Advertisements for Grammarly are everywhere. For inexperienced writers, the software is a God-send! But the actors in the videos who claim to be professional writers present more questions than answers. Robert Kurzban asks: who is Grammarly for?
You may not know exactly what it is. But if you’ve spent any time on the internet in the past year, chances are, you’ve heard of Grammarly. The actors in the advertisement videos claim that they’ve experienced dramatic improvement in their writing -- all thanks to Grammarly! In a recent article from Nick Perry for Entrepreneur, the contributor claims that Grammarly has drastically improved his freelance writing career. Perry even goes as far as to claim that it is due to his use of the software that he is able to be a freelance writer in the first place.
I know what you’re thinking… yikes.
Freelance writers who craft unique content on a daily basis are talented individuals. While a little fine-tuning in the grammar department never hurt anyone… what does it mean when a professional freelance writer credits software with his freelance writing success?
Quite frankly, I think it’s a bit ridiculous. A professional freelance writer should maintain a natural writing ability. He/she should not have to rely on software, like Grammarly, to properly perform the duties of his/her profession. Personally, I think that Grammarly should be a tool for inexperienced, novice-level writers. The idea that it’s being marketed to professional freelance writers is not only ridiculous -- it’s insulting.
Why work on your skills as a writer when you can just turn to Grammarly to do it all for you? Why seek out your unique voice as a writer when Grammarly can just create one for you?
I certainly hope that this does not mean that creative industries will be reconstructed to embrace a human-less touch. Freelance writing is the last industry I ever envisioned to be automated. Sadly, only time will tell!
