I was talking with another new author recently and we got on to the topic of what we use in writing our books. So here’s a breakdown of my writing resources, for anyone curious about the process.
My most important writing resources are my imagination… after all, it creates the stories! Followed second in importance by the patrons that support me, paying as little as $1 for advance access to everything I write, and third is the thousands of beta readers that read the rough second drafts on the free sites and provide invaluable feedback!
Second drafts? Yup, as Terry Pratchett says, “The first draft is just you telling yourself the story.“
Here’s all the technical nitty gritty…
Being an IT guy, I started off using Microsoft Word, then trying Google Docs for writing my book. Then I learned about Scrivener and have never looked back since. It’s just so much better for writing, planning, character development, name generation, compiling and, well, pretty much everything that relates to writing a book! Plus it’s a simple one-time fee!
My main computer is an old iMac, although I also have Windows and Linux computers in my house… hey I’m still an IT guy at heart. The decision to buy an older used iMac was so I could use the original, tried and true Scrivener program, although Literature & Latte do have a Windows version available now that is comparable to the Mac version.
A big bonus is that Scrivener also works on my iPhone and iPad and they all synchronize via Dropbox. Believe it or not, most of my writing is done on my iPhone and iPad, whenever I get a few minutes of free time. I do use the computer for writing as well, but it’s main purpose is editing and compiling. My backups go to iCloud and other cloud storage services.
For grammar checking small snippets, I use GrammarChecker.io, but my primary grammar checker is Pro Writing Aid, because it can work directly with my Scrivener files.
For my Book Covers, I use GetCovers.com, they’re a great team that do quality work for very reasonable prices. I originally used another book cover site, they had good quality, but it was just so expensive and now that I’ve experienced GetCovers, the quality actually wasn’t as good.
For my stunning book advertisements, I use BookBrush.com. They make it easy to create awesome advertisements for pretty much any social platform or application.
For my website, I use Wix, with my publisher, Dawn Patrol Publishing managing my email and domains. I still do lots of WordPress web design and I use the Divi theme from Elegant Themes, a truly customizable page builder for WordPress.
For all my graphic needs I use DepositPhotos.com for the major graphics and use Gimp to edit them and if I have to make maps I use Inkarnate.
Hope you find this helpful.