For the past year, I have been searching endlessly for ways to enhance my writing, and most of all stay motivated.
Tirelessly looking for ways to expand my outlets and reach out to as many as possible took a toll on my outlook of the internet and how helpful it could actually be, especially when I was very eager and could not find one effective resource to satisfy my need for progress.
However, my efforts have not been futile, and I’ve put together some useful findings that I’ve discovered through my search.
1. 20lines.com
This is my personal favorite. Its as if WordPress, Facebook, and Twitter had a baby, and then made it completely devoted to people who enjoy writing – in nearly all its forms *heavens open up and music is heard*.
Relatively new to the US, it originated in Italy and has gained popularity in other parts of the world. When you sign up, you have a profile that you publish stories to, essentially building your own portfolio and allowing fellow 20liners to like, comment, repost or follow your work. If you’re wondering where Twitter comes in, its because you assign hashtags to the stories that you publish, making your work easy to find by the material. Also, the content published by 20liners is broad. Ive seen everything from poetry, to journal entries, and fictional series that are published one short entry at a time.
The great thing about this website is that if you’re like me and thinking about publishing one day, you have an entire community that has a love of words, ultimately relieving the need of having to pin down a target audience (unlike WordPress where it often takes a while to find your own niche within the mass cacophony of motives and genres). When I publish my story 4 years from now, it is likely that I will have over 200 people following my profile. This is 200 people who love words and had an interest in my story. I’ve already had 4 people contact me and tell me they are looking forward to the end product and are ready to buy a book that has not been written yet.
HelpMeWrite is a web app that allows you to post writing ideas to an audience who tells you that they would like to read it by casting a vote (simply clicking “I would like to read this”). When you finish the idea, you can publish it to an audience who casted this vote:
This app is very new to me. I’m not sure it will be the most helpful outlet personally, since it uses Twitter and I am not a frequent user (and actually had to make an account for the app). However, I do believe it could prove to be worthy for those who are already well established on Twitter. This app is best for gaining the motivation you need to pursue an idea that you have.
3. Scrivener
This is more well known than the previous two, so I won’t go into too much detail.
Scrivener has become very popular for writers, and for valid reasons. It is software made for authors, a tool to organize their thoughts, ideas, research, and documents. The first thing I did before entering a single word of my story onto my computer was buy scrivener ($45) and it is one of the most beneficial decisions I’ve made. Im so organized that it is actually difficult to get lost or distracted with what I’m working on. Time isn’t wasted on trying to collect thoughts and synthesize what you want to convey. Its all right there, saved and ready to be built and refined.
I hope some of you have found this useful. Other than this blog, I post and share content like this on Pinterest, and now Twitter. If you have either of these accounts and are interested, follow me!
Happy Writing ❤
Metanoia 