Every couple of months—if not more frequently—I’m hearing about the new app or website that will revolutionize the way you write. Whatever it is, it promises to streamline the writing process, enabling you to produce better work, faster. And I know I’m not the only one who’s thrown money at a program only for it to be collecting virtual dust somewhere in the dark depths of my Downloads folder.
Enter The Write Gym members. They’ve generously shared the programs they actually use to write their books. It’s safe to say that as long as you’ve got access to a handful of these programs (many of which are free!), you’ve got what you need to write that novel, chapbook, essay collection, or whatever it is your heart urges you to write!
For Planning
Evernote
Recommended by Teresa Edmond-Sargeant
Evernote is an incredibly powerful note-keeping app. This doesn’t just take the form of text—you can also save images, documents, and so much more. It boasts features such as web page clipping, templates, document scanning, the ability to search handwriting, and app integration with big names like Slack, Microsoft Teams, and Google Drive. It could be your next all-in-one place to keep research, story notes, ideas, and outlines.
The free plan allows for a surprising amount of functionality, but the premium plan ($7.99/month) gives you unlimited syncing across devices (free only gets you two devices), PDF annotation, and other perks. Click here to learn more!
Google Keep
Recommended by Amy Mendoza and Megan Fuentes
Very similar to Evernote, Google Keep allows you to keep and search through your notes across multiple devices. You can color code, tag, pin notes to the top for easy access, set reminders, make checklists, drag and drop, and even draw on your notes! If you’re obsessed with Post-It Notes or index cards, you just might love Google Keep.
Like everything in Google’s suite of productivity apps, Google Keep is free. All you need to get started is a Gmail address. Click here to get started using it!
Plottr
Recommended by A.M. Bochnak, Aria Bliss, and Kerry Evelyn
This is perhaps the newest software to hit the scene, but it’s making a splash. It’s also the only one of the three in this category designed specifically for writers. You can use Plottr to make story bibles, but their real claim to fame is the visual timeline, which they describe as like “a digital corkboard” upon which you can add multiple plotlines and scene cards. What might get you extra excited is the fact that they offer fourteen templates for storytelling structure—including Romancing the Beat, the Story Circle, and the Twelve Chapter Mystery.
Plottr isn’t free, but it allows for purchase of annual or lifetime licenses. Click here to learn more!
For Drafting
Google Docs
Recommended by Alyson Grauer, Amy Mendoza, L.E. Perez, Megan Fuentes, and Teresa Edmond-Sargeant
If you’re on the hunt for a free word processor, look no further, seriously. Besides offering all the capabilities you’d expect from an app that has given the all-mighty Microsoft Word a run for its money, Google Docs saves to the letter (no more panicking about whether you saved!), syncs across all your devices, allows you to collaborate with anyone by sharing a link or adding them as an editor, commenter, or viewer. And it can export documents as .EPUB, for crying out loud! You could format your ebook in the same space as you write it!
Like everything in Google’s suite of productivity apps, Google Docs is free. All you need to get started is a Gmail address. Click here to get started using it!
Microsoft Word
Recommended by Kerry Evelyn, Kristin Durfee, and Teresa Edmond-Sargeant
It’s been the traditional publishing industry’s standard for aeons. You already know all it can do because you likely can’t sit at a school or library computer without seeing its logo in the startup menu. If your dream is to be published traditionally, it’s likely your agent or editor will ask for your manuscript as a Word doc.
Microsoft Word is offered as part of Microsoft 365, which is $69.99/year for a single-user plan. Click here to learn more!
Scrivener
Recommended by A.M. Bochnak, Alyson Grauer, Aria Bliss, Chelsea Fuchs, and Mira Monroe
Scrivener lets you “see the forest or the trees,” to use their own verbiage. The project outline it generates is designed to be useful to you whether you’re a plotter or a pantser, and the ability to pull up your research side-by-side with your manuscript is a real lifesaver for those who use Scrivener exclusively, which you absolutely could do, since it can export to .EPUB as well.
Scrivener is $49 for a standard license, and $19.99 for your iPhone. Click here to learn more!
For Editing
Grammarly
Recommended by Wendy Reynolds
Spelling, grammar, and punctuation are the bane of many writers’ existence. I can’t tell you how many times I’ve personally come across people who may have enjoyed writing were it not for the fact that a thorough understanding of these things felt like a prerequisite. Well, Grammarly checks for all those things and conciseness in your writing, so you can type with confidence! While there is no replacing a good proofreader, you can at least be sure your proofreader won’t have quite so much work to do.
Grammarly is available as a free plug-in for Google Chrome, but their premium tier also “reads” for tone, formality level, and conciseness, among other things. Click here to learn more!
ProWritingAid
Recommended by Mira Monroe
ProWritingAid is like a more robust version of Grammarly. It offers you actual data on your own writing, and there are also helpful explanations and videos. You can go beyond fixing your mistakes and actually learn how to stop yourself from making them. If you’re also in love with analyzing data about your own writing, you might love ProWritingAid.
ProWritingAid is also available as a plug-in, and it has many other premium packages. Click here to learn more!
