Comparing Ourselves to Other Writers – Chuck Wendig
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My Writing Tools
I find these kinds of posts helpful, so I thought I would share the tools I use for my writing.
- Number one. Most important is Scrivener. I would be lost without this tool. I can write scene by scene into separate notes/documents, keep multiple versions, organize them into chapters when I’m ready, and collate a selection of them into a draft manuscript ready for printing or my Kindle. I do my world building and back story creation and cataloging in a section separate from the manuscript. I can describe my characters, one per note/document, and places. I also keep much of my extracted research in a separate Research folder. You can delete things and keep them in a trash folder as well. I use the Windows version, but wish I were a Mac user. Theoretically they will have an iPad version in the future. — $40 US
- iA writer. I started with this clean editor on my iPad. I typed on the screen itself until recently when I broke down and bought a Logitech keyboard case. iA Writer is a simple text editor. I like it because I can save all my scenes or world building into my Dropbox folder (more about Dropbox later). Main advantage of using my iPad and iA Writer is that I get to be in the same room with my family at night instead of hidden away in my man cave. Of course it is useful for writing/people watching trips to Sbux. — $4.99 US (apple store)
- Hemingway App This is my main grammar checking application. It gives you a passive voice checker, reading level, adverb killer, sentence clarity, and difficulty warnings. Very simple to use. Copy your text into the Web or app window and click “edit”. Check it out. Free on the web, $5 US for Windows app
- Grammarly — I splurged here before I found the Hemingway App. I’m not sure I’ll renew now that I use Hemingway App more. Grammarly is a Word plugin that does everything from grammar checking to plagiarism checking. I wish it had a direct Scrivener plugin, because I have to export some section I want to check into Word then run grammarly and copy the edited version back into Scrivener. Great and accurate tool though. Pricey, however, can be cheaper than paying for copyediting. (annual subscription at $11.66/month US)
- Evernote — Research assistant extraordinaire. When I’m doing web research Evernote is my go to clipper. I have multiple notebooks and Evernote has tagging capabilities. I love Pocket also, but I use Pocket for keeping track of general articles to read and Evernote for my book research. Evernote has its own cloud storage location. There’s supposed to be a way to integrate the two, but I’m happy for now. Free for limited storage
- Scapple — I just started using Scapple. It is a great way of documenting ideas, lists, relationships, etc. Made by the makers of Scrivener. $14.99 US (Mac/Win)
- Microsoft Word — Not fair here as I got a copy of all the Office programs for nearly free as part of my work benefits package. I’d use OpenOffice if I didn’t have this copy of Word. Basically Word is just the program that receives my exports from Scrivener for manuscript versioning (I save draft manuscripts this way), for editing with Grammarly, or printing. (too expensive normally, use OpenOffice)
- Microsoft Powerpoint — There are great templates of maps and timelines that are useful for documenting the journey of my character or just a great high level view of the area. (too expensive normally, use OpenOffice)
- Rootsmagic — My dad is a genealogist and uses Ancestry.com and Family Tree Maker. I liked Rootsmagic because it has an iPad companion application that works if you save your files in your Dropbox folder. Why the heck do I use a genealogy program? The book I am writing might be part of a series so I need to understand the characters, where they came from, dates, sequencing, etc. Rootsmagic has all the built in charts and reports that is making my character management much easier. $29.95 US
- Personal Historian — Personal Historian is an add on to Rootsmagic. I use it to capture my character traits and histories. Again, probably unnecessary, but it does have nice built in reporting. I like it so far. $29.95 US
- Maps Engine from Google — Hidden gem if you are using the real world as the basis for your story. I am researching castles and other ancient sites in Wales right now. I am building a map showing pins and labels for all my castle and other sites. It is giving me a great idea of the area, since I’ve never been to Wales. Maybe someday. Free on the Web with limitations
- Dropbox — Dropbox is my cloud storage tool. I used to use it just for backup, but it is my primary storage location now for all my content. Free for limited storage
- Pinterest — I need to put my castle pictures up in a folder on my Pinterest account. It is my visual tool. I keep pictures of people and places that trigger my creativity for the book. Free on the Web
- Spotify — I’d be lost without tunes playing while I’m researching, writing, or editing. Today’s tunes are from the Neal/Steve Morse, Dave Larue and Mike Portnoy group – Flying Colors. Music, it’s not just for your car. Free with Ads or $9.99 US / month
Overall, I’ve spent too much on tools, but this is my hobby so I’ve made an investment. Everything is working together for me so I won’t complain. I’m a bit of a gadget guy and pretty structured, so the tools are useful for me. Hopefully you’ve found some interesting information here. I like it when other writers share their tools, so thought I’d share mine.
-Ty
The Decline of the American Book Lover
The Flattening of eBook sales (roughtype.com)
“In a post on the first day of this year, I noted the surprisingly rapid decline in e-book sales growth over the course of 2012. The trend appears to be continuing this year. The Association of American Publishers reports that in the first quarter of 2013, e-book sales in the U.S. trade market grew by just 5 percent over where they were in the same period in 2012. The explosive growth of the last few years has basically petered out, according to the AAP numbers:”
ReBlog: Bad Judgement
From the article:
“But also look closely at the painting. Aside from its ekphrastic foundation, look at the expression on the woman’s face. The general despair of her mouth, the dis-allegiance with reality in the eyes, the urgency of the body toward some kind of action. Are these the kinds of themes your writing entertains? Too, take a look at the smaller details: the two blown-out candles, the meek lantern, the domestic bedding in the non-domestic vessel, the high light of liberty in the upper right that can’t be reached that must be meant as a contrast with the lower right blackness under the boat of the river, the awaiting suicidal darkness. And finally, the little chain clasped delicately around her right hand. Are these the kind of delicacies that are revered in your writing? Do you write with a depictionist’s sense of precision? Especially for the image?”
“And then the further absurdity: Trying to figure out what it is you’ve experienced or understood and making that into something else — a poem? The whole process can be a series of bad judgments. Something like:
Robert Penn Warren’s Definition of Poetry”
A poem?
Could be.
Bad judgment —
Probably.
Book Cover Design
Here is a great site for browsing through tons of book cover art and finding covers that catch your eye. Maybe "pinning" them to a board called "book covers I like". This may help organize your thoughts about the cover design for your book. Ok, ok. So, I'm going to do this because it seems hip and a good idea, and it gives me an excuse to pin stuffs. On bookcoverarchive.com You'll also find: a list of 6 "GREAT BOOKS ON BOOK COVER DESIGN" and a list of "PORTFOLIO SITES OF BOOK COVER DESIGNERS" and a list of "GREAT SITES ON BOOK COVER DESIGN" Just another step in that process of going from idea to self-published novel. Wishing you all the best on your journey.
ReBlog: “Getting Picked vs Picking Yourself”
This is a reblog from Seth Godin’s amazing blog.
“Sure, it’s fun to be picked, anointed, given social approval for what you do—the newspaper writes you up, you get invited to speak at graduation, your product gets featured on the front page of a website or blog…”
“…The artist who struggles in obscurity, unfairly ignored because he hasn’t been picked–that’s a poignant sight. But at some point, the artist has the obligation to seek a different path, one that isn’t dependent on a system that doesn’t deserve him.” continue reading
Seth Godin
Grammar vs Style: What do you want YOUR narration to accomplish?
A great post regarding narration and how to use it to complement your dialogue without overpowering your characters.
Grammar vs Style: What do you want YOUR narration to accomplish?.
ReBlog: Why Your Book Page is UN-Selling Your Book
Why Your Book Page is UN-Selling Your Book
This afternoon, I am re-blogging a post by Jeff Bennington over at “The Writing Bomb”.
In this post, Jeff discusses a consulting engagement with an aspiring author. They are specifically discussing pricing and the value of your Amazon Author Page (Amazon Author Central).
This post is very detailed, and provides applicable suggestions for all self-publishing authors.
Wednesday Focus on Self-Publishing: Author Know Thy Business
The post I’m sharing today contains information from an informal survey of 33 different authors who self-publish. They respond using the format below, and some also comment about marketing tips that helped their sales. I think you’ll find this a constructive post to read if you are wondering about sales.
Author Name
Genre
Total number of self-published titles:
Total number of self-published sales in 2010:
Total number of self-published sales in 2011:
Total number of self-published sales in 2012:
Total number of self-published sales so far in 2013:
Most successful book in 2012 and how many sold: Book ###
http://e-bookformattingfairies.blogspot.com/2013/04/author-know-thy-business-self.html
Time to Write 