writing tools

Nothing to Writing; Something to Editing

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Once upon a time, Ernest Hemingway said: There is nothing to writing. All you do is sit down at a typewriter and bleed. Letting words flow onto the page/computer screen or even agonizing over the endless possibilities, “bleeding” is necessary when it comes to writing. Needless to say, writing your article, essay, or novel will always seem like it’s the end of your world. Take whatever you want from this quote, but I’m here to tell you: there may be nothing to writing but there is something to editing. You may quote me.

Since taking a dive into the rabbit hole of writing tools, I’ve come across plenty of helpful apps and websites that assist in writing itself. Getting you out of the writing rut and into the swing of things. But I’ve now found an application like no other: Hemingway App (or Editor.) It’s entirely free! Yes, free!

Hemingway App is a smart tool that calculates your flow of writing. Do you think your sentence is passive? Are you jumping around too much in your paragraph? Has your entire chapter bombed? Copy and paste the text you want Hemingway to look into and it’ll get right to work. It will highlight the bits (in an array of colors.) The colors will signify what you’ll need to specifically look at. A sidebar is on the site to serve as an overview of the colors and what to do when you revisit.

You’re also free to write in the box. Just slide the bar over from ‘Edit’ to ‘Write’ and let your creativity flow.

*Keep in mind: you don’t want to use this for your entire written work. People are great editors too.

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The Daily Writing Helper

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Writing habits are difficult to develop once you’ve gotten into the habit of doing something else. You’ll find plenty of blog posts telling you what to do or pins on Pinterest attempting to ignite your writing fire; you may browse books with daily writing prompts or tips on how to improve your skills. These options are cute and all but what about utilizing technology in your favor – particularly the notification bar on your device.

This is where Daily Page comes in.

Daily Page is a wonderful writing tool to assist you in finding your groove – your writing groove.

You’re able to set a time and receive reminders in your email to take some time to dive into writing. You can select a prompt to follow. Or if you’re feeling in a particular mood or ready to embark on one particular journey, you have the option to freewrite. You can track your writing with the writing stats Daily Page offers. It will create your Writing Score which may improve once you begin your daily habit of taking to the keyboard or notebook! There is even the option to visualize your stats. You’ll understand yourself better as a writer and develop better habits to finish your WIP (Work in Progress.)

There are writing courses offered through the subscription. Not simply for novel writing, alone, but for other types of professional writing such as screenwriting and blogging.

Get your subscription going and get your brain to concocting a new story!

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Let Freedom Ring!

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With technology comes plenty of responsibility…or distractions. Mainly the latter. When it comes to writing and technology, distractions aren’t needed.

Focus should be your best friend!
This is where Freedom comes in.

Freedom is an app you can purchase by year or with a Forever plan. This app can be used across devices and operating systems. You have the ability to block the entire internet, block apps, websites, and review your sessions while Freedom is activated. With a premium account, you can utilize a schedule and receive perks!

Overall, Freedom can be used for any type of work but we think it would be most helpful towards your writing career. It will help you control your distractions! Social media? Blocked! Your favorite online store? Blocked! Video streaming services? Blocked! (It’s also good for your health to control your digital habits, but that’s just a plus.)

With Freedom, you select your devices, set your schedule, and block whatever keeps you from meeting your word quota.

Your manuscript will thank you later.

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Language 101

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We can all agree: languages are fun to write, sometimes. Other times, they’re difficult to work with. There are a variety of languages, accents, dialects, and so on we have to keep track of while writing our dialogue. There is a way to write them effectively, so let’s talk about it!

The readers of this day and age don’t typically take a liking to phonetic spelling. It may not be the route to take if you want to build an audience. These readers may not want the challenge in reading non-standard English. The real downfall is how much time they’re going to spend deciphering what the characters are trying to say without diving into the deeper meaning.

Any language can relate…no one speaks their language the same way. This is where dialect plays a huge role into how language is spoken and can be portrayed in writing. When anyone learns a language in grade school, they aren’t learning the different dialects of the language…but one can learn through native speakers in certain areas. Depending on region and ethnicity, everyone speaks differently. Utilizing modern language with minor change to the dialect and phonetic spelling here and there will improve the quality of your story. This is only important if communication between your characters is a central point in your story. Most characters interact with others – but sometimes the language in which they speak…speaks volumes for the story.

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Some important bits to remember when writing in other languages or dialects are diction, syntax, and idioms. All of these key components help the conversations between your characters become unique to them. Even if things sound strange to you, it may be best to detach your experiences from that of your characters speech.

Always remember: you want your characters to come off as unique through dialogue, especially if you want your reader to be able to distinguish who’s speaking. We also want less boring and more relatable characters so you have to find the perfect balance!

The Cannibal Monster

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This is one of the last two areas of the world we are traveling too. So, let’s venture into the deep woods of the Americas to start the beginning of the final countdown!

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Wendigo | Algonquian Tribes

Cannibalistic beastly humanoid, possibly once human.

  • This creature is aligned with murder, insatiable, and cultural taboos against “normal” behavior. They’re also associated with the winter, the north, coldness, famine, and starvation.
  • The Wendigo is bigger than a human, and whenever it feeds on human flesh, it grows! It never gains weight and will always appear thin. They’re always hungry so watch out!!
  • There’s also an explanation as to why they may have been human once before turning into the Wendigo. When they were human, they may have been incredibly greedy. Or if the human was in contact with Wendigos for too long, they would become one.
  • Powers include: mimicking human voices, possession, controlling weather, manipulation of darkness (sunset), control of forest creatures, healing, and incredible strength and speed.
  • Believe it or not, there is a psychological disorder called the Wendigo Psychosis. People diagnosed crave human flesh even though they have access to normal food sources.

Jumping Through Time

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A story can include one of two things: flashbacks or skipping to the future. We don’t think recommending the two is a great idea but if executed cohesively…sure! Why not! Let’s discuss.

Sometimes, writing flashbacks can help a story flesh itself out. Readers understand the plot better, the character better, ANYTHING! But what happens when a flashback becomes more than a flash back? Meaning, what happens when a brief moment takes up a whole chapter? Is that acceptable? There isn’t any reason why it shouldn’t be acceptable – other than not being written properly. Make sure flashbacks are quick and easy. They’re meant to be memories triggered by people or items or occurrences surrounding the character or plot. Here’s an idea: it doesn’t necessarily have to be written in the perspective where the character is brought back to a moment in time…but rather, induces a feeling, an image flashed in the character’s thoughts. Something like that.

Skipping ahead in time is also a way to get the story moving along. Readers don’t need all filler details and a story doesn’t deserve that either! A few months can pass in the story in a matter of words, as long as the reader is caught up with the characters and ongoings in their world, what else is needed? Questions should never be left unanswered, too. If they are, there better be good reason for it. Did something happen prior to the time hop that wasn’t resolved during the time not mentioned? Well, it better come full circle because then the reader will not be happy (they’ll scream, “PLOT HOLE, PLOT HOLE!” and write a whole review about how the plot hole ruined the story for them.)

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So, now that we’ve lectured about time and the relationship it has with your story – let’s build a time machine and have some fun!

Mood Rings

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We’re not going to talk your ear off about how mood rings are real and they need to be taken more seriously…no, instead, we’re going to talk your ear off about colors and symbolism in your writing.

Using colors to accentuate the mood you’re trying to convey in your scenes may help your form of story-telling improve. It could be your main character can now see surrounding characters’ auras and the auras tell your character how a particular person is feeling. Or quite possibly there are colors within a room to set a mood in which your character is about to enter.

Use this color bar image we found on the great, big internet to give you a start on what sort of colors to use in your writing!

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An Eternal Flame

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Phoenix | Greece

“Fire bird that eternally regenerates from its own ashes.”

Basic Facts:

  • There are many different tales which reveal the life expectancy of the phoenix before it is reborn…one being a span of 500 years.
  • The phoenix was considered a royal bird because it had been associated with a place called Phoenicia. Phoenicia was known for producing a rich purple dye which was deemed expensive and used exclusively for the upper class.
  • When we think of the phoenix, we think vibrant colors associate with the sun. In truth, the phoenix has never been described in great detail in original folklore.
  • Phoenix is Greek for ‘crimson’ or ‘purple.’
  • The modern adaptation of the phoenix make claims that the tears of the bird can heal and if they’re nearby, lying doesn’t occur.

Fighting Game For Writers!

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We are big advocates for demolishing writer’s block. We’ve talked about a variety of methods, websites, and apps to use against a writer’s worst nightmare. Here is a new one for you: Fighter’s Block.

So, after playing around with the online app for a few levels, I can officially declare this as a fun way to defeat writer’s block. There’s only a select amount of characters you can choose from and there’s only one enemy unlocked but there are little details in the structure and immersion of the game which makes it worthwhile.

Let’s break it down!

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Cute pixel sprites go up against each other in a game that challenges you to write, write, write before your character’s health reaches zero. You start off by choosing your hero (you can choose between Red or Karen, Quin is locked until you reach level 11) and your word goal for that particular level. Once you click fight, the battle has begun.

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You’ll notice the health bar of your character slowly (or quickly) diminishing if you’re not typing. As you write, the character’s health is regenerated and the enemy’s lowers.

To add more flair to your experience, you can customize your fighting background and writing difficulty to challenge yourself. The theme can be changed to different color schemes that can better your playing/writing experience. With the opponent you can easily change its speed and attack which works against you as you’re writing.

Your writing space can also be customized. From font to the display of your text box, this game is perfect for any writer looking for new ways to get back into the swing of things.

Why Three Is NOT A Crowd!

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It’s common in the writing community to have more than one pair of eyes editing your work. Some editors catch certain details, whether it’s proofing, copy editing, structural editing, or developmental edits. But what if you haven’t gotten too far into your writing career and you don’t have a team behind you quite yet? We have another option and idea for you: A WRITING GROUP.

Sounds very old school, maybe something you thought only existed on TV or in slice-of-life movies, but they’re very real and sometimes very necessary in a writer’s career. You’ll get the similar appeal from an editing team towards your writing, but a tad bit nicer and less cut-dry. A group will provide the outside perspective you need to help tie up the loose ends you may have missed. If your group (or partner) chooses meet-up times, it’ll boost your accountability with your writing and improve your relationship with your ability to write. Last but not least, you’ll get unconditional support from your peers, which you might need on those days you aren’t feeling confident.

A step beyond that: you’ll find friends. Friends who will love and support you (and your writing career but let’s get back to the sentiments), to push you in the right direction.