tools of creative writing

2. Scrivener

Cost: $49 for a lifetime license

Why we love it: It gives you a bird’s-eye view of your project

Scrivener is a book writing software that’s designed specifically for larger projects. If you’re tackling a big project, the organization features of Scrivener will ensure everything goes to plan.

In addition to being a word processor, it also lets you set goals, rearrange scenes, and more.

You can keep track of your writing style with a neat integration between ProWritingAid and Scrivener, which work very well together. ProWritingAid imports your Scrivener folder into its platform and gives you a detailed analysis of how you’re writing.

3. Evernote

Cost: Free, or $8.99/month for the Pro version

Why we love it: It lets you organize all your writing ideas in one place

Evernote is a writing app that helps you organize your ideas and research.

You can collect all your sources of inspiration, keep track of your to-do lists, and jot down story ideas all in one place.

The Pro version even lets you sync your notes between all your devices. That way, you can work on your writing projects while you’re on the go without needing to import them to your laptop when you get home.

Cost: Free, or $5.99/month or $39.99/year for the Pro version

Why we love it: It’s a great alternative to Evernote

Like Evernote, Ulysses is a note taking app that lets you organize your thoughts.

Ulysses also includes a binder-like sidebar that lets you move documents around easily, so you can keep all your thoughts organized.

Ulysses is better for Mac users than Evernote, but it’s currently less popular.

5. Reedsy Book Editor

Cost: Free!

Why we love it: It lets you see what your published book will look like while you’re still writing it

The Reedsy Book Editor is a free book writing software that also handles formatting and conversion while you write. It’s especially useful for authors who want to self-publish their books.

It’s a free alternative to expensive book formatting softwares like Atticus and Vellum, which charge a large fee to format your manuscript.

6. Hemingway

Why we love it: It’s one of the most useful free editing tools

The Hemingway app is a free writing software that checks your work for readability.

When you run your work through the Hemingway editor, it will highlight sentences that are dense or overly complex, so you can find ways to shorten them. It also highlights passive voice, overused adverbs, and any other weaknesses that might make your work harder to read.

Some of the Hemingway editor’s suggestions can be a bit hit-or-miss, but it’s still a fun style editor to try.

7. Grammarly

Cost: Free, or $30/month, $60/quarter, or $144/year for the Premium version

Why we love it: It catches your typos and grammar errors

Like ProWritingAid, Grammarly is a grammar checker that can catch your spelling and grammar mistakes.

Some of Grammarly’s top features include its plagiarism detector, its spell check, and its grammar check. It offers style suggestions related to wordy sentences, repetitive words, incorrect comma usage, and more.

It also includes a plagiarism checker, which will let you know if your work resembles any currently published written works.

8. Novel Factory

Cost: $75/year for the basic version, $198/year for the standard version, or $600/year for the Premium version

Why we love it: It helps creative writers develop characters, plot, story world, and more

Novel Factory is a word processor that can help you write your novel. It offers several features to help novelists develop elements of their stories.

For example, the Plot Manager includes plot templates for popular genres, while the character developer can help you flesh out your character’s archetype, motivation, and more.

9. Google Docs

Why we love it: It allows real-time collaboration with editors, beta readers, and fellow writers

If you’re working on a collaboration, Google Docs is one of the best options alongside ProWritingAid and Dropbox. Multiple writers can work on the same document at the same time.

Let’s say you want to get feedback on your writing from a critique partner or a beta reader. If you invite them to your Google Docs file, you can watch as they leave comments, in-line edit suggestions, and even emoji reactions on specific passages of your work.

10. Microsoft Word

Cost: around $100/year for the entire Microsoft Office suite, including Excel, PowerPoint, etc.

Why we love it: Most writers know how to use it already

Microsoft Word is one of the most widely used word processors. This simple but effective writing app is useful for all kinds of writing projects.

Its user interface is easy to use and navigate. The Track Changes feature makes it easy to edit other people’s stories, while also giving them the choice to accept or reject those changes.

Carving out time to write can be just as difficult as actually writing. These productivity and organization tools can help you stay focused and take control of your own schedule.

11. Freedom

Cost: $29/year for the Pro version

Why we love it: We’re easily distracted

Have you ever set aside time to work on a writing project, and then found yourself scrolling through social media instead?

If you’re easily distracted, like us, the Freedom app is a must-have. This tool lets you block social media, email, or whatever apps and websites you choose.

Freedom is the perfect tool for distraction free writing. You can even schedule recurring focus mode sessions in advance.

12. Marinara Timer

Why we love it: It lets you time your writing sprints

The Pomodoro Technique is a well-known technique for improving your productivity. It suggests working for 25 minutes, followed by a 5-minute break.

Many writers use timed writing sessions, also known as “writing sprints,” to hit their word count goals more quickly and effectively. Some use the 25/5-minute Pomodoro Technique, while others prefer longer or shorter sprints.

The Marinara Timer is a great website for timing your writing sprints. You can use the automatic Pomodoro Timer, or you can set your own custom writing sprint lengths.

13. To Doist

Cost: Free, or $48/year for the Pro version

Why we love it: There’s nothing more satisfying than crossing something off a to-do list

To Doist is a task manager app that lets you organize your tasks in a simple and intuitive way.

You can break large tasks into subtasks, organize your tasks into projects, and even share your projects with other people.

To Doist also offers project templates that can help you get started if you don’t know what tasks you need to accomplish.

14. Acuity Scheduling

Cost: $14/month for the Emerging option, $23/month for the Growing option, or $45/month for the Powerhouse option

Why we love it: It lets you take control of your own schedule

Acuity Scheduling is an easy way to streamline your calendar and create appointments for customers.

If you’re a freelance writer who works with clients, editors, or coworkers, Acuity’s customized scheduling page can be a lifesaver. It lets you keep your schedule organized by automating processes.

It also lets you create your own client intake forms, so you can collect all the information you need upfront.

Cost: Free, or $10/month for the Pro version

Why we love it: It can make your home office sound like a gentle rainforest

Noisli lets you write to a soundtrack of your choice. You can choose anything from the sound of a crackling fire to the sound of ocean tides.

These background sounds can mask annoying noises in your workspace and help you stay focused on what you’re writing.

If you choose a sound that you associate with your work in progress—for example, if you listen to birdsong while writing a poem about birds—Noisli can even help improve your creativity.

So far in this article, we’ve focused on digital tools and other types of writing software. However, it’s just as critical to create a good work environment in your physical workspace.

Here are some physical tools you can use to optimize your workspace.

16. Ergonomic Writing Desk

Cost: $200–$800

Why we love it: It’s an easy replacement for a workout

An ergonomic desk ensures you sit at a healthy angle, with enough room for your legs and knees. It prevents your back from hunching unnaturally, and can help you avoid joint pain, heart disease, and other long-term health problems.

You can choose a desk that has a standing option and a sitting option, so you can stretch your legs from time to time. That way, you can even burn extra calories.

Okay, so it’s not actually a replacement for a workout. You should still take time to exercise.

But if you’re worried about spending too much time sitting down, an ergonomic writing desk will certainly help.

17. Ergonomic Keyboard

Cost: $50–$200

Why we love it: It can prevent wrist injury

An ergonomic keyboard is a keyboard designed to minimize muscle strain, fatigue, and other potential health problems.

There are many options for a great writing keyboard. You should consider whether you want a wireless or corded keyboard, whether you need automatic backlighting, and which keyboard is most comfortable for you.

Some popular keyboard options for writers include the Microsoft Sculpt and the Logitech K780. If you’re typing all day, it’s worth investing in a keyboard that works well for you.

18. Blue Light Computer Glasses

Cost: $20–$100

Why we love it: You might get a headache without them

If you spend a long time staring at a computer screen, it’s a great idea to invest in computer glasses.

Blue-light blocking glasses can reduce eye strain and prevent migraines. They also make it easier to fall asleep at night.

19. Rocketbook Notebook

Cost: $20–$40

Why we love it: You can use the same notebook for the rest of your life

The Rocketbook notebook is a digital notebook that lets you convert your handwritten notes into a digital format. You can upload each page directly into an app, so if you like to write stories or essays by hand, they will be easy to read afterwards.

Best of all, Rocketbook notebooks are reusable, so you can use the same one for life.

20. Livescribe Pen

Cost: about $100

Why we love it: It uploads your handwritten notes in a digital format

The Livescribe Symphony Smartpen is a digital pen that captures everything you write and draw in a digital format.

It even records audio and plays the recording back for you, which can make note taking a lot easier.

If you like writing by hand but also do a lot of your work on a laptop, the Livescribe pen can help you access all your work in one place.

Here are five things to consider when deciding whether a writing tool is right for you.

1. Top Features

The best writing tools are the ones that have all the features you want and need. It’s better to spend some money on a piece of writing software that truly helps you than one that doesn’t live up to the hype.

Ask yourself: What makes this particular tool stand out from the crowd? How can it help me transform my writing?

2. Cost-Effectiveness

Nobody has an endless budget, so it’s important to prioritize the tools that will give you the most bang for your buck.

Expensive tools often have special features that others lack. Sometimes it's worth investing in the pricier option, while other times you can get the results you need with a cheaper alternative.

3. User-Friendliness

There’s no point buying a tool that you can’t figure out how to use.

Some tools have a steep learning curve, while others are very user-friendly. If you don’t like working out how to use new tools, look for ones that are easy to learn and let you hit the ground running.

4. Customization Options

No two writers are exactly alike. You might be writing a lighthearted, comedic memoir, or a dark mystery novel—or maybe even both.

Ideally, you want to invest in tools you can customize to suit your preferences. Look for versatile tools that suit your unique situation.

5. Integration Options

You want to choose software that integrates smoothly into your writing routine. For example, ProWritingAid can integrate into your favorite software, like Microsoft Word, Scrivener, Final Draft, or any website on your favorite web browser.

If it doesn’t work well with the other apps you use, you’ll be signing up for a major headache every time you switch from one to the other.

There you have it—the 15 best writing tools and 5 best office tools that every writer should know about.

Choosing the right tools can help you curate an end-to-end writing process that works for you. You might write your project in Scrivener and edit it with ProWritingAid while listening to a soundtrack from Noisli, all on your favorite ergonomic keyboard.

What are your favorite writing tools? Let us know in the comments.

Happy writing!

Write like a bestselling author

Love writing? ProWritingAid will help you improve the style, strength, and clarity of your stories.

Hannah Yang

Hannah Yang is a speculative fiction writer who writes about all things strange and surreal. Her work has appeared in Analog Science Fiction, Apex Magazine, The Dark, and elsewhere, and two of her stories have been finalists for the Locus Award. Her favorite hobbies include watercolor painting, playing guitar, and rock climbing. You can follow her work on hannahyang.com, or subscribe to her newsletter for publication updates.

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31 Stylistic Devices for Creative Writers

Today’s guest post is by Rose Scott:

Without figurative language , writing would be plain and shallow. The more stylistic devices you know, the more unique your writing can be. If writing is your passion, you probably already know a dozen or so stylistic devices, but I’m betting there are a few on this list you’ve never heard of.

Take a look at this comprehensive list of stylistic devices and see if any might work in your current WIP (work in progress). Of course, you want to be reasonable and not go overboard with forced prose. But I’m sure you can find great places to utilize these wonderful literary techniques.

1. Adnomination

Repetition of words with the same root. The difference lies in one sound or letter. A nice euphony can be achieved by using this poetic device.

Examples: “Nobody loves no one.” (Chris Isaak). Someone, somewhere, wants something.

2. Allegory

Representation of ideas through a certain form (character, event, etc.). Allegory can convey hidden meanings through symbolic figures, actions, and imagery.

Example: Animal Farm by George Orwell is all about the Russian Revolution. And characters stand for working and upper classes, military forces, and political leaders.

3. Alliteration

The repeated sound of the first consonant in a series of words, or the repetition of the same sounds of the same kind at the beginning of words or in stressed syllables of a phrase.

Examples: A lazy lying lion. Peter picked a peck of pickled peppers. Sally sells seashells by the seashore.

4. Allusion

Reference to a myth, character, literary work, work of art, or an event.

Example: I feel like I’m going down the rabbit hole (an allusion to Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland by Lewis Carroll).

5. Anaphora

Word repetition at the beginnings of sentences in order to give emphasis to them.

Example: “Let freedom ring from the mighty mountains of New York. Let freedom ring from the heightening Alleghenies of Pennsylvania. Let freedom ring from the snow-capped Rockies of Colorado. Let freedom ring from the curvaceous slopes of California.” (Martin Luther King)

Opposite: Epiphora. Word repetition at the end of sentences.

Example: “And that government of the people, by the people, for the people, shall not perish from the earth.” (Abraham Lincoln)

6. Antithesis

Emphasizing contrast between two things or fictional characters.

Example: “Love is an ideal thing, marriage a real thing; a confusion of the real with the ideal never goes unpunished.” (Johann Wolfgang von Goethe)

7. Apostrophe

Directed speech to someone who is not present or to an object.

Example: “Work on, my medicine, work! Thus credulous fools are caught.” (William Shakespeare)

8. Assonance

Repetition of vowels in order to create internal rhyming.

Example: “Hear the mellow wedding bells.” (Edgar Allan Poe)

Related: Consonance. Repetition of consonants.

9. Cataphora

Mentioning of the person or object further in the discourse.

Examples: I met him yesterday, your boyfriend who was wearing the cool hat. If you want some, here’s some cheese. After he had received his orders, the soldier left the barracks.

Arranging text in such a manner that tension gradually ascends.

Example. He was a not bad listener, a good speaker and an amazing performer.

Opposite: Anticlimax. Tension descends.

11. Charactonym (or Speaking Name)

Giving fictional characters names that describe them.

Example: Scrooge, Snow White.

12. Ellipsis

Word or phrase omission.

Example: I speak lots of languages, but you only speak two (languages).

13. Euphemism

Replacing offensive or combinations of words with lighter equivalents.

Example: Visually challenged (blind); meet one’s maker (die)

Opposite: Dysphemism . Replacing a neutral word with a harsher word.

14. Epigram

Memorable and brief saying, usually satirical.

Example: “For most of history, Anonymous was a woman.” (Virginia Woolf)

15. Hyperbole

Exaggeration of the statement.

Example: If I’ve told you once, I’ve told you a thousand times.

Opposite: Litotes. Understatement.

Asking a question and answering it right away.

Example: Are you going to leave now? I don’t think so.

There are three types of irony:

• Verbal (Antiphrasis) – using words to express something different from their literal meaning for ironic effect (”I’m so excited to burn the midnight oil and write my academic paper all week long”).
• Situational – result differs from the expectation (Bruce Robertson, a character of Filth, is a policeman. Nonetheless, he does drugs, resorts to violence and abuse, and so on).
• Dramatic – situation is understandable for the audience but not the fictional character/actor (audience sees that the fictional characters/actors will be killed now, though the characters don’t expect it).

Describing people/objects by enumerating their traits.

Example: Lock, stock, and barrel (gun); heart and soul (entirety)

18. Metalepsis

Referencing one thing through the means of another thing, which is related to the first one.

Example: “Stop judging people so strictly—you live in a glass house too.” (A hint at the proverb: people who live in glass houses should not throw stones.)

19. Metaphor

Comparing two different things that have some characteristics in common.

Example: “Love is clockworks and cold steel.” (U2)

20. Metonymy

Giving a thing another name that is associated with it.

Example: The heir to the crown was Richard. (the crown stands for authority)

21. Onomatopoeia

Imitating sounds in writing.

Example: oink, ticktock, tweet tweet

22. Oxymoron

Combining contradictory traits.

Example: Living dead; terribly good; real magic

23. Parallelism

Arranging a sentence in such a manner that it has parallel structure.

Example: “Tell me and I forget. Teach me and I may remember. Involve me and I will learn.” (Benjamin Franklin)

Opposite: Chiasmus . An inverted parallelism.

Examples: “To stop, too fearful, and too faint to go.” (Oliver Goldsmith); “My job is not to represent Washington to you but to represent you to Washington.” (Barack Obama)

24. Parenthesis

Interrupting a sentence by inserting extra information enclosed in brackets, commas, or dashes.

Example: Our family (my mother, sister, and grandfather) had a barbeque this past weekend.

25. Personification

Attributing human characteristics to nonhumans.

Example: Practically all animals in fairy tales act like human beings. They speak and have traits that are typical of people.

A kind of wordplay. Here are a few types of puns:

• Antanaclasis – repetition of the same word or phrase, but with a different meaning (“Cats like Felix like Felix.”—“Felix” catfood slogan).
• Malapropism – usage of the incorrect word instead of the word with a similar sound (“optical delusion” instead of “optical illusion”).
• Paradox – self-contradictory fact; however, it can be partially true (“I can resist anything but temptation.”—Oscar Wilde).
• Paraprosdokian – arranging a sentence in such a manner so the last part is unexpected (You’re never too old to learn something stupid).
• Polyptoton – repetition of the words with the same root (“The things you  own  end up  owning  you.”—Chuck Palahniuk).

27. Rhetorical question

Questioning without expecting the answer.

Example: Why not? Are you kidding me?

Direct comparison.

Example: “Your heart is like an ocean, mysterious and dark.” (Bob Dylan)

29. Synecdoche

Generalization or specification based on a definite part/trait of the object.

Example: He just got new wheels. (car)

30. Tautology

Saying the same thing twice in different ways.

Example: first priority; I personally; repeat again

31. Zeugma (or Syllepsis)

Applying a word to a few other words in the sentence in order to give different meaning.

Example: Give neither counsel nor salt till you are asked for it.

Quite a huge list, right? With all these stylistic devices, your writing can potentially be so much more attractive. If you find it difficult to memorize them all, here’s what I recommend you do: make flashcards. Write a stylistic device on one side of the flashcard and its meaning on the other side, then work on memorizing a few a day. Voila! Enjoy your learning and writing.

Feature photo by Heather Wilson Smith

Have you been learning helpful insights on how to spot flaws in your fiction writing? Know some writers who might benefit from these in-depth posts? The book is out!

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13 Comments

great post! thanks Rose, for a super stellar list of dynamic devices! i’ve saved the list for future and fair-constant reference. there’s always something good on this blog! Merry Christmas everyone!!

Oh man, it’s like Christmas has come early. I love posts like this – and I’ll both share it *and* copy it to my desktop ha!

Items I didn’t know about but immediately fell in love with: adnomination, anaphora, hypophora (I hadn’t realised, but I do this all of the time, which now seems pretty annoying!), and zeugma. Thank you once again!

Glad you enjoyed this post! Have a happy Christmas!

Thanks much for you “31 Stylistic Devices … …” I was in the process of writing a transcript when I sort of stumbled across the need to correctly define a scenario.

I did a quick surf, directly asking for what I wanted, this popped up. I scanned your list and had the “Eureka!” moment. “METAPHOR!”

It’s really great of you also sharing without obligation. We do a lot of that in our realm of things.

Okay! Thanks again! Please, have a great weekend!

P.S. For you Ms. Lakin. Thanks for making this site available! Please, have a great weekend, as well!

Thanks for the kind words! Glad you are getting some benefit from the blog’s content!

Do you have a list of stylised paragraphs? Not just the main 4 (descriptive, narrative, expository, and persuasive), but other types of paragraphs that apply rhetorical ornaments and devices.

Forgot to say thank you for this lovely and informative post.

Wow this post has boost my understanding of the analysing the prose techniques in a book. Thank u very much

I greatly appreciate the time and effort you put into constructing this list. I especially enjoy how you introduced me to unfamiliar and complex stylistic devices. I will attempt to incorporate these techniques in my future writing. Synecdoche is a wonderful device that I have not heard of before, I’ll have to steal it :P. Is there any way I can contact you? I would love to have a nerdy conversation about English!

Sincerely, Jenny Wales

It was interesting when you talked about how parallelism arranges sentences so their structure is parallel to each other. I’ve been wanting to find some poetry online to help me sort through my emotions from a loved one’s death last month. Thanks for teaching me these writing devices to look out for so I can understand the poems as effectively as possible.

Hi Rose I like your terms and I am using it on my writing my thesis on stylistics.

Actually, there are 32 stylistic devices in your list, since there are two no. 17.

Thankyou so much for the compilation.It was quite helpful to me while writing my work of literature especially since english isnt my first language.Its simply priceless

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In a hole in the ground there lived a hobbit. Not a nasty, dirty, wet hole, filled with the ends of worms and an oozy smell, nor yet a dry, bare, sandy hole with nothing in it to sit down on or to eat: it was a hobbit­hole, and that means comfort. It had a perfectly round door like a porthole, painted green, with a shiny yellow brass knob in the exact middle. The door opened on to a tube­shaped hall like a tunnel: a very comfortable tunnel without smoke, with panelled walls, and floors tiled and carpeted, provided with polished chairs, and lots and lots of pegs for hats and coats ­ the hobbit was fond of visitors. The tunnel wound on and on, going fairly but not quite straight into the side of the hill ­ The Hill, as all the people for many miles round called it ­ and many little round doors opened out of it, first on one side and then on another. No going upstairs for the hobbit: bedrooms, bathrooms, cellars, pantries (lots of these), wardrobes (he had whole rooms devoted to clothes), kitchens, dining­rooms, all were on the same floor, and indeed on the same passage. The best rooms were all on the left­hand side (going in), for these were the only ones to have windows, deep­set round windows looking over his garden and meadows beyond, sloping down to the river. This hobbit was a very well­to­do hobbit, and his name was Baggins. The Bagginses had lived in the neighbourhood of The Hill for time out of mind, and people considered them very respectable, not only because most of them were rich, but also because they never had any adventures or did anything unexpected: you could tell what a Baggins would say on any question without the bother of asking him. This is a story of how a Baggins had an adventure, found himself doing and saying things altogether unexpected. He may have lost the neighbours' respect, but he gained­well, you will see whether he gained anything in the end.In a hole in the ground there lived a hobbit. Not a nasty, dirty, wet hole, filled with the ends of worms and an oozy smell, nor yet a dry, bare, sandy hole with nothing in it to sit down on or to eat: it was a hobbit­hole, and that means comfort. It had a perfectly round door like a porthole, painted green, with a shiny yellow brass knob in the exact middle. The door opened on to a tube­shaped hall like a tunnel: a very comfortable tunnel without smoke, with panelled walls, and floors tiled and carpeted, provided with polished chairs, and lots and lots of pegs for hats and coats ­ the hobbit was fond of visitors. The tunnel wound on and on, going fairly but not quite straight into the side of the hill ­ The Hill, as all the people for many miles round called it ­ and many little round doors opened out of it, first on one side and then on another. No going upstairs for the hobbit: bedrooms, bathrooms, cellars, pantries (lots of these), wardrobes (he had whole rooms devoted to clothes), kitchens, dining­rooms, all were on the same floor, and indeed on the same passage. The best rooms were all on the left­hand side (going in), for these were the only ones to have windows, deep­set round windows looking over his garden and meadows beyond, sloping down to the river. This hobbit was a very well­to­do hobbit, and his name was Baggins. The Bagginses had lived in the neighbourhood of The Hill for time out of mind, and people considered them very respectable, not only because most of them were rich, but also because they never had any adventures or did anything unexpected: you could tell what a Baggins would say on any question without the bother of asking him. This is a story of how a Baggins had an adventure, found himself doing and saying things altogether unexpected. He may have lost the neighbours' respect, but he gained­well, you will see whether he gained anything in the end.In a hole in the ground there lived a hobbit. Not a nasty, dirty, wet hole, filled with the ends of worms and an oozy smell, nor yet a dry, bare, sandy hole with nothing in it to sit down on or to eat: it was a hobbit­hole, and that means comfort. It had a perfectly round door like a porthole, painted green, with a shiny yellow brass knob in the exact middle. The door opened on to a tube­shaped hall like a tunnel: a very comfortable tunnel without smoke, with panelled walls, and floors tiled and carpeted, provided with polished chairs, and lots and lots of pegs for hats and coats ­ the hobbit was fond of visitors. The tunnel wound on and on, going fairly but not quite straight into the side of the hill ­ The Hill, as all the people for many miles round called it ­ and many little round doors opened out of it, first on one side and then on another. No going upstairs for the hobbit: bedrooms, bathrooms, cellars, pantries (lots of these), wardrobes (he had whole rooms devoted to clothes), kitchens, dining­rooms, all were on the same floor, and indeed on the same passage. The best rooms were all on the left­hand side (going in), for these were the only ones to have windows, deep­set round windows looking over his garden and meadows beyond, sloping down to the river. This hobbit was a very well­to­do hobbit, and his name was Baggins. The Bagginses had lived in the neighbourhood of The Hill for time out of mind, and people considered them very respectable, not only because most of them were rich, but also because they never had any adventures or did anything unexpected: you could tell what a Baggins would say on any question without the bother of asking him. This is a story of how a Baggins had an adventure, found himself doing and saying things altogether unexpected. He may have lost the neighbours' respect, but he gained­well, you will see whether he gained anything in the end.In a hole in the ground there lived a hobbit. Not a nasty, dirty, wet hole, filled with the ends of worms and an oozy smell, nor yet a dry, bare, sandy hole with nothing in it to sit down on or to eat: it was a hobbit­hole, and that means comfort. It had a perfectly round door like a porthole, painted green, with a shiny yellow brass knob in the exact middle. The door opened on to a tube­shaped hall like a tunnel: a very comfortable tunnel without smoke, with panelled walls, and floors tiled and carpeted, provided with polished chairs, and lots and lots of pegs for hats and coats ­ the hobbit was fond of visitors. The tunnel wound on and on, going fairly but not quite straight into the side of the hill ­ The Hill, as all the people for many miles round called it ­ and many little round doors opened out of it, first on one side and then on another. No going upstairs for the hobbit: bedrooms, bathrooms, cellars, pantries (lots of these), wardrobes (he had whole rooms devoted to clothes), kitchens, dining­rooms, all were on the same floor, and indeed on the same passage. The best rooms were all on the left­hand side (going in), for these were the only ones to have windows, deep­set round windows looking over his garden and meadows beyond, sloping down to the river. This hobbit was a very well­to­do hobbit, and his name was Baggins. The Bagginses had lived in the neighbourhood of The Hill for time out of mind, and people considered them very respectable, not only because most of them were rich, but also because they never had any adventures or did anything unexpected: you could tell what a Baggins would say on any question without the bother of asking him. This is a story of how a Baggins had an adventure, found himself doing and saying things altogether unexpected. He may have lost the neighbours' respect, but he gained­well, you will see whether he gained anything in the end.In a hole in the ground there lived a hobbit. Not a nasty, dirty, wet hole, filled with the ends of worms and an oozy smell, nor yet a dry, bare, sandy hole with nothing in it to sit down on or to eat: it was a hobbit­hole, and that means comfort. It had a perfectly round door like a porthole, painted green, with a shiny yellow brass knob in the exact middle. The door opened on to a tube­shaped hall like a tunnel: a very comfortable tunnel without smoke, with panelled walls, and floors tiled and carpeted, provided with polished chairs, and lots and lots of pegs for hats and coats ­ the hobbit was fond of visitors. The tunnel wound on and on, going fairly but not quite straight into the side of the hill ­ The Hill, as all the people for many miles round called it ­ and many little round doors opened out of it, first on one side and then on another. No going upstairs for the hobbit: bedrooms, bathrooms, cellars, pantries (lots of these), wardrobes (he had whole rooms devoted to clothes), kitchens, dining­rooms, all were on the same floor, and indeed on the same passage. The best rooms were all on the left­hand side (going in), for these were the only ones to have windows, deep­set round windows looking over his garden and meadows beyond, sloping down to the river. This hobbit was a very well­to­do hobbit, and his name was Baggins. The Bagginses had lived in the neighbourhood of The Hill for time out of mind, and people considered them very respectable, not only because most of them were rich, but also because they never had any adventures or did anything unexpected: you could tell what a Baggins would say on any question without the bother of asking him. This is a story of how a Baggins had an adventure, found himself doing and saying things altogether unexpected. He may have lost the neighbours' respect, but he gained­well, you will see whether he gained anything in the end.In a hole in the ground there lived a hobbit. Not a nasty, dirty, wet hole, filled with the ends of worms and an oozy smell, nor yet a dry, bare, sandy hole with nothing in it to sit down on or to eat: it was a hobbit­hole, and that means comfort. It had a perfectly round door like a porthole, painted green, with a shiny yellow brass knob in the exact middle. The door opened on to a tube­shaped hall like a tunnel: a very comfortable tunnel without smoke, with panelled walls, and floors tiled and carpeted, provided with polished chairs, and lots and lots of pegs for hats and coats ­ the hobbit was fond of visitors. The tunnel wound on and on, going fairly but not quite straight into the side of the hill ­ The Hill, as all the people for many miles round called it ­ and many little round doors opened out of it, first on one side and then on another. No going upstairs for the hobbit: bedrooms, bathrooms, cellars, pantries (lots of these), wardrobes (he had whole rooms devoted to clothes), kitchens, dining­rooms, all were on the same floor, and indeed on the same passage. The best rooms were all on the left­hand side (going in), for these were the only ones to have windows, deep­set round windows looking over his garden and meadows beyond, sloping down to the river. This hobbit was a very well­to­do hobbit, and his name was Baggins. The Bagginses had lived in the neighbourhood of The Hill for time out of mind, and people considered them very respectable, not only because most of them were rich, but also because they never had any adventures or did anything unexpected: you could tell what a Baggins would say on any question without the bother of asking him. This is a story of how a Baggins had an adventure, found himself doing and saying things altogether unexpected. He may have lost the neighbours' respect, but he gained­well, you will see whether he gained anything in the end.In a hole in the ground there lived a hobbit. Not a nasty, dirty, wet hole, filled with the ends of worms and an oozy smell, nor yet a dry, bare, sandy hole with nothing in it to sit down on or to eat: it was a hobbit­hole, and that means comfort. It had a perfectly round door like a porthole, painted green, with a shiny yellow brass knob in the exact middle. The door opened on to a tube­shaped hall like a tunnel: a very comfortable tunnel without smoke, with panelled walls, and floors tiled and carpeted, provided with polished chairs, and lots and lots of pegs for hats and coats ­ the hobbit was fond of visitors. The tunnel wound on and on, going fairly but not quite straight into the side of the hill ­ The Hill, as all the people for many miles round called it ­ and many little round doors opened out of it, first on one side and then on another. No going upstairs for the hobbit: bedrooms, bathrooms, cellars, pantries (lots of these), wardrobes (he had whole rooms devoted to clothes), kitchens, dining­rooms, all were on the same floor, and indeed on the same passage. The best rooms were all on the left­hand side (going in), for these were the only ones to have windows, deep­set round windows looking over his garden and meadows beyond, sloping down to the river. This hobbit was a very well­to­do hobbit, and his name was Baggins. The Bagginses had lived in the neighbourhood of The Hill for time out of mind, and people considered them very respectable, not only because most of them were rich, but also because they never had any adventures or did anything unexpected: you could tell what a Baggins would say on any question without the bother of asking him. This is a story of how a Baggins had an adventure, found himself doing and saying things altogether unexpected. He may have lost the neighbours' respect, but he gained­well, you will see whether he gained anything in the end.In a hole in the ground there lived a hobbit. Not a nasty, dirty, wet hole, filled with the ends of worms and an oozy smell, nor yet a dry, bare, sandy hole with nothing in it to sit down on or to eat: it was a hobbit­hole, and that means comfort. It had a perfectly round door like a porthole, painted green, with a shiny yellow brass knob in the exact middle. The door opened on to a tube­shaped hall like a tunnel: a very comfortable tunnel without smoke, with panelled walls, and floors tiled and carpeted, provided with polished chairs, and lots and lots of pegs for hats and coats ­ the hobbit was fond of visitors. The tunnel wound on and on, going fairly but not quite straight into the side of the hill ­ The Hill, as all the people for many miles round called it ­ and many little round doors opened out of it, first on one side and then on another. No going upstairs for the hobbit: bedrooms, bathrooms, cellars, pantries (lots of these), wardrobes (he had whole rooms devoted to clothes), kitchens, dining­rooms, all were on the same floor, and indeed on the same passage. The best rooms were all on the left­hand side (going in), for these were the only ones to have windows, deep­set round windows looking over his garden and meadows beyond, sloping down to the river. This hobbit was a very well­to­do hobbit, and his name was Baggins. The Bagginses had lived in the neighbourhood of The Hill for time out of mind, and people considered them very respectable, not only because most of them were rich, but also because they never had any adventures or did anything unexpected: you could tell what a Baggins would say on any question without the bother of asking him. This is a story of how a Baggins had an adventure, found himself doing and saying things altogether unexpected. He may have lost the neighbours' respect, but he gained­well, you will see whether he gained anything in the end.In a hole in the ground there lived a hobbit. Not a nasty, dirty, wet hole, filled with the ends of worms and an oozy smell, nor yet a dry, bare, sandy hole with nothing in it to sit down on or to eat: it was a hobbit­hole, and that means comfort. It had a perfectly round door like a porthole, painted green, with a shiny yellow brass knob in the exact middle. The door opened on to a tube­shaped hall like a tunnel: a very comfortable tunnel without smoke, with panelled walls, and floors tiled and carpeted, provided with polished chairs, and lots and lots of pegs for hats and coats ­ the hobbit was fond of visitors. The tunnel wound on and on, going fairly but not quite straight into the side of the hill ­ The Hill, as all the people for many miles round called it ­ and many little round doors opened out of it, first on one side and then on another. No going upstairs for the hobbit: bedrooms, bathrooms, cellars, pantries (lots of these), wardrobes (he had whole rooms devoted to clothes), kitchens, dining­rooms, all were on the same floor, and indeed on the same passage. The best rooms were all on the left­hand side (going in), for these were the only ones to have windows, deep­set round windows looking over his garden and meadows beyond, sloping down to the river. This hobbit was a very well­to­do hobbit, and his name was Baggins. The Bagginses had lived in the neighbourhood of The Hill for time out of mind, and people considered them very respectable, not only because most of them were rich, but also because they never had any adventures or did anything unexpected: you could tell what a Baggins would say on any question without the bother of asking him. This is a story of how a Baggins had an adventure, found himself doing and saying things altogether unexpected. He may have lost the neighbours' respect, but he gained­well, you will see whether he gained anything in the end.In a hole in the ground there lived a hobbit. Not a nasty, dirty, wet hole, filled with the ends of worms and an oozy smell, nor yet a dry, bare, sandy hole with nothing in it to sit down on or to eat: it was a hobbit­hole, and that means comfort. It had a perfectly round door like a porthole, painted green, with a shiny yellow brass knob in the exact middle. The door opened on to a tube­shaped hall like a tunnel: a very comfortable tunnel without smoke, with panelled walls, and floors tiled and carpeted, provided with polished chairs, and lots and lots of pegs for hats and coats ­ the hobbit was fond of visitors. The tunnel wound on and on, going fairly but not quite straight into the side of the hill ­ The Hill, as all the people for many miles round called it ­ and many little round doors opened out of it, first on one side and then on another. No going upstairs for the hobbit: bedrooms, bathrooms, cellars, pantries (lots of these), wardrobes (he had whole rooms devoted to clothes), kitchens, dining­rooms, all were on the same floor, and indeed on the same passage. The best rooms were all on the left­hand side (going in), for these were the only ones to have windows, deep­set round windows looking over his garden and meadows beyond, sloping down to the river. This hobbit was a very well­to­do hobbit, and his name was Baggins. The Bagginses had lived in the neighbourhood of The Hill for time out of mind, and people considered them very respectable, not only because most of them were rich, but also because they never had any adventures or did anything unexpected: you could tell what a Baggins would say on any question without the bother of asking him. This is a story of how a Baggins had an adventure, found himself doing and saying things altogether unexpected. He may have lost the neighbours' respect, but he gained­well, you will see whether he gained anything in the end.

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The ship, the stalwart vessel known as 'The Serenity Mariner,' was plunged into chaos as the sky became a swirling maelstrom of opalescent tendrils. The flying jellyfish, their bioluminescent bodies illuminating the blackened sky, descended upon the ship with an otherworldly fury. Their membranous bodies pulsated as they sailed through the air, their long, poisonous tentacles trailing behind them like deadly streamers.

Captain Anabelle "Storm-Eye" Hawthorne stood at the helm, her grip firm on the worn, salt-crusted wheel. Her eyes, the color of the stormy sea itself, narrowed as she watched the spectral onslaught. Years of navigating treacherous waters had hardened her, but she'd never faced a tempest of living, breathing creatures before.

"Steady on, lads!" she roared above the howling wind, her voice carrying a command that could not be ignored. "Don't let the sea's nightmarish ballet scare you! These are just jellyfish, no more than that!"

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Àánú Deborah-Kristy Obisesan

A Comprehensive Guide to 18 Essential Writing Tools for Beginners

Writing is a craft that demands inspiration, dedication, and the right set of tools. As a beginner, navigating the vast landscape of writing tools can be overwhelming. Fear not! This comprehensive guide breaks down 18 essential writing tools, offering insights into how they work and personal tips to help you harness their full potential.

1. Grammarly: Elevating Your Language Skills Grammarly is a writing assistant that goes beyond basic spell-check. It provides real-time suggestions for grammar, spelling, and punctuation. Tailor your writing style in the settings to match your needs—whether academic, creative, or professional. Personal Tip: Use Grammarly not just as a correction tool but as a learning aid. Understand why a suggestion is made to improve your skills over time.

2. Hemingway Editor: Embracing Clarity This tool highlights complex sentences and common errors, fostering clear and concise writing. Strive for shorter sentences and embrace simplicity to enhance readability. Personal Tip: Don’t shy away from the editor’s suggestions; they are your allies in crafting bold and impactful prose.

3. Scrivener: Mastering Organization Scrivener is a powerhouse for organizing your writing. Utilize the corkboard feature for visual outlining and break down your work into manageable sections. Personal Tip: Dive into the tutorial to unlock Scrivener’s full potential and make it an extension of your creative process.

4. Google Docs: Collaborative Excellence Google Docs provides a seamless collaborative writing experience. Share your document for real-time feedback and simultaneous editing. Personal Tip: Use comments to engage in discussions and address feedback within the document itself.

5. Evernote: Capturing Ideas on the Go Evernote is a versatile note-taking app that lets you capture ideas on the go. Create dedicated notebooks for different projects to stay organized. Personal Tip: Utilize Evernote’s multimedia capabilities by attaching voice notes or images to enhance your written ideas.

6. Thesaurus.com: Broadening Vocabulary Horizons Thesaurus.com is not just about finding synonyms. Dive deeper to explore different shades of meaning for a word, enriching your vocabulary. Personal Tip: Make a habit of learning a new word each day and incorporate it into your writing.

7. WriteMonkey: Distraction-Free Productivity WriteMonkey provides a distraction-free writing environment. Experiment with the focus mode to enhance productivity during intense writing sessions. Personal Tip: Embrace the minimalist design to immerse yourself fully in the writing process.

8. Reedsy Book Editor: Formatting Finesse This tool guides you through the book creation process, aiding in formatting and structuring your work. Leverage formatting features for a polished final product. Personal Tip: Use Reedsy for collaborative writing projects, ensuring a seamless workflow.

9. ProWritingAid: Polishing Your Prose ProWritingAid offers comprehensive writing analysis, focusing on style, grammar, and readability. Review detailed reports to identify patterns in your writing. Personal Tip: Tackle one aspect at a time; it’s a valuable companion in refining your writing skills.

10. Focus@Will: Music for Concentration Explore different music genres within Focus@Will to find the one that enhances your concentration. Use it as a tool to set the tone for focused writing sessions. Personal Tip: Experiment with different genres based on your mood and the type of writing task at hand.

11. OneLook Reverse Dictionary: Finding the Perfect Word OneLook Reverse Dictionary helps you find the right word by describing the concept. Think conceptually to uncover the perfect term. Personal Tip: Use it not just for synonyms but to refine your language and express ideas more precisely.

12. Canva: Designing Visual Appeal Canva goes beyond writing by helping you design visuals for your projects. Use pre-designed templates for book covers or social media graphics. Personal Tip: Explore Canva’s vast library of images and fonts to add a personalized touch to your visual elements.

13. Cliché Finder: Staying Fresh and Original Run your writing through Cliché Finder to ensure your work remains fresh. Appreciate the value of originality and creativity in your writing. Personal Tip: Make it a habit to run your drafts through the tool during the editing phase to catch and replace overused phrases.

14. Write or Die: Motivation for Consistency Experiment with the consequences in Write or Die to find the right level of motivation. Use it to establish a consistent writing habit. Personal Tip: Start with gentle consequences and gradually increase the stakes as you become more accustomed to the tool.

15. LibreOffice Writer: Free and Feature-Rich LibreOffice Writer is a free, open-source word processor with advanced features. Explore styles and templates for consistent formatting. Personal Tip: Familiarize yourself with LibreOffice’s customizable features to tailor it to your specific writing needs.

16. MindMeister: Mind Mapping for Creativity MindMeister is a mind mapping tool that aids in brainstorming and organizing ideas. Collaborate with others to foster creativity. Personal Tip: Use mind maps not just as pre-writing tools but also as visual guides for complex narratives.

17. Trello: Visual Project Management Trello is a project management tool that can be adapted for outlining and planning your writing projects. Create boards for different projects and use cards for sections or chapters. Personal Tip: Customize Trello to fit your workflow, experimenting with different board structures for various writing projects.

18. 500 Words: Establishing a Writing Routine 500 Words challenges you to write a set number of words daily. Set achievable goals to establish a consistent writing habit. Personal Tip: Use the tool not just for daily writing but also to track your progress and celebrate milestones in your writing journey.

These 18 writing tools, accompanied by personal tips and tricks, serve as invaluable companions on your writing journey. Experiment with combinations, embrace the learning curve, and let these tools elevate your craft. Happy writing!

Written by Àánú Deborah-Kristy Obisesan

Versatile professional in research and content creation. Explored international relations dynamics. Boosted website traffic by 50%. Beginner in Alx Software Eng

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May 5, 2021

15 writing tools to 10x your writing

We rounded up writing tools to help you be more productive in your work and improve your writing.

Timo Särkkä

Table of contents

Writing plays a bigger – and perhaps more important – role in our everyday work than ever.

From communicating through your keyboard with colleagues and clients to getting your voice heard across social media to perfecting that blog post or article, writing is imperative to success for professionals in almost any role.

Not to mention those of us who communicate or write for a living. Luckily, various online writing tools can help you cross different writing tasks off your to-do list. Finding the needles from the haystack, however, can be challenging at times. That's why we wrote this blog post.

This round-up brings together tools for writers to be more productive in their day-to-day and improve their writing. We hope it helps you to find the best writing tools that fit your daily needs. 

Fluently - Write fluently in any language

Fluently is a distraction-free online text editor with a multilingual translator, a grammar-checker, and a thesaurus built-in. You can use it to create a document in a foreign language while writing in your mother tongue. The translator works side-by-side with the actual editor, so it's easy to see the end result in real-time. There's an integration with the LanguageTool grammar checker, which supports 42 languages. The thesaurus supports synonyms for 21 languages.

gSweets - Superpowers for Google Docs

gSweets is a productivity tool for writers working in Google Docs. It brings slash commands that many already use in their workflow in other apps to Google docs. If you are so used to working with Google's word processor that trying alternative document editors has a high switching cost, gSweets is something that can save you time and keep you in a state of flow when writing with a simple Chrome extension.

Flowrite - The new way to write on the web

Flowrite is an AI writing tool that turns short bullet points into ready-to-send emails and messages, like this:

It's the fastest writing experience ever and an entirely new way to write: Instruct with a few words, click, and witness the text write itself.

Flowrite works where you work, adapts to your daily tasks, and personal style. Designed for the most productive, powered by the latest advancements in AI, it's the best writing tool for those whose work depends on communicating effectively.

Ulysses - The ultimate writing app

Ulysses is the tool of choice for long-form writing. It has loads of features but still allows writers to focus by keeping the number of bells and whistles on the screen to a minimum. The key features include a library for arranging your work, filters to find specific pieces of text quickly, and a goal tracker to keep you on track. Ulysses also features a distraction-free typewriter mode, bookmarks, and outlining functions.

Headline Analyzer from CoSchedule - Write better headlines

A must-try for creating captivating headlines. Just type in your headline, and the app will give you suggestions on how to improve. You'll get a score on a scale of 0-100 and get recommendations on how you're using common, uncommon, emotional, and powerful words. Especially the last two categories of words are important because readers are more engaged when they feel an emotional connection to your headline. Upgrading to a premium plan unlocks some advanced features like SEO score, full version history, and word banks.

Cold Turkey - The toughest website blocker

Cold Turkey allows you to focus by only letting you use the current document you're working on. It restricts or blocks you from visiting certain websites for a predetermined period. Actually, you can block off the entire internet if you want to.

ghost - Turn your audience into a business

If you are monetizing your writing or have ever thought about it, you are likely familiar with services such as Patreon, Substack, and Gumroad. Ghost is an alternative to those. It's a non-profit organization building open source technology for journalism,  allowing you to create a business around your writing – and much, much more. A ghost is a useful tool for any writer from individual bloggers who are just getting started, to large teams of writers and editors looking to make money off content, newsletters, memberships.

Noisli - Your digital place for focus

If you need some background noise to be able to focus, Noisli is perfect for you. Noisli lets you choose from a range of soundtracks, such as nature or city-themed: thunder, water, waves, campfire, coffee shop, or train tracks, to name a few. You can mix several tracks at once and choose the volume for each one. That gives you the power of creating unique soundtracks of your own. The app also has a built-in timer for cutting out the soundtracks at the time of your choice.

Daily Prompt - Build your daily writing habit

Anyone who works with creative writing knows how important it is to write regularly. But writer's block is real, and sometimes life and other work get in the way. Daily Prompt provides creative writing prompts to help you to kickstart your daily writing habit. It also allows you to connect with other aspiring authors and help each other grow as writers by giving and receiving feedback.

Typefully - Twitter thread maker

Typefully allows you to write & publish great tweets without distractions. Made by the team behind Mailbrew, it enables you to see a live preview of your tweet thread while you write it, save multiple drafts, schedule, and publish in a focused environment instead of Twitter's mobile app or on desktop.

Hemingway Editor - Make your writing bold and clear

Looking for Grammarly alternative? Hemingway Editor is a simple tool that makes your writing easier to read. It focuses on identifying common errors that lower the quality of your text. It gives you feedback in three main categories: a readability score, writing metrics, and sentence highlights. Hemingway Editor helps you avoid excess adverbs, sentences written in passive voice, and hard-to-read paragraphs. You simply copy and paste your text to the app, and as a result, you'll get some number data along with visual cues and analysis where your text could do better.

Pacemaker Planner - A word count planner for writers

Pacemaker Planner is a word count planner and tracker. You can tell the app whether you would like to write a certain amount every day or focus more on getting results on certain days of the week. You can view your progress in a chart, which gives you a great visual of how you're doing. Pacemaker can also adjust itself based on your current progress.

iA writer - The benchmark of markdown writing apps

Meet the text editor created for the sole purpose of keeping you focused on just writing. iA Writer provides the crisp, uncluttered environment you need to write well, supported by discrete, powerful features. It is so simple that it's easy to overlook the wealth-power it packs under the hood with features such as Content Blocks and Syntax Highlighting.

Cliché Finder - Remove clichés from your writing

Worried that your writing is full of clichés? This helpful writingtool for writers enables you to find them in your text. Just paste your text in the editor, and the tool will quickly point out clichés and allow you to replace it with a specific word or phrase. It's a handy addition to your writing toolset to make your writing more effective and unique.

Craft - Next-generation document editor

Craft is a note-taking app slash word processor that lets you handle text in blocks (a lot like Notion does). It supports bulleted lists, markdowns, pictures, sketching, PDF files, link previews, and more. Craft also lets you create pages from wiki templates and collaborate with others when working on them. Maybe the most distinct feature of Craft is its beautifully minimalistic design and user experience. Many users report that the design simply makes you want to use the app.

ContentPro - Optimize your content

Do you find yourself spending hours and hours on research for the topics you want to write about?  ContentPro, created by Automata, finds articles from other companies on the same topic to help you optimize your writing. Their Chrome extension compares whatever you've started to write on Google Docs to their content library to see what industry leaders and competitors say about it.

We hope this blog post introduced you to some writing tools that hold the potential to help your everyday work. Drop us a note if you end up picking up one – would love to hear your thoughts!

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WEEKLY WRITING PROMPTS

Join (probably?) the world's largest writing contest. Flex those creative muscles with weekly writing prompts.

Showing 2229 prompts

Reap what you sow, center your story around a character’s attempt to escape a bad situation that inadvertently leads them back to the source of their problems..

LIVE – Short Story

Start a story with someone receiving a message from their past self, warning them of the consequences of their actions.

A character’s life of deceit unravels as their past catches up with their present. what are the consequences, write a story about someone seeking forgiveness for their past actions., your character gets everything they ever wanted — only to realize the true cost..

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Your character wants something very badly — will they get it?

Write a story set against the backdrop of a storm., there’s been an accident — what happens next, your character overhears something that changes their path., write a story with two characters who meet for the first time — and one of them has a secret., subscribe to our prompts newsletter.

Never miss a prompt! Get curated writing inspiration delivered to your inbox each week.

Write about someone who summons the creative muse through a convoluted ritual or method.

Your protagonist has the perfect day scheduled — but things don’t go according to plan., write from the pov of a character in a story who keeps getting re-written by their second-guessing author., your protagonist discovers that everything they type comes true. what happens next, start your story with someone who wants to give up on their career right before their big break., follow a group of strangers touring a city on some kind of vehicle — a bus, a duck tour boat, a party bike… anything that transports passengers, write about someone who’s traveling away from their hometown for the first time., write about someone’s journey to retrieve an important object that’s been out of their possession for a long time., set your story in an airport where all flights have been canceled and all the passengers and crew members are stranded., write about someone who’s traveling to a place they’ve never been to meet someone they’ve never met., win $250 in our short story competition 🏆.

We'll send you 5 prompts each week. Respond with your short story and you could win $250!

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Creative Writing Prompts

When the idea to start a weekly newsletter with writing inspiration first came to us, we decided that we wanted to do more than provide people with topics to write about. We wanted to try and help authors form a regular writing habit and also give them a place to proudly display their work. So we started the weekly Creative Writing Prompts newsletter. Since then, Prompts has grown to a community of more than 450,000 authors, complete with its own literary magazine, Prompted .  

Here's how our contest works: every Friday, we send out a newsletter containing five creative writing prompts. Each week, the story ideas center around a different theme. Authors then have one week — until the following Friday — to submit a short story based on one of our prompts. A winner is picked each week to win $250 and is highlighted on our Reedsy Prompts page.

Interested in participating in our short story contest? Sign up here for more information! Or you can check out our full Terms of Use and our FAQ page .

Why we love creative writing prompts

If you've ever sat in front of a computer or notebook and felt the urge to start creating worlds, characters, and storylines — all the while finding yourself unable to do so — then you've met the author's age-old foe: writer's block. There's nothing more frustrating than finding the time but not the words to be creative. Enter our directory! If you're ready to kick writer's block to the curb and finally get started on your short story or novel, these unique story ideas might just be your ticket.

This list of 1800+ creative writing prompts has been created by the Reedsy team to help you develop a rock-solid writing routine. As all aspiring authors know, this is the #1 challenge — and solution! — for reaching your literary goals. Feel free to filter through different genres, which include...

Dramatic — If you want to make people laugh and cry within the same story, this might be your genre.

Funny — Whether satire or slapstick, this is an opportunity to write with your funny bone.

Romance — One of the most popular commercial genres out there. Check out these story ideas out if you love writing about love.

Fantasy — The beauty of this genre is that the possibilities are as endless as your imagination.

Dystopian – Explore the shadowy side of human nature and contemporary technology in dark speculative fiction.

Mystery — From whodunnits to cozy mysteries, it's time to bring out your inner detective.

Thriller and Suspense — There's nothing like a page-turner that elicits a gasp of surprise at the end.

High School — Encourage teens to let their imaginations run free.

Want to submit your own story ideas to help inspire fellow writers? Send them to us here.

After you find the perfect story idea

Finding inspiration is just one piece of the puzzle. Next, you need to refine your craft skills — and then display them to the world. We've worked hard to create resources that help you do just that! Check them out:

• How to Write a Short Story That Gets Published — a free, ten-day course by Laura Mae Isaacman, a full-time editor who runs a book editing company in Brooklyn.
• Best Literary Magazines of 2023 — a directory of 100+ reputable magazines that accept unsolicited submissions.
• Writing Contests in 2023 — the finest contests of 2021 for fiction and non-fiction authors of short stories, poetry, essays, and more.

Beyond creative writing prompts: how to build a writing routine

While writing prompts are a great tactic to spark your creative sessions, a writer generally needs a couple more tools in their toolbelt when it comes to developing a rock-solid writing routine . To that end, here are a few more additional tips for incorporating your craft into your everyday life.

• NNWT. Or, as book coach Kevin Johns calls it , “Non-Negotiable Writing Time.” This time should be scheduled into your routine, whether that’s once a day or once a week. Treat it as a serious commitment, and don’t schedule anything else during your NNWT unless it’s absolutely necessary.
• Set word count goals. And make them realistic! Don’t start out with lofty goals you’re unlikely to achieve. Give some thought to how many words you think you can write a week, and start there. If you find you’re hitting your weekly or daily goals easily, keep upping the stakes as your craft time becomes more ingrained in your routine.
• Talk to friends and family about the project you’re working on. Doing so means that those close to you are likely to check in about the status of your piece — which in turn keeps you more accountable.

Arm yourself against writer’s block. Writer’s block will inevitably come, no matter how much story ideas initially inspire you. So it’s best to be prepared with tips and tricks you can use to keep yourself on track before the block hits. You can find 20 solid tips here — including how to establish a relationship with your inner critic and apps that can help you defeat procrastination or lack of motivation.

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Creative Writing 101

You love to write and have been told you have a way with words. So you’ve decided to give writing a try—creative writing.

Problem is, you’re finding it tougher than it looks.

You may even have a great story idea , but you’re not sure how to turn it into something people will read.

Don’t be discouraged—writing a compelling story can be grueling, even for veterans. Conflicting advice online may confuse you and make you want to quit before you start.

But you know more than you think. Stories saturate our lives.

We tell and hear stories every day in music, on television, in video games, in books, in movies, even in relationships.

Most stories, regardless the genre, feature a main character who wants something.

There’s a need, a goal, some sort of effort to get that something.

The character begins an adventure, a journey, or a quest, faces obstacles, and is ultimately transformed.

The work of developing such a story will come. But first, let’s look at the basics.

• What is Creative Writing?

It’s prose (fiction or nonfiction) that tells a story.

Journalistic, academic, technical writing relays facts.

Creative writing can also educate, but it’s best when it also entertains and emotionally moves the reader.

It triggers the imagination and appeals to the heart.

• Elements of Creative Writing

Writing a story is much like building a house.

You may have all the right tools and design ideas, but if your foundation isn’t solid, even the most beautiful structure won’t stand.

Most storytelling experts agree, these 7 key elements must exist in a story.

Plot (more on that below) is what happens in a story. Theme is why it happens.

Before you begin writing, determine why you want to tell your story.

• What message do you wish to convey? 
• What will it teach the reader? 

Resist the urge to explicitly state your theme. Just tell the story, and let it make its own point.

Give your readers credit. Subtly weave your theme into the story and trust them to get it.

They may remember a great plot, but you want them thinking about your theme long after they’ve finished reading.

2. Characters

Every story needs believable characters who feel knowable.

In fiction, your main character is the protagonist, also known as the lead or hero/heroine.

The protagonist must have:

• redeemable flaws
• potentially heroic qualities that emerge in the climax
• a character arc (he must be different, better, stronger by the end)

Resist the temptation to create a perfect lead. Perfect is boring. (Even Indiana Jones suffered a snake phobia.)

You also need an antagonist, the villain , who should be every bit as formidable and compelling as your hero.

Don’t make your bad guy bad just because he’s the bad guy. Make him a worthy foe by giving him motives for his actions.

Villains don’t see themselves as bad. They think they’re right! A fully rounded bad guy is much more realistic and memorable.

Depending on the length of your story , you may also need important orbital cast members.

For each character, ask:

• What do they want?
• What or who is keeping them from getting it?
• What will they do about it?

The more challenges your characters face, the more relatable they are.

Much as in real life, the toughest challenges result in the most transformation.

Setting may include a location, time, or era, but it should also include how things look, smell, taste, feel, and sound.

Thoroughly research details about your setting so it informs your writing, but use those details as seasoning, not the main course. The main course is the story.

But, beware.

Agents and acquisitions editors tell me one of the biggest mistakes beginning writers make is feeling they must begin by describing the setting.

That’s important, don’t get me wrong. But a sure way to put readers to sleep is to promise a thrilling story on the cover—only to start with some variation of:

The house sat in a deep wood surrounded by…

Rather than describing your setting, subtly layer it into the story.

Show readers your setting. Don’t tell them. Description as a separate element slows your story to crawl.

By layering in what things look and feel and sound like you subtly register the setting in the theater of readers’ minds.

While they concentrating on the action, the dialogue , the tension , the drama, and conflict that keep them turning the pages, they’re also getting a look and feel for your setting.

4. Point of View

POV is more than which voice you choose to tell your story: First Person ( I, me ), Second Person ( you, your ), or Third Person ( he, she, or it ).

Determine your perspective (POV) character for each scene—the one who serves as your camera and recorder—by deciding who has the most at stake. Who’s story is this?

The cardinal rule is that you’re limited to one perspective character per scene, but I prefer only one per chapter, and ideally one per novel.

Readers experience everything in your story from this character’s perspective.

For a more in-depth explanation of Voice and POV, read A Writer’s Guide to Point of View .

This is the sequence of events that make up a story —in short, what happens. It either compels your reader to keep turning pages or set the book aside.

A successful story answers:

• What happens? (Plot)
• What does it mean? (Theme: see above)

Writing coaches call various story structures by different names, but they’re all largely similar. All such structures include some variation of:

• An Inciting Incident that changes everything
• A series of Crises that build tension
• A Resolution (or Conclusion)

How effectively you create drama, intrigue, conflict, and tension, determines whether you can grab readers from the start and keep them to the end.

6. Conflict

This is the engine of fiction and crucial to effective nonfiction as well.

Readers crave conflict and what results from it.

If everything in your plot is going well and everyone is agreeing, you’ll quickly bore your reader—the cardinal sin of writing.

If two characters are chatting amiably and the scene feels flat (which it will), inject conflict. Have one say something that makes the other storm out, revealing a deep-seated rift.

Readers will stay with you to find out what it’s all about.

7. Resolution

Whether you’re an Outliner or a Pantser like me (one who writes by the seat of your pants), you must have an idea where your story is going.

How you expect the story to end should inform every scene and chapter. It may change, evolve, and grow as you and your characters do, but never leave it to chance.

Keep your lead character center stage to the very end. Everything he learns through all the complications you plunged him into should, in the end, allow him to rise to the occasion and succeed.

If you get near the end and something’s missing, don’t rush it. Give your ending a few days, even a few weeks if necessary.

Read through everything you’ve written. Take a long walk. Think about it. Sleep on it. Jot notes. Let your subconscious work. Play what-if games. Reach for the heart, and deliver a satisfying ending that resonates .

Give your readers a payoff for their investment by making it unforgettable.

• Creative Writing Examples
• Short Story
• Narrative nonfiction
• Autobiography
• Song lyrics
• Screenwriting
• Playwriting
• Creative Writing Tips

In How to Write a Novel , I cover each step of the writing process:

• Come up with a great story idea .
• Determine whether you’re an Outliner or a Pantser.
• Create an unforgettable main character.
• Expand your idea into a plot.
• Do your research.
• Choose your Voice and Point of View.
• Start in medias res (in the midst of things).
• Intensify your main character’s problems.
• Make the predicament appear hopeless.
• Bring it all to a climax.
• Leave readers wholly satisfied.
• More to Think About

1. Carry a writing pad, electronic or otherwise. I like the famous Moleskine™ notebook . 

Ideas can come at any moment. Record ideas for:

• Anything that might expand your story

2. Start small. 

Take time to build your craft and hone your skills on smaller projects before you try to write a book .

Journal. Write a newsletter. Start a blog. Write short stories . Submit articles to magazines, newspapers, or e-zines.

Take a night school or online course in journalism or creative writing. Attend a writers conference.

3. Throw perfection to the wind. 

Separate your writing from your editing .

Anytime you’re writing a first draft, take off your perfectionist cap. You can return to editor mode to your heart’s content while revising, but for now, just write the story.

Separate these tasks and watch your daily production soar.

• Time to Get to Work

Few pleasures in life compare to getting lost in a great story.

Learn how to write creatively, and the characters you birth have the potential to live in hearts for years.

• 1. Carry a writing pad, electronic or otherwise. I like the famous Moleskine™ notebook. 

Faith-Based Words and Phrases

What You and I Can Learn From Patricia Raybon

A Guest Blog from Stephen King—Yes, that Stephen King

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List of Creative Writing Techniques: Tips to Improve Your Writing Skills

By: Author Paul Jenkins

Posted on Published: June 8, 2023  - Last updated: July 31, 2023

Categories Writing , Creativity

Creative writing is a form of self-expression that allows writers to explore their thoughts, emotions, and ideas uniquely and imaginatively. It is a powerful tool that can be used for personal growth, self-discovery, and even social research.

However, many writers struggle with finding the right techniques to make their writing more engaging and effective.

One way to improve your creative writing skills is to learn and practice various techniques to help you express yourself more effectively. Whether you are a seasoned writer or just starting, there are many techniques that you can use to enhance your writing.

Each technique can help you create a more compelling and engaging story, from character development and plot structure to dialogue and imagery. In this article, we will explore some of the most effective techniques for creative writing and how you can use them to improve your writing.

What are Creative Writing Techniques?

Creative writing techniques are tools and methods writers use to produce engaging, original, and expressive writing pieces. These techniques can help writers to develop their skills, experiment with different styles, and create unique and compelling works of literature.

There are many different creative writing techniques that writers can use, including:

• Free writing: This technique involves writing without stopping or censoring oneself, allowing for a free flow of ideas and inspiration.
• Brainstorming: This technique involves generating ideas and concepts through group or individual brainstorming sessions.
• Imagery: This technique uses vivid and descriptive language to create mental images in the reader’s mind.
• Metaphor and simile: These techniques use comparisons to understand a concept or idea better.
• Dialogue: This technique uses character dialogue to reveal personality traits, advance the plot, and create tension and conflict.
• Point of view: This technique involves choosing a narrative perspective, such as first-person or third-person, to create a particular effect or tone.

By mastering these and other creative writing techniques, writers can develop their skills and produce more engaging and effective writing.

Whether you are a beginner or an experienced writer, using these techniques can help you take your writing to the next level and produce truly unique and memorable works.

Elements of Creative Writing Techniques

Regarding creative writing, several elements can help make your writing stand out. This section’ll explore some key elements of creative writing techniques.

1. Story Elements

The story elements are the building blocks of any good story. These include the plot, characters, setting, theme, foreshadowing, and climax. Each element is important in creating a compelling story that engages the reader.

2. Literary Devices

Literary devices are tools writers use to add depth and meaning. Some common literary devices include metaphor, similes, imagery, personification, analogy, alliteration, contrast, euphemism, hyperbole, irony, onomatopoeia, and oxymoron. These devices can help create vivid and memorable descriptions, add humor or drama, and convey complex emotions or ideas.

3. Writing Style

Writing style refers to how a writer uses language to convey their message. It includes things like sentence structure, word choice, and tone. Developing a unique writing style can help your writing stand out and create a distinct voice that readers will recognize.

4. Point of View

Point of view is the perspective from which a story is told. It can be first-person, third-person limited, or third-person omniscient. Choosing the right point of view can help create a sense of intimacy or distance between the reader and the characters and can also affect how the story is perceived.

5. Rhetorical Devices

Rhetorical devices are techniques that writers use to persuade or influence their readers. Some common rhetorical devices include anaphora, word repetition, and emphasis. These devices can help create a sense of urgency or importance and be especially effective in persuasive writing.

Incorporating these elements into your writing can help you create more engaging and effective pieces. Whether you’re writing fiction, creative nonfiction, blog posts, short stories, flash fiction , free verse, or academic writing, understanding these techniques can help take your writing to the next level.

How to Use Creative Writing Techniques

Whether you’re a seasoned writer or just starting, incorporating creative writing techniques into your work can help take your writing to the next level. Here are some tips for using creative writing techniques to improve your writing skills, find inspiration, and make your work stand out.

Incorporating Techniques into Your Writing

One way to incorporate creative writing techniques into your work is to focus on originality. Avoid cliches and overused phrases and instead strive to create unique and memorable characters, settings, and plots. Developing strong characters with depth and complexity can also help draw readers in and keep them engaged.

Another important aspect of writing is tension. By creating tension and conflict within your story, you can keep readers on the edge of their seats and make your work more compelling. This can be achieved through dialogue, plot twists , and other techniques.

Improving Your Writing Skills

Improving your writing skills requires practice and dedication. One way to do this is to experiment with different writing techniques, such as analogies, metaphors, and dialogue. Reading literature and watching films and television can also help you develop your skills by exposing you to different styles and approaches.

Another important aspect of writing is empathy. By putting yourself in your characters’ shoes and understanding their motivations and emotions, you can create more realistic and relatable characters that readers will care about.

Finding Inspiration for Your Writing

Finding inspiration for your writing can be a challenge, but there are many techniques you can use to spark your creativity. One approach is to draw on your life experiences and emotions, using them as a basis for your writing. Another is to observe the world around you and draw inspiration from the people, places, and events you encounter.

Ultimately, experimenting and finding what works best for you is the key to using creative writing techniques. Whether you’re a teacher looking to inspire your students or a writer looking to improve your craft, incorporating these techniques into your work can help you create more engaging, memorable, and impactful stories.

In conclusion, creative writing techniques are essential for any writer to improve their craft.

These techniques can help writers create engaging and thought-provoking pieces of literature that entertain and challenge readers to think more deeply about the world around them.

One of the benefits of incorporating creative writing techniques into one’s writing is the ability to analyze literature more effectively. By understanding the different elements that make up a story, such as plot, character development, and setting, writers can better appreciate the deeper meaning behind the text. This can lead to a more nuanced and insightful literary analysis.

Another advantage of creative writing techniques is crafting compelling beginnings that hook readers from the first sentence.

By utilizing sensory description, dialogue, and action techniques, writers can create openings that draw readers into the story and keep them engaged.

Moreover, creative writing techniques can be used to explore deeper societal issues and themes. Using metaphor, imagery, and symbolism, writers can shed light on complex topics and offer new perspectives on social and cultural issues.

Overall, using creative writing techniques can help writers produce more engaging, thought-provoking, and impactful pieces of literature.

By incorporating these techniques into their writing, writers can create works that entertain and inspire readers to think more deeply about the world around them.

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Research shows AI can boost creativity for some, but at a cost

Geoff Brumfiel

Researchers found that AI could increase the creativity of individual writers, but it also led to many similar stories. Moor Studio/Getty Images hide caption

Can an AI chatbot make a person more creative?

Supporters of artificial intelligence say it can serve as a muse, but critics doubt it — they say that it does little more than remix existing work.

Now, new research suggests that elements of both arguments are right. AI might be able to help a person become more creative, but it risks decreasing creativity in society overall.

'New' ideas

Questions have swirled around the use of AI in art since large language models (also known as LLMs) burst on the scene almost two years ago. Companies such as OpenAI have touted their products as tools that artists could use to increase their output. While some writers say they’ve embraced AI as a tool in their creative process , many other artists and creators have expressed skepticism. Some have even sued , alleging that the tools use copyrighted work for training purposes.

Oliver Hauser, an economist at the University of Exeter in the UK who studies artificial intelligence, wanted to try and answer the basic question of whether AI could increase creativity.

“It does have a sort of incredible ability to sort of come up with content at the click of a button,” he says. On the other hand, AI can often produce stories that are similar in nature.

Book News & Features

Ai is contentious among authors. so why are some feeding it their own writing.

“It could be that it’s not as creative as you might think, and it doesn’t help you be more creative,” he says.

To try and get some hard data on this squishy question of creativity, Hauser teamed up with Anil Doshi at the University College London School of Management. They recruited nearly 300 people, who Doshi says did not identify as professional writers. “We asked them to write a short, eight-sentence story,” he says.

Around one-third of the writers had to come up with ideas on their own, while others were given starter ideas generated by the chatbot ChatGPT 4.0. Those that got help were divided into two subgroups: one that got a single AI-generated idea, and one that got to choose from up to five.

Crucially, Doshi says, both the human-only and AI-assisted groups had to write the stories themselves.

“Our intention was to focus on whether AI can help human creativity,” Doshi says. “This was not a horse race between AI versus humans.”

The results were judged by a group of 600 evaluators. They were asked to grade each story on its “novelty” and “usefulness.” Novelty was a proxy for the story’s originality, while usefulness was a measure of whether the story was high enough quality to be published.

We asked the new AI to do some simple rocket science. It crashed and burned

The results, published today in the journal Science Advances, found that stories written with AI help were deemed both more novel and useful. Writers who had access to one AI idea did better, but those who had access to five ideas saw the biggest boost — they wrote stories seen as around 8% more novel than humans on their own, and 9% more useful. 

What’s more, Doshi says, the worst writers benefited the most.

“Those that were the least inherently creative, experienced the largest improvement in their creativity,” he says.

New tools help artists fight AI by directly disrupting the systems

So AI really does appear to make people more creative. But there’s a plot twist: When Hauser and Doshi looked at all the stories, they found a different effect.

“Collectively speaking, there was a smaller diversity of novelty in the group that had AI,” Hauser says.

The social dilemma

In other words, the chatbot made each individual more creative, but it made the group that had AI help less creative.

Hauser describes the divergent result as a “classic social dilemma” — a situation where people benefit individually, but the group suffers.

“We do worry that, at large scale, if many people are using this… overall the diversity and creativity in the population will go down,” he says

Annalee Newitz, a science fiction author and journalist , questions the findings. Trying to quantify whether a person is more creative is tricky: “I think that part of creativity is that it can’t really be measured in percentages like that,” Newitz says.

Nevertheless, when Newitz tried reproducing some of the AI story ideas themselves using the paper’s methods, they clearly saw how using AI would generate similar stories.

Enhance! HORNK! Artificial intelligence can now ID individual geese

For example, when asked to produce story ideas for an “adventure on the open seas,” they found AI would often incorporate the clichéd idea of finding treasure into the story. And it seemed to latch onto the phrase “the real treasure was…” — which is a common internet meme . Because AI is trained on a huge number of texts, Newitz says, it seems reasonable that it would draw from those frequently-used clichés first.

Newitz also says the social dilemma warned about in the study has already hit the sci-fi community. Last year the sci-fi magazine Clarkesworld had to close online submissions because “they were flooded with AI-written stories.”

In the end, Newitz says that they wouldn’t blame anyone who wanted to try using AI to write a story. But ultimately, they think these tools miss the point of writing.

Creative writing is “humans communicating with other humans,” Newitz says. “Even if something is badly written — even if it’s not very creative — if it’s written by a human, then it’s fulfilling its purpose.”

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AI for Long-Form Content: Benefits, Tools & Review in 2024

Amplify Creativity & Efficiency

AI has changed the game for long-form content in 2024. It’s not a perfect solution, but it can be a powerful tool if used correctly. In this article, we break down the best AI tools, give tips for making the most of them and explain how Superside’s AI-enhanced services bring creativity and strategy together to give you an edge.

The way businesses and writers approach content creation in 2024 is vastly different from just a few years ago. With advanced language models and machine learning algorithms, AI can now be used to generate comprehensive blog posts, articles, reports and guides, unlocking new levels of efficiency and creativity.

While we know the human touch remains irreplaceable, there’s still a lot to gain by efficiently implementing AI in long-form content.

That’s what we’re discussing today. With insights from our Associate Creative Director, Bianca Pieterse , Superside will introduce a new approach that promises to deliver content that not only resonates with your audience but is also scalable. We’ll also show how our AI-enhanced service is the best of the best—by providing creativity and the type of quality that makes us leaders in this space.

Why AI for Long-Form Content Matters in 2024

The demand for content is growing, and businesses need fast and scalable solutions to keep up. Enter AI: a game-changer for creating long-form content at impossibly fast speeds. The caveat? Great speed comes with great disregard for quality and depth.

That’s where Superside comes in. We don’t blindly use AI writing tools for content creation. We combine them with expert human copywriters to deliver content that’s not just fast but also smart, strategic and most importantly, relevant.

AI allows us to quickly arrive at our first draft, which leaves more time for writers to enhance the final piece with creative flair, nuanced insights and a human touch that resonates deeply with the audience. This way, the writing process becomes more about refining ideas and perfecting the narrative, rather than getting bogged down in the initial drafting stage .

What is AI for Long-Form Content?

AI for long-form content uses machine learning to generate lengthy pieces of content. Think articles, reports, guides and basically anything over 500 words. These tools have the capability to sweep massive datasets and mimic human language.

This makes them great for businesses that need quick content and a strong brand presence. However, while they can churn out content fast, they lack that nuanced human understanding.

The kind of understanding that makes readers remember and resonate with your brand. That’s where a hybrid solution like Superside’s comes into play. We balance AI efficiency with human intuition.

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3 Benefits of Using AI for Long-Form Content

The benefits of AI for long-form content are reshaping how creators enhance efficiency, quality and audience engagement–let's take a look at some of them.

1. Scaling content marketing at speed

AI’s biggest advantage is its ability to craft content quickly and handle mass amounts of data. For example, during the Rio Olympics, The Washington Post used AI to write over 850 stories in a few weeks . Following this success, their AI-powered content creation tool “Heliograf” will soon be able to sift through various data sources and find potential leads for journalists.

2. Improving efficiency and reducing costs

AI tools streamline content creation, allowing businesses to produce more with fewer resources. Bloggers who use AI content tools spend 30% less time writing . This frees them up to focus on tasks they actually enjoy doing. Additionally, 44% of businesses use AI writing software to cut operational costs.

3. Optimizing content for better performance

AI tools can even optimize your content performance. By integrating SEO strategies directly into the writing process, tools like Surfer AI can analyze search data and then suggest the best keywords, headings and formatting for maximum impact. This makes it much easier for businesses to rank high in search results. You’ll still need human insight to ensure the content is engaging and accurate—but tools like this make the SEO battlefield a little more winnable.

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5 Best AI Tools and Services for Long-Form Content Creation in 2024

When developing long-form content, choosing the right tool is key. Below, we’ll break down five top options, explain how they work, their pricing and the pros and cons of using AI alone.

1. Superside

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Well, Superside isn’t an AI writing tool. We’re a full-service creative partner that blends AI with human creativity for all your content and design needs.

If you’re looking for high-quality, long-form content with a strategic touch, Superside is your best bet. Unlike traditional agencies, our subscription model gives you a fully stacked creative team with transparent pricing and predictable outputs. We use AI to speed up content creation , but human creatives are in charge.

Our expert copywriters edit and enhance AI-generated drafts , ensuring they meet your brand’s voice and goals. With Superside, you get the efficiency of AI without sacrificing creativity or quality.

Pricing: Monthly subscription packages start at $5,000 ( See pricing options )

Pros: Superside’s AI-enhanced service offers more than just top-notch writing. Our subscription includes access to a full creative team capable of handling it all. From content strategy and design to video production and brand identity—we've got you covered. This approach ensures that every piece is on-brand, engaging, and strategic.

Cons: Superside isn’t a standalone AI tool. We're better suited for businesses that need a full creative solution rather than just automated content.

2. Jasper AI

Jasper AI offers various templates for different content types. You propose your topic or prompt , and Jasper generates content based on its AI algorithms. It’s known for its customizable tone and style settings.

Pricing: Starts at $49/month ( See pricing options )

Pros: Jasper is highly versatile, making it ideal for businesses with different content needs like blogs, emails and ads. It’s also easy to use, with a straightforward interface.

Cons: Jasper is on the pricier side, making it less accessible for small businesses. While powerful, it still requires significant human editing. Jasper's brand voice tool is also excellent, but you can only register 3 brand voices at a time. This makes it a poor choice for businesses that create content for many brands.

3. Writesonic

Writesonic is built for quick content generation with SEO in mind. It includes templates for blog posts, product descriptions and landing pages. Users can set the tone, length and purpose, and the tool generates content optimized for search engines.

Pricing: Free plan available; Individual plan starts at $16/month (See pricing options)

Pros: Writesonic is efficient for producing SEO-friendly content at scale. It’s useful for marketers who need keyword-rich copy.

Cons: While it’s fast, the content quality can be inconsistent, especially with detailed or nuanced topics. The language can also sound robotic and unnatural. In fact, it can feel more like ChatGPT than ChatGPT itself.

4. Surfer AI

Surfer AI can craft long-form copy while offering real-time SEO keywords. It analyzes search data to suggest keywords, headings and content structure. This helps users create high-ranking content at a fraction of the time.

Pricing: AI article plan starts at $219/month, other plans available (See pricing options)

Pros: Surfer AI is ideal for users focused on SEO. It’s known for its data-driven approach, ensuring your content is optimized for keywords and user intent .

Cons: Surfer AI is difficult for writers with no SEO knowledge, making it a tool with a steep learning curve . Additionally, it’s not ideal for answering specific brand problems or creative briefs. It’s best suited for writing blogs on existing, popular topics in the market.

ChatGPT is a general-purpose AI tool for generating conversational content . It’s great at brainstorming and producing engaging text across different formats—like long-form articles to short customer service replies.

Pricing: Free plan available; Plus plan starts at $20/month ( See pricing options )

Pros: It adapts well to various writing styles, making it suitable for most content needs. ChatGPT excels in producing natural-sounding text if you invest the research and time to build a custom GPT.

Cons: While powerful, ChatGPT lacks deep industry knowledge. It can craft content that’s too general, repetitive or requires heavy fact-checking. It’s best for generating ideas and drafts, but you’ll need to guide it carefully to produce content that stands out.

If you’re looking for design recommendations, check out our top 10 AI design tools here .

What to Keep in Mind When Selecting an AI Writing Tool

Choosing the best AI tool depends on your specific needs and goals. Here are three key factors to consider:

• Quality and accuracy of output While AI tools can produce clear, structured content, the results need human editing. Make sure the tool you choose doesn’t hallucinate too much, and consistently generates content that aligns with your standards in terms of grammar, style and relevance.
• Customization and control The ability to adjust tone, style and creativity is crucial. If you need content that fits a specific brand voice, this is non-negotiable. Tools with customizable settings offer more control over the final output. This makes it easier to match your content strategy .
• Ease of integration and workflow compatibility Some AI tools work better than others within existing workflows. For maximum efficiency, choose a tool that integrates smoothly with your preferred platforms. A seamless fit can save the time needed to train your staff and boost overall productivity.

While these tools are helpful, it’s important to remember the limitations of long-form content automation. That’s where Superside comes in: 

Superside brings together the top 1% of global creative talent, including exceptional copywriters. By combining their expertise with AI , our writers craft engaging, on-brand content with a clear human touch.

Challenges and Drawbacks of AI Writing Tools

AI writing tools offer speed and scalability, but they come with significant drawbacks. Here are 3 common challenges businesses face when relying solely on AI for content marketing—and how Superside’s AI-enhanced service solves them.

Challenge #1: The need for human editing and review

AI-generated text can miss the mark in many ways. It can lack depth, misunderstand complex human emotions , not adapt to unique brand voices and sound awkward or robotic. For long-form content, a consistent tone and logical flow are vital.

Unfortunately, this is a weak point for AI in content creation. Ironically, a recent survey found that 65.8% of people believe AI content is just as good as, or even better than, human writing . But the truth is, that even the best AI content still requires a human touch to hit the mark.

Challenge #2: Ethical concerns and originality

AI tools often raise questions about originality . Since AI generates content by analyzing existing data, it can unintentionally produce text that closely resembles existing work i.e. plagiarism.

This is amplified in long-form content as it requires more words, unique insights and deep research. Studies like When AI Is Writing, Who Is the Author? highlight the growing debate on AI-authored content.

Watch out for overly generic output, plagiarism and content that isn't fully aligned with your brand. Training your team on AI content best practices properly should help overcome these challenges.

If you’re struggling with AI adoption in your creative team, see how we handled it .

Challenge #3: SEO Risks and Google’s guidelines on AI Content

While AI tools can churn out keyword-rich articles, they often miss the mark on well… sense. This is something Google’s algorithms are quick to pick up on. Google has made it clear that it now focuses on content quality , not just how it’s produced. If your AI-generated content feels automated and lacks reasoning or depth, it could hurt your rankings rather than help them.

The Future of AI in Content Creation

The way we create content is constantly changing and the part that AI plays is almost democratic. It's broken down industry walls—letting people with little to no writing knowledge finally get a foot in the door.

The plus side is that new perspectives and small brands are getting more traction at a reduced cost. The downside is a resulting market saturated with identical, robotic and hallucinated content.

As AI develops, the need to mix automation with human creativity will only get stronger. In copywriting and long-form content, AI can handle the basics, but real storytelling and a decent brand voice will always need a human touch.

You Know It & Feel It

You need to integrate AI into your team and your workflows. But where do you start? Superside's AI experts share their strategic insights and actionable advice.

Superside: Your Creative Ally for AI-Powered Content and Design Solutions

If you’re looking for work that stands out then we’re the place for you. Superside combines cutting-edge AI with human creativity to produce resonating content that’s strategic, original and aligned with your brand’s goals.

From blog posts to fully integrated content strategies, Superside’s AI-enhanced services help you scale without compromising on quality.

Ready to take your content to the next level? Book a call with us today to see how we can help your brand succeed.

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Meet Roger, a content marketer driven by his love for online search, digital marketing, and performance marketing. When he's not immersed in the latest updates on Google, AI and social media, you'll find him passionately crafting strategies to simplify online searches for people, sparing them the frustration of navigating through endless pages. As a marketer, Roger Match has turned into the perfect match for Superside, helping us showcase our purpose, objectives and essence to the world.

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Computer Science > Computers and Society

Title: elementary school students' and teachers' perceptions towards creative mathematical writing with generative ai.

Abstract: While mathematical creative writing can potentially engage students in expressing mathematical ideas in an imaginative way, some elementary school-age students struggle in this process. Generative AI (GenAI) offers possibilities for supporting creative writing activities, such as providing story generation. However, the design of GenAI-powered learning technologies requires careful consideration of the technology reception in the actual classrooms. This study explores students' and teachers' perceptions of creative mathematical writing with the developed GenAI-powered technology. The study adopted a qualitative thematic analysis of the interviews, triangulated with open-ended survey responses and classroom observation of 79 elementary school students, resulting in six themes and 19 subthemes. This study contributes by investigating the lived experience of GenAI-supported learning and the design considerations for GenAI-powered learning technologies and instructions.

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