I think Grammarly came out before ChatGPT 3, before today's Large Language Model AI's took off. It's therefore not very smart. I heard one editor say that it is especially bad with commas. It recently asked me to change: "I covered my ears but it barely helped." to "I covered my ears, but it barely helped." This is what ChatGPT 3.5 said: No, a comma is not needed in that sentence. "I covered my ears but it barely helped" is correct as it is. Since "I covered my ears" and "it barely helped" are closely related and form a compound predicate, they don't require a comma between them. ChatGPT seems to understand my sentence, while Grammarly gives me the boilerplate below. Grammarly does say that if both independent clauses are very short, it's acceptable to omit the comma, but didn't appear to detect that they were short in my sentence. It appears that you are missing a comma before the coordinating conjunction but in a compound sentence. Consider adding a comma. A compound sentence includes two independent clauses joined by a coordinating conjunction (for, and, nor, but, or, yet, so). In a compound sentence, the conjunction is in most cases preceded by a comma. However, if both independent clauses are very short, it's acceptable to omit the comma.
First, one of the realities of using AI assistants for style issues in writing is that they are evolving based on feedback and usage, and Grammarly is no different. I'm not suggesting it is the only one to use or even the best; I'm using it as an example. Second, I have to disagree with your view on the use of commas between independent clauses. I believe Grammarly is right. Omitting the comma may be an individual preference in deference to the "length" of the clauses, but I prefer to defer to the experts. I always check the Purdue ONien Writing Lab from Purdue University since it's been spot-on helpful for these issues for years. You might want to check their view. They make no exception for the length of the clause. But thanks fo weighing in. Debate about these issues is healthy!owl.purdue.edu/owl/general_writing/punctuation/commas/extended_rules_for_commas.html
I have the free version and am very disappointed as it will not correct the whole book at once. You have to put a chapter at a time in and then paste it back into your manuscript. I would get far too confused with the process so don't use it. When you pay for it, do you get the option to edit the whole manuscript, or not?
Grammarly is an add-on that you activate to comb through a complete manuscript (and it also corrects emails, replies like this one, etc.) I think what you are describing is the online version. In the version I use, I simply open my manuscript file, click on "open Grammarly," and it crawls through the entire manuscript, highlighting possible errors on the manuscript itself and providing me with a sidebar that explains the suggestion, which I can either accept or discard. Hope that helps! Happy writing! P.
I use Grammerly. I self edit, and then I run the software. It finds little things. Great video. Could you do a video on character building? 😊
Character-building sounds like a great topic. I'll put it in the hopper for a future video! Cheers. P.
@@PatriciaJParsons Excellent!
I think Grammarly came out before ChatGPT 3, before today's Large Language Model AI's took off. It's therefore not very smart. I heard one editor say that it is especially bad with commas.
It recently asked me to change:
"I covered my ears but it barely helped."
to
"I covered my ears, but it barely helped."
This is what ChatGPT 3.5 said:
No, a comma is not needed in that sentence. "I covered my ears but it barely helped" is correct as it is. Since "I covered my ears" and "it barely helped" are closely related and form a compound predicate, they don't require a comma between them.
ChatGPT seems to understand my sentence, while Grammarly gives me the boilerplate below. Grammarly does say that if both independent clauses are very short, it's acceptable to omit the comma, but didn't appear to detect that they were short in my sentence.
It appears that you are missing a comma before the coordinating conjunction but in a compound sentence. Consider adding a comma.
A compound sentence includes two independent clauses joined by a coordinating conjunction (for, and, nor, but, or, yet, so). In a compound sentence, the conjunction is in most cases preceded by a comma. However, if both independent clauses are very short, it's acceptable to omit the comma.
First, one of the realities of using AI assistants for style issues in writing is that they are evolving based on feedback and usage, and Grammarly is no different. I'm not suggesting it is the only one to use or even the best; I'm using it as an example. Second, I have to disagree with your view on the use of commas between independent clauses. I believe Grammarly is right. Omitting the comma may be an individual preference in deference to the "length" of the clauses, but I prefer to defer to the experts. I always check the Purdue ONien Writing Lab from Purdue University since it's been spot-on helpful for these issues for years. You might want to check their view. They make no exception for the length of the clause. But thanks fo weighing in. Debate about these issues is healthy!owl.purdue.edu/owl/general_writing/punctuation/commas/extended_rules_for_commas.html
I have the free version and am very disappointed as it will not correct the whole book at once. You have to put a chapter at a time in and then paste it back into your manuscript. I would get far too confused with the process so don't use it. When you pay for it, do you get the option to edit the whole manuscript, or not?
Grammarly is an add-on that you activate to comb through a complete manuscript (and it also corrects emails, replies like this one, etc.) I think what you are describing is the online version. In the version I use, I simply open my manuscript file, click on "open Grammarly," and it crawls through the entire manuscript, highlighting possible errors on the manuscript itself and providing me with a sidebar that explains the suggestion, which I can either accept or discard. Hope that helps! Happy writing! P.