My Top 3 Writing Apps

Can you imagine being a writer in the days of quills and ink? You spend the day sweating over a piece of work, only to make a typo in the last line which means starting all over again. It must have been soul-destroying. The invention of the typewriter helped somewhat, but those typo's still meant redoing entire pages. Trust me, I took touch-typing as a school subject on a non-electric typewriter. I know, right?

And yet I can picture some of those quillers adamantly clutching their feathers to their chests, vowing never to let their fingertips go anywhere near the cold hard keys of a typewriter. Even today we writers can either reject new technology, or let it help us. 

Signing a 3-book contract with deadlines is a teensy bit terrifying. Okay, let me be honest. It is a whole lot terrifying. I need help. Google and my smartphone became my BFF's as I hunted for something that would help me increase my output consistently.   

I found 3 apps that work for me.

1. Writeometer: 
This little app is simple, yet genius. You create projects, enter your deadlines and it will work out how many words you need to write per day to finish on time. 

It also tracks how long it will take to finish at your current pace. 

It has an option to write to a 25 minute timer and at the end it awards you virtual guava's, which you accumulate and spend on virtual treats. Who doesn't love a virtual guava?

There are all sorts of writing stats and graphs to track your writing streaks, progress and speed. I love being able to see my progress visually. You can work on multiple projects at the same time.

The nifty toolbox features a dictionary, thesaurus and word salad. 

One of my favourite things is the featured writing quote on the home page that changes regularly. 

Simply, nifty, and working for me!

2. Character Story Planner
The title of this one is pretty self-explanatory. 

This app enables you to carry your character planning with you throughout your day. (If you are like me and take your phone everywhere, of course.)

Each character is assigned multiple tabs that you can fill in with as much, or as little detail as you want to. 

So the next time you're sitting in a boring meeting and get struck with awesome insight into your current people, capture it right there. It also allows you to run multiple projects at the same time and list your characters per book.

3. Vocabulary Builder
This is my latest addition. I installed it last night in a weak moment of giving in to procrastination. Basically, Vocabulary Builder is a word quiz that teaches you new words. You have the option of practicing words without a time limit. Once you finish a round of words, it unlocks the next set.

You also get to test your word-knowledge against other random people from across the globe in quizzes . 

So this app is what I call 'productive procrastination'. You get to have a break from your WIP but still hone your skills at the same time. 

These three apps work beautifully for me. I'd love to know if you have other things that you use to help you with your writing.

 Dianne J. Wilson writes novels from her hometown in East London, South Africa, where she lives with her husband and three daughters. She has just signed a three book contract for a YA series, Spirit Walker, with Pelican / Watershed.

Finding Mia is available from Amazon, Pelican / Harbourlight, Barnes & Noble and other bookstores.

Shackles is available as a free ebook from Amazon & Smashwords.

Find her on Facebook, Twitter and her sporadic blog Doodles.

DEVOTION ~ How to Slay a Giant

"He reached into his bag and took out a stone, which he slung at Goliath. It hit him on the forehead and broke his skull, and Goliath fell face downward on the ground." 1 Samuel 17:49 GNB

Over a thousand years before the birth of Christ, a young boy by the name of David volunteered to fight a nine-foot giant. He tried on King Saul's suit of armor and then rejected it. He looked at the monarch's massive sword and shield. They were too big, too heavy, and he wasn't used to them. So he tackled the problem with the only tools he knew.

He selected five smooth stones from the riverbed and put them in his pouch. He placed one in his sling. The pebbles were only small, yet the chosen one became a mighty weapon. I’m sure David took careful aim with his sling. He knew it was a matter of life and death that he hit his target.

David didn't do anything unusual. He used his sling frequently to protect his sheep. He just did what he was used to doing. He used the tools he was used to. He did the very best he could. And he left the outcome up to God.

Some years ago, I read an article in the magazine, and I decided to offer my opinion. I had never written to an editor in that way before, but I do send off emails many times each day. So I used the tools I knew well. I selected my words with care. I polished the letter until it was the best I could do, taking careful aim at the market. Then I hit "Send".

It wasn’t a novel. It wasn’t even an article. It was just a short e-mail. But a few months later I received a phone call from a lady who lived on the other side of S.Africa. My short email had impacted the lives of at least one couple. I'd hit my target, and it felt good.

As writers, after we've chosen our market and have something to aim for, we need to use our tools, i.e. our words and our computers, in the way we're used to doing. Once we've done the very best we can, we  must take careful aim at a specific market and then let our words fly. As long as we've done the best we can, the results are in the Lord’s hands.

The pen is mightier than the sword. Edward Bulwer-Lytton, Richelieu

OVER TO YOU: What giant can you see ahead of you that you want to overcome this year? How are you going to go about it? 

SHIRLEY CORDER lives on the coast in South Africa with her husband, Rob. Her book, Strength Renewed: Meditations for your Journey through Breast Cancer contains 90 meditations based on her time in the cancer valley.

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Please visit Shirley through ShirleyCorder.com, where she encourages writers, or at  RiseAndSoar.com, where she encourages those in the cancer valley. You can also meet with her on Twitter or FaceBook.