So I have been an aspiring writer since I could read. In the span of time that has passed since then I've come across some great resources to help organize my thoughts and story lines. I am going to include just websites here, but I also use smart phone apps and I will have a list of my favorite writing apps up tomorrow for the first day of Camp NaNo.
1. The Most Dangerous Writing App: This is a website I know is pretty big with the NaNo crowd. It is a very stressful experience, but it can be great for letting go of your reservations and just writing. The premise of this website is that you need to continue writing, nonstop, for whatever time limit you set up. If you pause it starts to delete what you've written thus far. Of course in an effort to keep your work you'll write faster. It's great if your behind on your word count or if you just need to break out of your headspace for five minutes.
2. DonJon: There are a few websites like DonJon out there, but I think DonJon is a simplified version that still creates great results. DonJon is a map creator. I write a lot in the fantasy genre and I cannot for the life of me draw my own maps -no matter how hard I try-. I will often go to this website, plug in some basic info, and get to a map that most closely matches the image in my head. Once there I'll save the map and use it for reference throughout the story. I have forgotten aspects of land and location too many times to count so a map website can be a great help.
3. Springhole: While Springhole may be a bit of a dated website, there are still a lot of great resources on it. There are all sorts of generators (for character names, location names, and backstory generators), character quizzes, and a lot of information about world-building, relationships, and plot.
4. BehindTheName: As the name suggests this is a name website. It has quite a broad array of names as well as meanings and origins. I'm personally a character driven writer and I always want my characters to have names that match their personality and this website can really help with that.
5. Pinterest/Tumblr: I've grouped these websites together because you are likely to get a lot of the same information on them. Pinterest is going to be more article based and my favorite thing about the writing community on Pinterest is the infographics. I am a big fan of writing-based info-graphics. I realize Tumblr is kind of a scary website for most people, but if you're in the right tags and following the right people it is a great place for inspiration and community. There is a large creative writing community on tumblr with whole blogs being dedicated to daily writing prompts etc.
6. NASA: Nasa Was kind enough to put together a website of accurate space jargon that has been commandeered by many a sci-fi writer. I have dabbled in sci-fi in my time and I've gotta tell you this website is crucial.
7. Thesaurus: This might seem like a no-brainer. If there is one tab open on my computer while I'm writing it's this one. I have saved many a list of great alternatives for 'said' and 'walked', but better than a list is a website. It's a pretty basic concept but for me, at least, it's make or break sometimes, or at least it feels like it.
8. RanGen: Remember a couple numbers back when I talked about Springhole? RenGen is Springhole on steroids. It has a myriad of generators for everything. You can generate a job, a pet, a motive, a super power, a vehicle, a race, and even a plot. It can be a fantastic starting point for any story, and a great way to further develop worlds and characters.
I believe these websites are a great start to any project as well as immensely helpful throughout the trying journey of writing a book. Of course there are other websites I could recommend, but these are my quintessential choices and if you check them out I hope they help you too!
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