There is value in knowing what words you’re using or overusing. There is value in knowing, based on the words you’re using and the way your sentences are structured, the type of general personality you are writing with. To trust the results 100% is foolish. To discredit them 100% is equally foolish. The same goes with human feedback.

Mike, I appreciate you engaging in debate over this – I should make that clear, too. I think that one of the points that you make that is incredibly important for people to take notice of is the value of the human being. In the world of technology, and especially over an electronic medium like a blog or any other form of new media or digital media, it is easy to forget to include humans, or to remember that you are writing for humans. As a society, we run a legitimate risk of forgetting that. We run a risk of ignoring the humanity that has to exist.

I have a background in writing, as well. Let’s grab some drinks sometime and debate the finer points of writing. Sounds great to me.

So BlogShop Reno? We spend 15 min per person critiquing blogs on Style, Content, Design and usability. Over beers…

-M

Admittedly, the man/woman judgement is mostly fun, but I think there is still value for any writer to have their writing evaluated both subjectively and objectively. I wouldn’t turn down the opportunity to wax prophetic over a tall can of brew with some buddies, but there is some value to using automatically generated means of evaluated your writing, too.

So the submissive point to this entry was that one’s blog writing SHOULD be evaluated. If you’re content with the intent and content of your writing, so be it. But, I agree, you should ask yourself some of the questions you’ve posed. What IS your intent? What voice do you WANT to have? I value the opinion of an algorithm and I value the opinion of a friend. How is your writing coming across? How is it being perceived? If the answers to those questions are not consistent with your intent, then you must ADJUST your writing. All writing has an audience. Intent, alone, does not make something so. Your message is what your audience perceives it to be.

Long comment short – yes, there is some value to using automated evaluators, strictly to gain insight. Will they tell you everything you want to know about your writing? No. Bloggers are people. Those who read blogs are people. No way of getting around this. It will always be about inter-personal relationships. But self awareness is also of incredible value – because if your intent does not meet your result, you can adjust.

I’m not sure I see the importance of those applications, because what a statistical program reads isn’t what people read. But from the background of a writer I can say that voice is incredibly important in written communication. But what is the goal of a piece of writing? To tell a story? To evoke emotion? To change a mind? To piss someone off? To rank high in a google search? Those are the high level questions that you want to answer. Then relate your results to that datum.

If it’s input you’re looking for Mike; if it’s creativity sharing, workshopping, brainstorming, you’ll get farther by buying your friends a tallcan and asking them for feedback while they drink it. Automated web services aren’t going to make you a better writer. Granted, there’s no SEO in that.

-M

ps your header image is awesome