5 replies to this topic

[Steenstrupian]

Great app and software. I've asked this feature of just about every novel-writing ware I've ever used: surely I'm not the only one who'd like it, am I? When I finish pieces, I realise my problem is that sometimes words are repeated in uncomfortable proximity. I realise this would be a big ask, but could you program some feature whereby you could set the parameters for what counts as 'proximity' - 100, 200 words, whatever - and that the program could, excluding of course words like 'and', 'but', 'said', and others you might teach it, like character names, tell you, 'ok, you've repeated the word 'salmagundi' twice within 500 words', so you could nix your own repetitions.

[Marguerite]

This is a great idea. In the meantime you can run a search for "salmagundi" and see how often it shows up and where.

At least, you can in the Mac version. Note that I'm talking about typing the suspect word in the search box next to the magnifying glass icon in the top right corner, not a search using the Edit > Find (Command-F) feature. The search box finds all occurrences and displays them in context, which can help you figure out if they are too close.

I think the iPad app has a less sophisticated search feature, but I'm not sure.
Welcome to the forums,
Marguerite

[Thoth]

Steenstrupian, on 28 January 2012 - 10:10 AM, said:

Great app and software. I've asked this feature of just about every novel-writing ware I've ever used: surely I'm not the only one who'd like it, am I? When I finish pieces, I realise my problem is that sometimes words are repeated in uncomfortable proximity. I realise this would be a big ask, but could you program some feature whereby you could set the parameters for what counts as 'proximity' - 100, 200 words, whatever - and that the program could, excluding of course words like 'and', 'but', 'said', and others you might teach it, like character names, tell you, 'ok, you've repeated the word 'salmagundi' twice within 500 words', so you could nix your own repetitions.

Hi Steenstrupian, and welcome to the forum.

A lot of word processors out there do word count but I've never come across a "proximity" word counter before. And, frankly, I think it's an excellent idea. I would, however, like an option to include the little words too. I can't tell you how many times I've written "and and" or "and the and the" (never used "salmagundi" twice in a paragraph, though I've eaten it in a French restaurant).

So, seconded (or thirded, I just noticed M's post).
-Thoth

Edit: I currently find "and and" by using the Search box.

[Steenstrupian]

Thoth, on 28 January 2012 - 07:28 PM, said:

Hi Steenstrupian, and welcome to the forum.

A lot of word processors out there do word count but I've never come across a "proximity" word counter before. And, frankly, I think it's an excellent idea. I would, however, like an option to include the little words too. I can't tell you how many times I've written "and and" or "and the and the" (never used "salmagundi" twice in a paragraph, though I've eaten it in a French restaurant).

So, seconded (or thirded, I just noticed M's post).
-Thoth

Edit: I currently find "and and" by using the Search box.

Hi, and thanks. Very nice to know I'm not alone or crazy. I requested this once ages ago on the Scrivener forum, to resounding uninterested shrugs. Everyone was like, 'Why would you want that?' I was really bemused. It is the single feature I most pine for in any word processing software or app, and has been for many years. Eventually you can imagine it getting more sophisticated, looking for shared roots too - 'You typed "insinuated", then "insinuate", then "insinuatory" in three successive paragraphs', for e.g. - but right now simple repetition would be a start. I fall in love with particular words for particular projects and grossly overuse them, and despite my attempts to police it in the editing, some always slip through. This would be an immense help.

[Thoth]

Steenstrupian, on 28 January 2012 - 09:24 PM, said:

Hi, and thanks. Very nice to know I'm not alone or crazy. I requested this once ages ago on the Scrivener forum, to resounding uninterested shrugs. Everyone was like, 'Why would you want that?' I was really bemused. It is the single feature I most pine for in any word processing software or app, and has been for many years. Eventually you can imagine it getting more sophisticated, looking for shared roots too - 'You typed "insinuated", then "insinuate", then "insinuatory" in three successive paragraphs', for e.g. - but right now simple repetition would be a start. I fall in love with particular words for particular projects and grossly overuse them, and despite my attempts to police it in the editing, some always slip through. This would be an immense help.

For me the big problem is not knowing the word or phrase I'm repeating ("and the and the" is just one example). When I'm blasting through a paragraph at a zillion words per second, who has time to vet phrases for repetition? (This would be on Storyist for Mac, of course. I find typing on the iPad excruciatingly slow.)
-T

[A.R. Curry]

Absolutely terrific idea. Autocrit.com offers a great resource for this, but it is a charged service. A couple of those features, like repetitive word usage, should be a free thing in my opinion.