Comments on: The Secret To More Subscribers: Go Back To High School

By: Readability Level: Graduate School

Readability Level: Graduate School — Tue, 31 Aug 2010 03:43:38 +0000

[...] capable of reading at a graduate level. There is something called the Gunning Fog Index. I wrote a post about it a few years ago. The Index is meant to determine the reading level of your writing. From my post: [...]

By: Steven Bradley

Steven Bradley — Tue, 15 Jan 2008 15:42:08 +0000

Thanks Ray and funny. I agree simple explanations work best. I don’t mind a complex word or sentence here or there and there are times when complex language is appropriate, but not most of the time.

The ones that get me are the people who you can tell went out of their way to choose the most complex word just so they can show off their vocabulary.

By: Ray Johnson

Ray Johnson — Tue, 15 Jan 2008 11:07:53 +0000

That is so true! I always tell people not to write with too complex words. It’s the simple eplanations that work. Thanks for this article. Nobody could explain it better. =)

By: Steven Bradley

Steven Bradley — Sat, 12 Jan 2008 15:53:12 +0000

Funny David. I know what you mean. Coming up with the ideas is the hardest part. Unfortunately I know far too many words that high school students are very familiar with, but aren’t appropriate for a family blog.

By: David Temple

David Temple — Sat, 12 Jan 2008 11:43:37 +0000

Yikes, I can’t think about what I’m going to write let alone think how to write it. No problem though, I don’t have know use any words a high schooler wouldn’t know.

By: Steven Bradley

Steven Bradley — Fri, 11 Jan 2008 23:24:02 +0000

Funny. I type like a three year old, which is an insult to three year olds everywhere, so I can’t really make fun of you. Maybe we need to invent the Gunning typo index.

By: Kristine Shreve

Kristine Shreve — Fri, 11 Jan 2008 21:09:52 +0000

Apparently I don’t type like I swallowed a dictionary. I just re-read my last comment, and I went off the rails somewhere in regard to type and/or proper word use.

Is there a Gunning fog for that?

By: Steven Bradley

Steven Bradley — Fri, 11 Jan 2008 15:57:35 +0000

Don’t be afraid. It is kind of interesting. I was thinking my own Gunning fog index would be higher than it was. Reading some of the things you’ve written I don’t think you’ll score too high. And I’m not really sure how accurate the test is.

I do think it’s something to be aware of. If you consider fiction, most literary works are far superior in every aspect of what a novel is when compared to best seller fiction. But it’s those best sellers that get read more often. A big part of the reason is Gunning fog. Compare the writing in popular or genre fiction to one of the literary masters and it’s easy to see.

By: Kristine Shreve

Kristine Shreve — Fri, 11 Jan 2008 13:34:22 +0000

Wow, I’m not sure I want to do those calculations. I’ve been accused in thepast of talking like a swallowed a dictionary, so I imagine my writing style is probably a bit that way too.

I guess this is something of which I will have to be more aware. I certainly don’t want people choosing not to read my blogs because it is too touch to wade through the paragraphs.

This was interesting and something I’d not considered before.