Business writing involves several skills, disciplines, and procedures. For most businesses it’s rare enough to find an employee that can write professionally, much less follow a particular style the company has developed. StyleWriter from Editor Software won’t write your documents for you, nor will it structure your prose into logically flowing communication — that’s still the responsibility of the writer. But what it will do is analyze your document for grammatical and linguistic problems, while also identifying words or phrases that need to be changed to match your organization’s definition of standards.

Stylewriter Plain English Writing Software Review

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StyleWriter installs as both an add-on for Microsoft Word and as a standalone application. If you regularly use MS Word as your editor you can click the icon in the Word toolbar to start StyleWriter’s analysis. If you use another editor you’ll need to start StyleWriter separately, and you may need to paste your document into the app.

Using MS Word or a similar word processor that supports DDE is the preferred method, though, as StyleWriter uses DDE (dynamic data interchange) to connect to your word processor. StyleWriter can use DDE interactively to apply changes it suggests directly to your document, and will even get out of the way so you can edit the document directly.

You can also use StyleWriter with any other application by copying your text to the Windows Clipboard. This does however make the process more cumbersome since StyleWriter’s changes can’t be automatically applied. In this case you will need to make the edits manually based on StyleWriter’s instructions. It would be helpful if the program had a more generic link and could be used directly with any Windows-based editor.

StyleWriter Screenshot

Going Above and Beyond Your Average Word Processor

So how is StyleWriter different than your average word processor?

All word processors can check your spelling, and most will even review your grammar and suggest changes, but StyleWriter goes beyond that. When StyleWriter is started from its icon in the Word taskbar it performs a preliminary analysis of your document and scores it on three criteria — average sentence length, number of passive verbs used, and overall style.

Different document types use different styles. For example, research papers have distinctly different styles than press releases. StyleWriter offers several choices for the type of document to be checked, including general writing, newsletter, resumé, cover letter, technical report, instructions, and general letter. Selecting the type of document you’ll be checking loads StyleWriter’s basic analytical parameters.

Besides checking sentence length and the number of passive verbs, StyleWriter’s style indexes check for a wide variety of common editorial issues like misused words, confused words, complex words, jargon, abstract words, hyphenation, overused words, legal words, sexist writing, clichés, grammar, and redundancies. And it goes even farther and does some of the same things a human editor would look for, such as overwriting, foreign words, sentence structure check, and even preferred spelling.

Find out how StyleWriter can help you with: Technical Reports, Journalist Writing, Advertising Copy, Minutes of Meetings, Writing Memos, Writing Policies and Procedures, Legal Documents, Essays and Research Papers, Business Letters

read the 21 reasons why you should order your Software for Writers CD.

Now the Fun Begins

StyleWriter – Statistical Summary

After loading and scanning your document against the active parameters, three grades are shown ranging from “horrid” to “excellent.”

That’s when the fun starts.

StyleWriter works like an inline spell checker in that it identifies and highlights each of the offending items that contributed to the high score, then offers advice on fixing each problem. The word or phrase that was identified as violating the rule and the suggestions for repairing the problem are displayed in the Advice window. Many changes can be applied by simply clicking the suggested fix. For example, StyleWriter identified the word “authorized” as a Complex Word, and suggested using “let, allowed, approved, or sanctioned” instead. Simply clicking “allowed” replaced the word in the main document and moved to the next offender.

Some changes require editing the document directly, wherein StyleWriter automatically minimizes after clicking the Edit button so you can make your changes manually.

Customized Rules

StyleWriter – Criteria Summary

In addition to making your documents easier to read using its built-in rules, you can also create your own set of House Rules checked by StyleWriter to ensure that documents adhere to them. For example, if your company has standardized on the spelling “e-mail,” StyleWriter can check for offending spellings like email, eMail, or Email, and suggest they be changed. The other parameters that control sentence length and passive verbs can also be modified to suit the company’s preferences.

A Complete Package

Overall, StyleWriter is a valuable tool for organizations that need to produce high-quality documents and that don’t have a full-time editing staff. Even with a documentation or public relations department, StyleWriter can help by ensuring a consistent set of standards and by easing the burden of training staff on the company’s preferred editorial guidelines.

The StyleWriter program comes with a demo and tutorial as well as a dictionary-thesaurus, a writer’s outliner program, a typing tutor, and a writer’s calculator. Guides for writing technical documents, business plans, resumés, cover letters, essays, and letter writing are also included as bonuses.

You can download a free 30-day trial from http://www.stylewriter.org/buy/index.html, and the full package on CD costs $160.00.

Pros: Valuable collection of tools for improving your writing and ensuring your company’s documents follow a set style, solid integration with Microsoft Word.

Cons: Windows OS Based, you can not use stylewriter on Mac. Aging interface, quite expensive at $160, doesn’t integrate as well with other word processors (especiallys non-DDE-compliant processors), somewhat buggy.

StyleWriter is undoubtedly useful for anyone who writes, not just technical authors. It takes the hard slog out of editing, and draws your attention to stylistic faults you probably didn’t know you had. In an ideal world, every technical author would have a copy of it.

Stylewriter Features – The most powerful way to edit any document

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See some examples of text edited with stylewriter

“Storybase will help jumpstart the creative process, suggesting stories that fit motivations and character.” – EMMY Magazine

“A smart program… A whole host of plot possibilities came into focus. How does this thing know so much about my story…?” – Christopher Vogler – bestselling author of The Writer’s Journey: Mythic Structure for Writers

A sure-cure for writer’s block, Storybase 2.0 can be used throughout the creative process to spark your imagination. Whether you outline first or jump right in, Storybase 2.0 provides thousands of specific, personalized conflict situations that will help your writing project come alive.

Use Storybase 2.0 to discover new possibilities, points-of-view and points-of-departure from which your story can unfold. Use Storybase 2.0 to discover escalating obstacles for each of your characters.

Use Storybase 2.0 to find those elusive scenes and moments, to heighten conflict and edge throughout the comedy or drama you are writing!

List Price: $99.00
Our Price: $69.00

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Highlights

• Characters include Protagonist, Antagonist, Friend/Lover, Family, and Object (X). Each Conflict is from the point-of-view of Protagonist.
• Mindset is an estimate of the Protagonist’s mental state. Examples: Angry, Honest, Suspicious
• Thrust refers to overall attribute, movement, or story action. Examples: Alliance, Exposure, Separation
• Leadins: suggestions for what comes before a given Conflict.
• Leadouts: suggestions for what comes after a given Conflict.
• Quickly create customized Character Sets that contain the names of your characters
• Achieve focused brainstorming by filtering the database with up to three Mindsets and three Thrust/Action values
• Easily export or paste the Situations from Storybase 2.0 into your favorite word processor, visual outliner or screenplay formatter.

System Requirements
PC with Pentium 166 MHz or higher, Windows 95, 98, Me, NT 4.0, 2000 or XP, 64 MB of RAM or greater, 128 MB of free hard drive space, 800×600 (SVGA) or greater.

List Price: $289.00
Our Price: $219.00

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Word Families:
A unique and revolutionary reference dictionary, that will open up a new world of possibilities for descriptive words and ideas.

Parts of Speech:
A comprehensive list of descriptive words, with various filters including alliterations, that allow the writer to be more specific..

Phrases:
A collection of over 33,000 phrases, sayings, idioms, and word combinations.

Rhymes:
The ultimate Rhyming Dictionary with over 100,000 entries, 36,000 Rhymed-Phrases, and the most comprehensive list of Close Rhymes ever created. Rhymes from our Pop-Culture Dictionary are also included.

Pop-Culture:
A Pop-Culture Dictionary with over 11,000 icons of American and World Culture.

Dictionary:
The Merriam-Webster Collegiate Dictionary. 165,000 entries, 225,000 definitions, and 10,000 new words and senses.

Thesaurus:
The Merriam-Webster Collegiate Thesaurus. Over 340,000 synonyms, antonyms, related and contrasted words, and idioms.

Songs:
A database that painlessly organizes all the information related to your songs. Also included is an Audio page and Songuard, an online date-of-creation song registration service.

The most powerful suite of songwriting tools ever assembled in one program

In our daily conversation and in our writing, we tend to use a vocabulary that we are familiar and comfortable with. This can be limiting and in some cases redundant, especially when there are time constraints. If you are looking for the right word, a search in MasterWriter will instantly give you all the possibilities, and from this rich source of descriptive words, you will find new and colorful ways to paint word pictures.

MasterWriter is an unlimited source of ideas pre-inspiration, and an invaluable tool during the creative process. However, its most important role may be post-inspiration, when finding a better way to express yourself or a more creative way to describe something, can be the difference between good and great.

The keys to the “heater of the imagination” are descriptive words. Why be limited to what you can remember, when you can have all the possibilities in an instant?

System Requirements
MAC: PowerPC G4 1.42 GHz or better or Intel Core 2 Duo 2.0 Ghz, OS X 10.4 or better, 512 MB or more RAM, 1 GB recommended, Built-in or External Microphone, QuickTime 7.5.5 or better, (QuickTime Installer Included). WINDOWS: 2.4 GHz or better Processor of Intel Pentium/Celeron Family or AMD Athlon/Duron Family, Windows XP and Vista, XP recommended, 512 MB or more RAM, 1 GB recommended, Built-in or External Microphone, QuickTime 7.5.5 or better, (QuickTime Installer Included).

Increased Productivity – Writer’s Blocks lets you capture and arrange your ideas easier and faster than ever before. Create hundreds of blocks each containing a few sentences or a few pages of text. Arrange your blocks into a coherent structure and then transfer your outline into the integrated full-featured word processor and expound on your ideas. Each block remains linked to a section of your manuscript for quick and easy reference. Click on a block to automatically scroll the corresponding section of your manuscript into view.

Better Organization – Writer’s Blocks lets you store all of your notes and reference material all in one place, but unlike other programs, Writer’s Blocks keeps all of your blocks visible in the workspace for easy reference. Writer’s Blocks provides you with a rich toolset that lets you capture ideas, notes, and other information, quickly and easily – and gain the full benefits of the power of association from the information you have gathered on-screen.

Faster Outlining – Writer’s Blocks lets you capture ideas at the speed of thought. And consolidating information from multiple sources is a snap with the Power Panel. Brainstorm to capture your ideas and information, then arrange them later. Because each block can hold several pages of text, the program will not limit you during any stage of developing your document.

Better Structure - Editing your blocks is a breeze. Each block is like a tiny word processor document. When you are ready to structure your document, just drag and drop your blocks under column heading that you define. Use the AutoArrange and AutoNumber features to keep your blocks in neat rows and columns as you flesh out your story.

Document Overview – Writer’s Blocks gives you the big picture. The bird’s eye view of your data that you enjoy with Writer’s Blocks will give you a completely new perspective on your work. You’ll writer better and faster than ever before!

List Price: $149.00
Our Price: $129.95

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Highlights

• New integrated full-featured word processor lets you use Writer’s Blocks from start to finish
• Split Panel interface lets you view your blocks and manuscript at the same time
• Import and Export native Microsoft Word, RTF, HTML, and text documents. Convert an existing document to blocks and rearrange it, simply by rearranging your blocks
• AutoType feature automatically completes any word that already exists anywhere in your document
• Use Blockmarks to AutoScroll your manuscript to the section associated with the selected block
• Drag and drop text between blocks and any Windows program that supports drag and drop such as your internet browser
• AutoScript feature let’s you format a screenplay with ‘Tab and Enter’ ease

System Requirements
500 MHz Pentium computer or Higher (Pentium 4 recomended), 64 MB RAM, 40 MB, Windows XP, Windows 2000, Windows 98, Windows ME

List Price: $129.95
Our Price: $99.95

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Highlights

• Reorganize an entire novel via drag’n'drop in the powerful Outline View
• Examine any text with the search engine of your choice with a simple click
• Fully customize the program to work the way you want down to the keystroke with a powerful built-in macro language
• Dynamic, real-time spell checking with optional auto-correction, auto-sentence spacing and capitalization
• Powerful thesaurus boasts an integrated definition dictionary so you not only see synonyms but what each one means
• Integrated Name Bank for character creation
• Import and export with all the major Screenwriting programs and general purpose word processors (such as Microsoft Word)