, Water Sign, Air Planet

Tends to feel obligated to his friends and companions, either out of true obligation or imagined. He is most disciplined and responsible when working with others, especially those he considers his family.

Along with his desire to make real the thoughts of his friends, he has a latent potential to actually bring them about. Additionally, he finds a natural balance between self-indulgence and self-discipline, tending to neither in excess.

Mercury (8 Sco) conjunct Sun/Saturn (7 Sco) semi-sextile Uranus (7 Sag) sextile Moon (9 Vir) semisquare Venus (21 Vir)

Air House, Water Sign, Air Planet

Communicates most easily and effectively within his particular social spheres, willing to travel far to maintain those relationships. He takes it upon himself to spread or share new ideas, especially throughout his social networks.

He is happiest talking to his family, particularly the female members, although he has greater difficulty in finding balance with those relationships.

12th House - Scorpio

Passionate, possessive, and prone to holding strong emotions for a stubbornly long time, he does his best to keep those “inconvenient” aspects of his personality under wraps. Also prone to denying changes in himself, and his strongest feelings – particularly negative ones.

Water House, Water Sign

But I’ve gotten the hang of it and I’d forgotten how fun it can be (just so long as I don’t think about what I’ve already written; that way lies madness because dang is it badly written).

The way I do this sort of writing is sort of a cross between running a 5k and chasing butterflies. Chasing butterflies for several miles. (I actually really like that analogy.) I start writing a scene and keep going until a) the scene transitions into another, b) I get bored of the scene, or c) I get stuck on how to continue it. At which point bam! New scene! Sometimes I will put in a note with a brief summary of what needs to happen in the bit I am skipping writing, assuming there is a bit I am skipping writing.

The net result is an erratic mess with a vaguely coherent story line. It works well for getting the story told but let me tell you from experience: it is hard work cleaning that up.

(For more information on my NaNoWriMo project for this year, go here.)

I happen to view it as a life philosophy. (Which explains why people who clearly do not get it make me rage! Because I am like that.)

First of course is the aesthetics angle. The Neo-Victoriana aspect of the aesthetics is, quite frankly, more of a personal preference than part of the philosophy itself. But the time period is in fact very, very relevant.

The 19th century. This was the early Industrial Age, when technology was exploding and factories were becoming A Thing. Dreadful factories. Mass production. Cheap bulk goods.

Steampunk takes the reaction to that and runs with it. It takes the glory and excitement and innovation of technological invention, of scientific discoveries, and it builds from that. It is a celebration of creative genius, the brilliance and skill of the individual in the pursuit of something greater – even if that something is simply adventure.

At the same time, it rejects factories and mass production. It is about individual creativity and expression, not row upon row of identical soulless products, created for convenience and appealing to people’s frugality or simply cheapness. There is no mass-production in steampunk. It is all individual, unique, built for a person and a purpose.

Which brings me to one point that I consider possibly the most important aesthetic principle in steampunk. And yet, I feel as though it is underused.

Everything should have a purpose.

Taking an object and adding extraneous non-functional clockwork mechanisms to it does not make it steampunk. Some people will disagree. I don’t care.

Are you designing a steampunk ray gun for a prop? Then no, it doesn’t have to actually shoot ray beams. But the parts you add to the design should still have a purpose. This bit is the Photonic Condensor, this is the Focal Amplificator, that lovely intricate bit is the Bilateral Expansion Control, et cetera.

Don’t just stick something on “because it looks cool”. PUT SOME THOUGHT INTO IT. Not doing so will simply undermine your own work, your self. Any good steampunk design is a form of self-expression.

And that doesn’t mean the design should be purely functional. On the contrary: the point of steampunk is to take the functionality and make it beautiful. It should express your passion and care for your work.

Now I will wander back over to the less aesthetic side of the philosophy. We have the ideas of individual expression, creativity and uniqueness. But there is also the steampunk attitude. It is a wonderful attitude, one full of hope and excitement and wonder and curiosity and exploration of the new and unknown.

Steampunk is about stretching the boundaries of imagination and reality. It is about sacrificing practicality for beauty and excitement. It is about not merely discovering the unknown, but searching it out. It is about wonder, and adventure, and the constant process of learning new things. It is about exploring uncharted frontiers, encountering fantastic creatures and cultures.

Steampunk is about joy and wonder, about viewing the world as the best it could be, about living one’s passions and following one’s dreams. It is about refusing to accept that anything is impossible.

And this, this is my steampunk. This is my world. This is how I want to live my life.

So now, perhaps it is understandable why I might overreact a bit when people call half-assed clockwork on brown “steampunk”.

It’s a tough question, largely because I really am still quite new to this whole novel-writing. I think my first serious attempt at writing was only in 2007, for my first NaNoWriMo. I’ve been spending a large part of the past few years experimenting different methods, techniques, etc. so I figure the best approach to this is just to go through what I’ve tried and what has/hasn’t worked.

The first, most obvious choice of tools is how one puts the words down in the first place. I’ve tried writing by hand and writing by computer and while there are pros and cons to both, I’ve found overall writing by computer to work better. Writing by hand was immensely useful when I was still trying to get the hang of writing a first draft – i.e. not worrying about phrasing things just so the first time around – but it is much slower than typing. And much more tiring on my hands.

What sort of outlining tools may I use, then? Well, none. I don’t do outlines. At most, I have a little text document where I jot down ideas for where I want the story to go. Normally those ideas stay in my head until I get there, though.

I’ve tried several different computer writing environments (software, essentially) and found the best combination for me to be Open Office (or Word, if that’s how you swing) and Scrivener.

SCRIVENER. IS. AMAZING.

The way I have things set up for invisible dragons (the book I’m working on now), I have everything divided into files by scene, and then categorized roughly by chapter into folders. In Scrivener. It’s all in one overall folded titled “Draft”.

Each scene file then has a title, a small summary area, and a sidebar for any additional notes. Furthermore, you can mark text within the text itself as an annotation, which not only separates it visually by color but also doesn’t include that text when you compile the project. (Compiling the project means exporting it as a single document. Text, PDF, whatever.)

Not only that, but you can mark entire files as whether or not they should be included in the final compile.

And I haven’t even GOTTEN to the snapshot feature yet, which lets you save a copy of each file at any given point so you can revert to it after a rewrite if you want. It’s going to be fantastic for revision.

You can view your project as one long continuous text, or as an outline, or in the “cork board” format (which is my least favorite but everyone’s different).

Where it’s really going to shine, though, is with my language/novel project. So far I have a folder for language notes, a folder for references, and of course the primary draft folder. You can add external documents to the project, pictures, etc.

…So I guess the final answer to “what sort of special tools do you use” is “SCRIVENER!”