Tuesday, July 15, 2008

Tuesday's Tips and Tidbits

Well, we are back from vacation. We had a wonderfully relaxing time, but no matter how enjoyable time away is, there's nothing quite so nice as sleeping in your own bed again.

While we were gone I was able to spend an entire day devoted to doing nothing but reading. I devoured a couple issues of Writers Digest and enjoyed it immensely. In fact, one of the articles I read was about software for writers, and honestly I had never even given it any thought before.

My first inclination was to think that I would never use such programs and that it's cheating in a sense. But why? Don't these programs basically teach you all the same things that you learn while taking a writing course? That's not cheating it's improving your craft. I decided to check out their list of recommended software and here is a review of three that I looked at:

(1) WriteItNow - is a program for story development. Their website was very informative and easy to use. The WriteItNow registered software costs $49.95, but they offer a free demo and while you can't save or use add-ons it still has the potential to draw your story out.

(2) NewNovelist - also a site for story development. This program costs $54.99, doesn't offer a free version, but does offer a demo. I personally didn't care for their demo because you don't have any control in what you read or how fast you view it. I like to be able to read something and then move on, but that wasn't an option. I didn't make it through the demo.

(3) Character Pro - a program for character development. The registered software is $69.99, but the site itself has some free articles, tools and tips that are very useful when it comes to character development. There is even a page you can go to that helps you develop a quick character for free!

So there you have it. My quick review of three writing software websites - take it for what it's worth!

Take care and have a wonderful day!

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