Writing tools for busy people
✍️ Useful apps for common challenges
Pens. Pencils. Typewriters. Computers. Wordstar. Word. Google Docs. Writing tools continually evolve. That evolution has brought us hundreds of writing apps to choose from. Read on for recommended tools for various writing challenges.
🤩 If you’re easily distracted — iA Writer
The simplest writing interface. Too many writing apps have cluttered, distracting interfaces. I know I’m procrastinating when I find myself exploring styling options. iA Writer is the purest app I’ve found for streamlined composition. All I see are the words I’m typing.
Highlight writing issues: An optional setting points out cliches and filler words. The software can also spotlight your syntax by color — adjectives in brown, adverbs in purple, verbs in blue, etc. Mostly I appreciate the clean interface.
Pricing: 2-week free trial, then $50 for Apple devices, $30 for Windows or Android.
🧐 If you get stuck with writer’s block: Letterly
Get past the blank page problem by talking out loud about your ideas without worrying about precise wording. With Letterly and other AI dictation apps like Oasis ($50/year), it’s easy to convert spoken thoughts into drafts. Until late August you can get a lifetime license of Letterly for $59. Normally $10/month.
Letterly and Oasis transcribe what you say then convert it into a variety of formats like an outline, summary, social post, or a draft blog or journal entry.
Desktop Alternative: The Oasis team just launched a useful new Mac AI app called TalkTastic. It lets you dictate, transcribe and transform text into any writing app. You can use it with Google Docs, Word, or any other software.
When I’m stuck looking at a word count of zero, I like opening up one of these apps and talking to myself about a few ideas. It’s a form of oral freewriting. Within a few minutes I have sentences to build on.
If you’re working on a book project — Scrivener
When you’re working on a long writing project with multiple parts, try Scrivener. It gives you multiple ways to see and edit the sections of your work. I like the index card view, which allows for dragging cards around to reorder material.
Pricing: After a monthlong free trial, it’s $60 for a one-time purchase for Mac or Windows ($51 for educators). Or $24 for iOS.
💌 If you’d like to write with others — Etherpad
Etherpad is an open source writing tool I like for collaborative live brainstorming, writing and editing. You can use it online for free at sites like Framapad and pad.education, or set up your own instance with a little coding. Here’s an example of a collaborative doc I started. Add to it to try out Etherpad.
🤖 If you like experimenting with AI — Lex
The AI in the Lex writing and editing app points out cliches, passive voice, hedging (I think, probably, etc), missing citations, and repetition. It also lets you customize a writing issue to watch out for. You can also select a phrase you’re struggling with and Lex will suggest a rewrite option.
Pricing: It’s free for basic use. Pay $12/month billed annually for full features.
Alternatives: For additional edit options, I like pasting a clunky sentence into DeepL Write for alternative phrasing ideas. It now works with English, French, Spanish, and German. I use the free version, but you can upgrade for $11/month.
🧪 If you like to experiment…
I’m continually trying out new apps. Here are a few I’m looking at these days.
Butter Docs is a Google Docs alternative that lets you see your research as you write, with built-in space for notes and outlines.
Leaflet is a super simple, early version of a new writing app from the team behind Hyperlink, a collaborative space I like for group work online. Here’s a rough early example of a simple doc made with Leaflet.
Blaze is an AI tool that aims to simplify the process of drafting social content. A new feature lets you upload a podcast or video you recorded and convert it easily into a draft for other formats/platforms.
Letterloop enables collaborative newsletters for a family or friend group. ($5/month). It’s a creative way to build — or re-energize— a writing habit by collaborating with a small group of people you care about. Create a limited-run newsletter for family members or friends.
Alternatively, use Substack to make a free, private newsletter. Theme it around a milestone, project (“cooking experiments”) or whatever else interests you. A tiny, friendly audience can lower the stakes for experimentation. You choose the subject matter, style, and collaborators.
p.s. You’re invited to join me for a talk I’m giving this Saturday, August 17 at 2pm ET as part of Medium Day—a free online conference. My 20-minute talk, followed by a short Q&A, is on “5 Tiny Steps for Super Busy People To Build a Writing Habit.” Register free for Medium Day.
This is just wonderful. When I write a piece for the children in my class, I can spend ages going through and highlighting adjectives, nouns, verbs, etc, but because of your post, this is a thing of the past. Thank you as ever.
Thank you!