7 Writerly Tools

[image error]For those of us who like the quick and easy approach, I have compiled a few internet resources for those key parts of the writing process: revision and editing. Along with these resources if you leave a comment, I'm giving away two awesome books: 78 Reasons Why Your Book May Never Be Published and 14 Reasons Why It Just Might by Pat Walsh, and On Writing by Stephen King. Leave your comment by midnight EDT Thursday March 17th and I'll pick the lucky winner Friday morning.

http://editminion.com/
A paste-in and check editor for adverbs, weak words, "said" replacements, passive voice and ending with prepositions. It can't handle a lot of text, but it's good for chapters or query letters.

http://www.writersdiet.ac.nz/wasteline.php
Another paste-in and check editor. This one checks "be" verbs, abstract nouns, etc. It highlights the offending words in different colors, so if you don't get what an abstract noun is you can be shown the ones in your own work and learn about grammar the easy way.

http://textalyser.net/
Another paste-in and check text tool. This one gives you stats on readability, sentence length, etc. You can also analyze a website by pasting in the URL.

http://www.wordcounter.com/
Another paste-in and check tool. This one counts the number of repeated words and gives you a most frequently used hit list. So if your crit partners complain you use the word "that" too much, you'll see it at the top of the list.

http://bookblog.net/gender/genie.php
Another paste-in and check editor. This one uses key words typically used by males and females and tells you whether you write like a guy or a girl. Interesting...

http://visual.merriam-webster.com/
This visual dictionary can be a lifesaver. Need to describe the layout of a penitentiary, but never been in one (let's hope!). The dictionary gives you a diagram of the layout and the name of each area so you can write nice accurate details. Need to describe the parts of a parachute so your heroine can jump to avoid the villain? This dictionary is your best friend. Also great for those writers who think in pictures and can't always remember the right term to use.

http://onelook.com/reverse-dictionary.shtml
Looking for just the right word? OneLook's reverse dictionary lets you describe a concept and get back a list of words and phrases related to that concept. Your description can be a few words, a sentence, a question, or even just a single word. Just type it into the box above and hit the "Find words" button. Keep it short to get the best results. In most cases you'll get back a list of related terms with the best matches shown first.

Happy Writing!