editor - VIBE score

I - Individuality Score

What is it? Why did we make it? How to get the most out of it.

Self-Reference

What it is

How consistently the writer shows up on the page with owned perspective (“I / we / my / our”)—not a diary, just clear authorship.

What it looks for

A steady pulse of first-person markers across the piece (windowed), not front-loaded in the intro.

Why it matters

Function words (esp. pronouns) are reliable signals of attention, authorship, and stance; they correlate with perceived authenticity and social presence.

Research anchors (quick takes)

• Pennebaker’s work on function words & health/psych outcomes; pronouns as attention/self-focus markers

Scoring gist:

How to improve (tactics)

• Add one ownership line per section (“We shipped…”, “I tested…”).
• Convert passive advice (“It should be done…”) → owned claims (“We do X because…”).
• Avoid stacking 4+ pronouns in one sentence.

Emotional Granularity

What it is

Breadth and specificity of feeling words (frustrated, relieved, anxious…), not vague “good/bad”.

What it looks for

Distinct emotion terms distributed across windows (variety > volume).

Why it matters

Greater emotion differentiation associates with better regulation and clearer communication; lexical variety improves reader understanding.

Research anchors

• Barrett et al.: emotional granularity/differentiation and outcomes.

• NRC Emotion Lexicon (gold-standard mapping of words→emotions).

Scoring gist:

We collect unique emotion terms per window and reward variety with a gentle log curve.

score_k = 1.5 * ln(1 + unique_emotion_terms(window))
final = EWMA_mean(score_k, alpha=0.35)

How to improve

• Replace “good/bad” with precise feelings (annoyed → exasperated; happy → relieved/delighted).
• Rotate the palette every ~250 words (don’t reuse the same 2).

Anecdotal Complexity

What it is

Story skeleton: causal links (“because/so/then/after”) + temporal anchors (when/where/dates).

What it looks for

Frequent narrative markers and time markers that turn claims into sequences.

Why it matters

Narratives with causal/temporal scaffolding are easier to comprehend and remember.
Stories are a distinctly human thing.

Research anchors

• 
  
  • Labov & Waletzky: personal-experience narratives (orientation → complicating action → resolution).
  • Causal/temporal coherence effects on memory & comprehension (narrative psychology).

Scoring gist:
We count narrative markers (because/so/then/after) and temporal markers (last week/2024/this morning) per window.

How to improve

Add a “because/so/then” sentence to each section.

Time-stamp at least one action per section (“In May 2024…”, “Last sprint…”).

Convert listy tips into “setup → action → outcome” mini-stories.

Vulnerability Markers

What it is

Specific, owned admissions of risk/mistakes near “I / we” (not generic “honestly/tbh”).

What it looks for

Vulnerability lexicon hits within ±15 tokens of first-person pronouns.

Why it matters

Concrete self-disclosure, especially when owned linguistically, increases perceived authenticity and trust.

Research anchors

• 
  
  • Pennebaker: self-disclosure & function words; how linguistic style reflects stance.
  • (Related) Newman/Pennebaker lines of work on linguistic honesty cues. 

Scoring gist:

We only count a vulnerability hit when it’s close to “I / we”, so it’s truly owned.

How to improve

Replace “tbh/honestly” with a specific admission + number (“We shipped a week late and comped 12%”).

Keep it near “I / we” within the same sentence.

One owned miss per major section is plenty.

Dialogue Presense

What it is

Letting other voices speak briefly (quotes/DM lines)—texture without transcripts.

What it looks for

Short, meaningful quotations (≥ ~10 chars inside quotes), not long blocks.

Why it matters

Quoted speech increases perceived realism/polyphony; controlled use improves engagement.

Research anchors

• Narrative realism / polyphony traditions; practical ties to engagement (transportation literature). (Representative background, not a single canon paper.)

Scoring gist:

Regex finds compact quotes per window; modest credit per occurrence.

How to improve

One short quote per section that advances the argument.

Trim >25-word quotes; paraphrase and keep one punchy line.

Sensory Experience

What it is

Grounded perception words near “I / we” (see/hear/feel/taste/smell/click/read).

What it looks for

Sensory verbs within ±10 tokens of first-person pronouns.

Why it matters

Imagery activates perceptual systems; grounded language boosts comprehension and engagement.

Research anchors

• 
  
  • Paivio’s Dual-Coding (verbal + imagery).
  • Barsalou’s Perceptual Symbol Systems (concepts grounded in sensorimotor systems).
  • Glenberg/van Elk: embodied language comprehension effects

Scoring gist:
Sensory term within 10 tokens (roughly 8 words) of first person.

How to improve

• Add one vivid sensory beat per ~250 words (“we clicked export…”, “I could see errors vanish”).
• Prefer concrete verbs over adjectives (“tasted burnt”, not “it was flavorful”).

Idiomatic Expressions

What it is

Use of idioms/colloquial frames that add voice and cultural texture.

What it looks for

Recognized idioms sprinkled in, not cliché piles.

Why it matters

Figurative language, when specific and apt, increases vividness and memorability; overuse reads lazy.

Research anchors

• Gibbs: idioms/metaphor as active conceptual structures (not dead ornaments).

Scoring gist:

We scan for idiom phrases per window; small additive credit.

How to improve

Replace generic metaphors with crisp idioms that fit your domain.

Avoid stacking 3+ clichés in one paragraph; keep 1-2 sharp idioms per section.