I love hearing writers talk about process and learning about new tools that can help my writing.  I’m especially a fan of things that lend a festive and fun element to my writing.  (Because let’s face it, a lot of the time writing is HARD.  Might as well make it fun.)  In this post I compile three favorite objects that I never (OK, hardly ever) write without, and three favorite writing apps for computers and devices.  The best part is that most of these things are affordable or even free!

My Favorite Writing Stuff!

Brain Book:  It took me a long time to find writing apparatus that both worked for me and was portable.  The latter is key because I do a lot of my brainstorming and writing of rough drafts on the go.  After grad school I was going through my things from high school and came across this gray notebook cover, precisely the right size to fit a medium-sized moleskine or ecosystem notebook.

I’ve since dubbed this my “Brain Book” and outfitted it with colored fountain pens and stickers (the latter I use to reward myself for good writing sessions).  The Brain Book is great because it allows me to grab-and-go with my writing, and I know that no matter where I am, I’ll have a notebook and pens along with a few little creature comforts that make me feel like I’m writing at home.  The Brain Book is like having a portable office.

Creative Whack Pack:  This deck of cards is filled with different creativity prompts that can help you boost your creativity and shake up rigid thinking.  There’s no one way to use the cards–make up the rules as you go!  Every so often, I’ll pull these cards out and start using them to see if I can get a new perspective on a given project.

Droid Flash Drives:  These adorable flash drives from mimobot are a great way to back up your writing and store files.  I have two (C3PO and R2D2) that I use to back up all my writing work.  Yes, these drives are a little pricier than the budget (and boring) versions you can buy at the office supply store, but let’s face it… flash drives this cute make you want to back up your files.  I got two so I would have one for on-the-go writing and one to keep at my desk at home.  Besides, how could I choose between my two favorite droids?

Pomodoro:  This neat little app for your computer or iPhone (and other devices) is nothing more than a to-do list matched with a timer that helps you focus for 25-minute bursts of activity.  The idea behind the Pomodoro technique is simple: you do one thing for 25 minutes, then take a five minute break.  But one thing for 25 minutes is tougher than it sounds.

Using the Pomodoro technique means if you’re writing for one 25-minute burst (called a “Pomodoro”) you can’t do anything else.  That means no checking email, no replying to tweets or Facebook comments, nothing but writing.  When I’m doing a Pomodoro I won’t even let myself pause to adjust the volume or skip a track on my iPod.  One thing means one thing, and for those 25 minutes that one thing is writing.

Evernote:  I love Evernote and don’t use it nearly as often as I should.  This app works on your computer, phone and tablet and synches everything together so if you make updates in one place, those updates carry over to your other devices.  What I love about Evernote is that it isn’t just a note-taking app you type on, you can include pictures and even sound.  It also lets you organize your notes in different notebooks so you can sort notes according to project.  For someone who loves organization, this app is fantastic.

Scrivener:  This is my all-time favorite writing software, and just when I thought Scrivener couldn’t get any better they go and launch version 2.2 which is fantastic.  Now they even have it available for Windows (it used to be Mac only) so everyone can reap the benefits of this great tool.  What I love with Scrivener is that it allows me to separate my writing projects according to scene or section of the manuscript and shuffle pieces around easily.  It has a cork board function where you can represent each scene with an index card and you can easily reorder scenes or sections by moving the cards around.

The outline feature is also great for organizing your story and seeing the “big picture” at a glance.  And if you want to write in Scrivener but like sharing documents with other writers, fear not: you can easily export your work to other formats.  My only quibble with Scrivener is that I wish it had a version for the iPad because these days I do a lot of my rough drafts on the go and a tablet is much easier to carry around than a computer.

If you have a blog, then you need an editorial calendar.  Sure, it’s good to leave a little room for flexibility and spontaneity and you could even get away with winging it for a while.  Sooner or later, though, if you want your blog to be an effective part of your author platform, you need to treat it with the seriousness it deserves.

Don’t get me wrong.  If your blog is all about humor, I’m not saying you should suddenly get all boring on your audience.  What I mean is that you need to have an overall strategy for the blog that pulls all the content together.  This is where the editorial calendar comes in.

Prompt: Make an Editorial Calendar for Your Blog

Step 1:  Download the Editorial Calendar Worksheet and print it out.

Step 2:  Start with the first page.  You’re going to make a mind-map to brainstorm post ideas for your blog and organize them.  Inside the magenta oval, write the name of your blog.  In a few words, also jot down what your blog is about.  (I call this the “umbrella subject” of the blog).

Step 3:  Brainstorm 5 different possible topics that would fit under the umbrella subject of your blog.

Step 4:  For each topic, brainstorm 4 possible post ideas.  Write those on the orange lines.

Example:  For DIY MFA the umbrella subject might be something like: “Getting the MFA experience outside of school.”  Topics that fit under that subject are things like “reading,” “writing craft,” and “creativity,” and so forth.  For “writing craft” I might think of posts topics like “5 Ways to Make Your Character Awesome.”  Notice that the teal lines are just general topics but the orange lines will give you specific ideas that could fit within the confines of one individual post.

Step 5:  Now turn to page 2 of the worksheet; you’ll see a chart.  This is where you map out your actual post schedule.  Decide whether you want to cluster posts from the same topic together or if you want to spread them out.  Think about how your editorial calendar fits with the yearly calendar too.  (Are there holidays or events that could tie in to certain post ideas?)

The chart itself is pretty self-explanatory.  Under Date, you write the date that you plan to publish the post, and under Post Topic you write the post ideas from the orange lines on page 1.  Tip:  When writing the Post Topic, it’s especially useful to write it as though it were the subject line of the post.  Try to come up with something that will grab your readers and entice them to read more.

The three boxes at the far right of the chart are meant to be checked off when you complete each of the 3 important aspects of crafting a post: writing a draft, selecting a picture or two (sometimes I’ll leave this one blank if the post doesn’t need a picture) and hitting that big ol’ “Publish” button.

That’s it!  Now all you have to do is start writing those posts.

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Some writers embraced it from the beginning.  Others of us have been skeptical, but we can’t fight it anymore.  Like it or not, social media has become firmly entrenched in the lives of writers, and it’s here to stay.

It can be an overwhelming proposition to jump into social media or try out a new platform.  For writers who aren’t using social media at all, there’s so much of it out there, that it’s tough know where to start.  Writers in this scenario likely feel overwhelmed by the sheer volume of options available and this can lead to paralysis.  If you don’t know where to start, it’s often easier not to start at all.

On the other hand, even writers who navigate the internet like it’s their second home can feel hesitant to try out new platforms or communities.  It takes a huge initial investment of time and energy to learn the new platform and figure out how to make the most if it.  Some time ago, Jane Friedman posted a fascinating article about getting over that initial “hump” when using new technology or social media platform.  Even writers who are fairly tech-savvy and “plugged in” to the social media world might find themselves resisting new platforms or technology at first.

The reason this happens is simple: writers are asking the wrong questions.  They’ll worry about WHERE in this vast land of social they should set up shop, and WHAT they should do once they’re there.  Instead, they should be asking something completely different.  They should be asking WHY.

For every social media decision–whether it’s to start a blog or to join Twitter/Facebook/Google+/YouTube/etc.–writers need to have a clear idea of WHY they’re doing it.  Many writers engage in social media because they think they should.  They have been told that they need a “platform,” and the best way to get one is to blog or tweet or what-have-you.  They’ve been told what they need to do, but no one’s told them why.  So these writers dive head-first into social media without a strategy driving their choices, and a few weeks or months later, their enthusiasm fizzles and they fall off the face of the interwebs.

I could tell you why I think writers need social media (in fact, that was my initial plan for this post), but now I realize that would defeat the point.  The truth is, each WHY is as unique as each writer.  Social media needs to have a strategy that ties it together.  Without strategy, social media becomes simply a matter of going through the motions, which is not a great way to acquire that ever-elusive authenticity that everyone out there on the web seems to be seeking.

If you’re engaging in social media just because someone said you should, just stop.  Or at the very least, go back and consider why you’re doing it in the first place.  And don’t just think in vague terms; get specific.  Why Google+ vs. Twitter vs. Facebook?  Why blog?  Why is each social media platform useful to you as a writer?

As a writer considering these questions, you may also want to check out Dan Blank’s new course at WeGrowMedia.com called “Build Your Author Platform” which I took last summer while developing DIY MFA.  This helped me build a strategy to drive my social media choices and helped me make DIY MFA what it is today.  Dan is also offering a FREE webinar this Thursday called “Why You Need an Author Platform”  so if you’re interested in learning more about what that elusive “platform” is all about, this webinar is a great opportunity to do so.

Now, I’d like to know: What social media do you use?  And why do YOU think writers need social media?

Today we have a guest post from Marianne Bellotti of F.S. Publishing.  She develops software to help writers make the most of the feedback they get from critiques.  I’ve mentioned Beta Readers (Betas) here at DIY MFA in the past, but for those new to the term, Betas are readers who rather than reading your book piecemeal as you write it, will sit down with a completed draft and give you overall comments.  fluffyseme–software developed by Marianne–helps writers sort through these overall comments and get a better sense of what areas in their manuscripts need work.  Read on for Marianne’s explanation of how this software works and don’t forget to check out the video tutorial at the end!

Beta readers are awesome.

For some of us beta readers may be the only detailed reader feedback we really get. There’s nothing quite as electrifying as someone telling you exactly what they think about your work, even better when you can actually use it to improve.

However, the process of recruiting and managing good beta readers is not nearly as pleasant. I have always been fond of publishing online because even on the most basic platforms, critiques are posted directly to specific chapters. I don’t want to have to toggle from file to file to figure out what problems keep popping up. I don’t want to have to sort aimlessly through hundreds of notes, either handwritten or digital, to figuring out what the revisions should be.

They always say that you should build the tools that you yourself want to use. Well I wanted a tool that could help me solicit the most feedback from readers and make sense of it all. I wanted to be able to use technology to figure out how to fine tune my writing and I wanted to do it in a way that wasn’t going to scare my publisher.

fluffyseme was developed as a platform for works in progress that helps writers polish and revise based on insights from both analytical feedback with conventional comments.

As a writer I know I get the most out of my beta readers when I toughen up and try not to overreact to criticism. But that’s harder than it sounds, isn’t it? Despite my best intentions I always find myself staring at critiques and wondering if the reader really hated my story and just didn’t have the balls to tell me. It’s easy to lose perspective and get discouraged by even the most encouraging critiques when it’s something you’ve worked really hard on.

fluffyseme uses data to put comments in context and to give you an instant snapshot of what the general consensus is. At the end of every scene is a ratings bar where the reader has five choices: I liked this part, I hated this part, No reaction, I skipped this part, or I skimmed this part.

It’s simple but powerful. As I go through my betas’ comments I can bring up the ratings for that chapter, even that specific part, and use that information to gauge how seriously I should be concerned. Great beta readers are going to want to post insightful critiques. It’s much easier to appreciate those critiques when I can look at the ratings and know if I’m heading the right direction or if I need to do a complete U-turn and try a different approach.

You can figure out all sorts of other fun things with data too: how long do people spend reading? Are your readers male or female? Do they read mostly ebooks or is print still the preferred format?

With fluffyseme I wanted to do more than give writers a better way to manage and organize comments from betas, I wanted to open up a whole new way of thinking about writing.

Sometimes people assume that fluffyseme is about building computer programs that can tell people how to write, or even worse they assume the goal is to eliminate the need for an editor. Nothing could be further from the truth. Finding the flaws in a piece of fiction is easy, figuring out the solutions takes perspective. Well constructed data is useful in this process because it can be rearranged to demonstrate a variety of different perspectives. My goal is to help authors identify what readers are looking for from their stories, what the story’s strengths and weaknesses are, and then to go a step further and try to help writers figure out the best solution.

There are a couple of different ways a story can be set up on fluffyseme. The first option is to run it publicly and pull in as much data as possible from whoever happens to be reading. Public stories can be useful if you have a complicated story where the plot is moving in too many directions, if you’re not sure of what the market is for a story, or if you plan on self-publishing.

However, many smaller publishers count a first draft available online as publication no matter what revisions are eventually made. So authors who have established relationships with publishers might want to setup a private story instead. Private stories allow you to control who has access, issue invitations to the beta readers you already work with, and recruit from our growing community.

Yes recruitment, because just finding good beta readers can be a struggle in and of itself. So fluffyseme has a reader directory where you can pitch your story to our members and invite them to beta read for you. Readers can set their reading preferences so that they don’t get pitched stories in genres they don’t like, or they can list themselves as unavailable and stay completely hidden.

This project is just beginning and there’s always so much to do to make it just a little bit better. An important part of that is working closely with writers exactly the same way we want to help writers work closely with readers. As such, the system is currently in private beta, but DIY MFA readers can try it out right now by going to the fluffyseme website and using the invite code diymfa. Be sure to pass along any comments/problems/suggestions you might have to mbellotti[at]fspublishing[dot]com

fluffyseme Video Tutorial for DIY MFA