Tools For Writers

Here are some great tools for writers that I use on a regular basis, this page will be forever expanding, so please leave me any sites you may use in the comments or Tweet me.

Read-o-Meter:

Let your readers know how long your blog post will take to read. This tool lets you copy and paste text and generates a reading time based on an average of 200 words-per-minute. The image below shows the read time for my post about why YouTube has become so popular.

Avoid Cliches

They come off as lazy, and reek of unoriginal thinking. Many readers will be put off by cliches in blog posts, articles, or other professional writings, including emails. This tool will scan text for any cliches and you can remove them from your writing ASAP.

The Hemingway Online Editing Application

"Hemingway makes your writing bold and clear. It's like a spellchecker, but for style. It makes sure that your reader will focus on your message, not your prose". HemingwayApp.com checks for passive voice, formatting, adverb use, and much, much more.

TitleCase

Not sure which words in your title need to be capitalized? Enter text into TitleCase and this online app will correct any mistakes.

Headline Analyzer

The Headline Analyzer will produce a quick, easy-to-read report on headline choices for your next article, blog post, or essay. This program scored my headline for Who is The Most Important Female Character In Gaming History a 78 out of 100. As you can see, this app lets users customize headlines and subheadings for their writing.

How Long Will It Take Me To Write A Book?

Answer a few simple questions about your writing habits, and this free tool from New York Times bestselling author Jerry Jenkins will provide you with a breakdown of the time it should take to finish your book. This image is from sample answers I gave to the questions on this site.

Comments

Are Memories Of Old Wars Used As The Fodder For New Ones?

Estimated Read Time: 3 Minutes 36 Seconds Collective memory , before, during, and after wartime plays a large part in forming a narrative that plays an important role in society. The collective memory of an event is often expressed through the media, especially within the past 100 years. Habitually, this happens through the voices of bureaucratic institutions or figures. Fishman argues that these bureaucratic institutions are a “fountain of information” (1999 [1980]: 108) and journalists know that there will be vast information within these institutions. An example of bureaucratic institutions forming a narrative of war and collective memory was when journalists truthfully reported on the statements of Dick Cheney and Donald Rumsfeld regarding weapons that Iraq ‘had in their possession'. These statements made by the dominant social ideology (The United States Government) formed a pre-war (and post 1991 Gulf War) narrative that society could understand; Iraq has weapons and...

The Legal, Political, and Economic Marginalization of Maori in New Zealand

Estimated Read Time: 6 Minutes 12 Seconds Maori people living in New Zealand have found themselves in what Laguerre (1999), describes as ‘minoritized spaces’, dislocated from ‘white’, ‘normalized’, majority spaces. This article seeks to explain the legal, economic, political, social and cultural marginalization of the Maori people within New Zealand and how this has affected Maori society. The colonial paradigm for power and control will also be introduced to further understand how systematic marginalization has taken place in New Zealand. What Is Racial Marginalization? Cram, 2004, describes marginalization as; “totally removing the importance and power of someone…..the forcing of peoples out of the mainstream of political, economic or social life…to push to the sidelines or the periphery of a society or dominant group” (pp1-3). Cram then applies marginalization...

Who Is The Most Important Female Character In Video Game History?

Estimated Read Time: 1 Minute 53 Seconds During 1996, arguably one of the best years in gaming history, many games and characters made their way to our television and computer screens. Some of these games and characters carved out extraordinary legacies within the gaming world and one of them should be considered the most important female character of all time. Who Is The Most Important Female Character In Gaming History? Lara Croft, Tomb Raider , was a gaming and cultural phenomenon during the late 1990s and early 2000s. This kick-ass character encouraged many young female gamers to try the medium and a lot of these female gamers have stuck around for the long haul. Check out the next comic or gaming convention near you and it can be guaranteed that there will be at least one Lara Croft in the crowd. No other female character in gaming has been as popular with females for longer. Is Lara Croft Just A Sex Symbol? Although many observers may argue that he...

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