Yesterday I mentioned the writer’s toolbox in passing.\u00a0 At the time I was referring to figurative tools such as verbs and adjectives and adverbs.\u00a0 Tonight, I’m going to go over actual implements I use to write.\u00a0 The order of these listed tools is random, and will include both hardware and software.<\/p>\n
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I don’t write much long hand anymore, but I always keep a pen and some paper in my laptop back as a backup.\u00a0 While I don’t usually write prose with paper and pen, I do work on outlines in that medium.\u00a0 I wrote the entire first outline for\u00a0The Exorcism of Jack Evans<\/em> using my notepad, and during the first draft of Spin City<\/em>,\u00a0I kept re-outlining the ending in my notepad.<\/p>\n One problem I have writing with a pen or pencil is that my wrist starts to hurt fairly quickly.\u00a0 Another problem paper tends to get lost or destroyed if it spends too much time in my bag.\u00a0 I generally resort to pen and paper as a last resort, and whatever I hand write gets transferred to a digital medium as soon as it’s convenient.<\/p>\n <\/p>\n The very first word processor I used was Appleworks on the Apple IIc and eventually IIgs.\u00a0 When I switched to PC, I started using Word.\u00a0 The first draft of\u00a0The Repossessed Ghost<\/em> and several short stories were done in Word.<\/p>\n Though I don’t spend as much time in Word as I used to, I still open my manuscripts in Word to make sure that formatting is correct.\u00a0 Some contests require the writer to omit their name from their manuscript, so I use Word to edit the headers and footers and make sure my compiled draft complies with the rules.<\/p>\n <\/p>\n These days, I draft almost exclusively in Scrivener and I really like it.\u00a0 Scrivener offers a lot of writing project management tools that are not present in Word.\u00a0 In fact, Scrivener is so full of tools, I probably use less than half of them.\u00a0 I really like the corkboard view, the compilation options, and the manuscript tree.\u00a0 The character sketch templates are nice, as is the front matter that you can inject in a compiled draft automatically.<\/p>\n Scrivener is a great tool and I highly recommend it to writers looking for a complete solution for their writing environment.<\/p>\n <\/p>\n This one might seem like a weird entry on this list but it’s absolutely vital.\u00a0 OneDrive is where I save my drafts and my Scrivener projects.\u00a0 I’ve used DropBox in the past, but OneDrive is already present on all my Windows machines without having to do a secondary install.<\/p>\n Because I’m using OneDrive, all of my writing is automatically backed up.\u00a0 Even better, regardless of which computer I’m using, I can pick up immediately wherever I left off.\u00a0 Knowing that my work is safe gives me peace of mind.\u00a0 During the years before I started saving my work to the cloud, I lost dozens of stories.<\/p>\n <\/p>\n I have several laptops but the Surface is my go-to device for writing.\u00a0 It’s got some years on it but it still works fine.\u00a0 The battery lasts 6 or 7 hours on a single charge.\u00a0 It’s the device I take to conventions and the one I use at Starbucks every Wednesday evening.\u00a0 Melissa has given me permission to upgrade and replace it but I just haven’t felt the need.\u00a0 It’s a good little workhorse.<\/p>\n I have other PCs I use for writing, such as the Dell laptop issued by work and my gaming computer in my garage.\u00a0 The Surface is the only one I use enough to warrant its own placement on this list.<\/p>\n <\/p>\n This is a relatively new addition to my writing tools.\u00a0 I love it so much I just had to give it its own spot on the list.\u00a0 The Lofree keyboard has a retroactive style.\u00a0 According to the documentation, it can go months at a time between charges.\u00a0 The keyboard operates both wired and wirelessly, and it makes wonderful clackety noises because of the Gateron blue switches.<\/p>\n I like mechanical keyboards.\u00a0 If I didn’t have to share my office at work, I’d probably use one while programming.\u00a0 The physical feedback and the clickety-clack is just so satisfying and calming to me.\u00a0 Though the Lofree is a little heavy, it’s still small enough I can carry it around with me in my bag with the Surface.<\/p>\n <\/p>\n Though I could probably do outlining and note taking in Scrivener, I still prefer to use OneNote for this kind of work.\u00a0 Sometimes I use a stylus to hand write my notes in OneNote.\u00a0 At conventions, I spend most of my time in OneNote.\u00a0 Since it’s also backed up to the cloud, it feels safe and always at hand, even on my phone.<\/p>\n <\/p>\n When I’m about to use a word and a nagging doubt creeps in my mind as to whether or not I’m using it right, I type the word into google and look up the definition.\u00a0 I also go to Google to verify the spelling of an esoteric words that Scrivener or Word aren’t familiar with.\u00a0 When spell checks and autocorrects are trying to do me a disservice, Google’s got my back.<\/p>\n I also use Google for general research.\u00a0 For\u00a0Spin City<\/em>, I needed to look up various details of what it would be like to live inside what is essentially a centrifuge.\u00a0 I remembered that there was a term for the strange movement of objects within such a system but I couldn’t recall the name.\u00a0 Google helped me out.\u00a0 In addition to providing the name, the Coriolis effect, Google lead me to a number of useful diagrams which helped inform my writing.<\/p>\n Most of the stories I write, I don’t need to go too deep into any particular field of research.\u00a0 As a writer, I’m not looking to become an expert on every field my stories touch.\u00a0 I’m only looking to know more than the average person so that I can make the average person think I know what I’m talking about.\u00a0 Anything beyond that and the story starts to take on a weird shape or become boring.<\/p>\n <\/p>\n When I’m stuck or needing inspiration, I go for a walk.\u00a0 Sometimes while I’m out strolling, I talk to myself.\u00a0 Other times I’m silent, carefully working things out in my head.\u00a0 Whether the walks are long or short, I consider the time spent valuable to my writing.<\/p>\n One of the best things I can do writing becomes hard is get up go outside.\u00a0 The physical exercise unlocks areas of my brain that I wouldn’t otherwise explore.\u00a0 A simple walk, even when I’m not blocked, can see me returning to the keyboard with greater focus and energy.<\/p>\n <\/p>\n That’s my list.\u00a0 There is one honorable mention: AutoCrit.\u00a0 A few writer friends swear by it, and I don’t blame them.\u00a0 It’s a web service which can go through your draft and give you a lot of interesting statistics about your writing.\u00a0 It can tell you how often you’re using passive voice, how many adverbs you’ve used, your most repeated words, the quantity of non-standard dialog tags, and the average reading grade level.\u00a0 I tried it and liked it quite a bit, but it’s a paid service.\u00a0 At this time, I don’t want to subscribe.<\/p>\n <\/p>\n What tools do you use that you think I should try?<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" Yesterday I mentioned the writer’s toolbox in passing.\u00a0 At the time I was referring to figurative tools such as verbs and adjectives and adverbs.\u00a0 Tonight, I’m going to go over actual implements I use to write.\u00a0 The order of these listed tools is random, and will include both hardware and software. Pen or Pencil […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_access":"","_jetpack_dont_email_post_to_subs":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_tier_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paywalled_content":false,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-1082","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-general"],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"","jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/briancebuhl.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1082","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/briancebuhl.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/briancebuhl.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/briancebuhl.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/briancebuhl.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=1082"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/briancebuhl.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1082\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":1083,"href":"https:\/\/briancebuhl.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1082\/revisions\/1083"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/briancebuhl.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=1082"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/briancebuhl.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=1082"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/briancebuhl.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=1082"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}Microsoft Word<\/strong><\/h3>\n
Scrivener<\/strong><\/h3>\n
OneDrive<\/strong><\/h3>\n
Surface Pro 2<\/strong><\/h3>\n
Lofree Bluetooth Mechanical Keyboard<\/strong><\/h3>\n
OneNote<\/strong><\/h3>\n
Google<\/strong><\/h3>\n
A Pair of Size 11 1\/2 Shoes<\/strong><\/h3>\n