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Source: https://writers.stackexchange.com/a/44370
License name: CC BY-SA 3.0
License URL: https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/3.0/

It's possible you're tying yourself in knots with Hemingway which is, perhaps, better for prose writers than technical writers.

Hemingway themselves state:

> But what if I want to break the rules?
> 
> Rules are meant to be broken. If you know what you're doing, don't let us stop you. View our suggestions as just that.

I used to write instructional manuals for IBM and Sun Microsystems. For new users, I'd try to emulate the formatting of a Dummies book. [Word 2007 for Dummies](https://www.amazon.co.uk/Word-2007-Dummies-Dan-Gookin/dp/0470036583/ref=sr_1_3?keywords=MS%20Word%20for%20dummies&qid=1554396226&s=gateway&sr=8-3) has a _Look Inside_ for you to see how they handle it.

If you aren't constrained by company formatting, try splitting out the processes with a quick explanation, followed by a numbered list of commands, with the clicks and keyboard strokes in bold, and explanations unbolded. Like this:

**IMPORTING A PICTURE INTO A MS WORD DOCUMENT**

Importing pictures into Word is very easy, just take the following steps:

1. Left click the **INSERT** menu option. A pop up menu appears.

2. From the pop up menu, select **PICTURES**. A side menu appears.

3. From the side menu, select **PICTURE FROM FILE**.

Stripping each method into numbered lists avoids long, complex sentences with commands embedded in the middle. Of short sentences like this, Hemingway should approve.

**I've used mouse clicks in this example, which you would just switch out for keyboard commands. I didn't know the keyboard commands for this example!**

HTH, but difficult to advise better when I don't know all the rules you have to abide by.

Original score: 8