Your Blog's Readability

The following blog tool, regarding readability, seemed interesting to me when I saw it on one of those days I was surfing other blogs. I checked my rating at the time, thought about posting the information here; then when I got around to it, forgot where I had found it, hadn't bookmarked it, and had to Google it to find it again.

This first readability rating was done December 9th:

Because I thought it probable that it was only checking one date (given how fast it shows results), I asked it to reevaluate for a specific, earlier date using different subject matter and this time it said:

Out of curiosity for how this compared, I took the blog it rated at college level to my Word program where it can do a grammar check as well as rate the writing according to readability using Flesch Reading Ease (where it was 66.3) and Flesch-Kincaid Grade Level (where it came in at 8.1).

Finally I looked online to refresh my memory as to what that Flesch reading ease number meant. The higher the number, the more readable; so 120 would be something a fifth grader could read and understand. Examples given to explain this further were-- Reader's Digest magazine rates about 65; Time magazine -- 52, and Harvard Law Review comes in the low 30s.

When I was writing fiction, I aimed to be about where I am, according to Flesch evaluations, not too simple and not too complex. I found no quick way to see how the online test was setting their criteria.

The question for a writer of anything always is who are they trying to reach? If it's too simple, is it not saying enough? If it's too demanding, do readers tune out who didn't want to have to think that day?

While I always like seeing instant results, I have a feeling the Flesch tests on Word are probably closest to where I see my writing here; but it took seeing the online evaluation to remind me to use the Flesch tools. Since writing well is important to me, I should have thought of doing it sooner.

To check your own blog, just click on the icon.