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7 April 2014

Ten Tools of the Trade

15:58 | | Edit Post
If you're like me you're a writer so you write.  But, if you want to be a self-published author that's not all you'll end up doing.  You'll find yourself involved in everything from Advertising to Zen (and the art of selling).

In doing this you'll need help.  So here are 10 of the tools I use to help me develop my novel and author's platform.

1.  Scrivener                                                                            


Undeniably the most important piece of software on my computer.  Scrivener suits my style of writing down to the ground.  It enables me to write in chapters while keeping all the work I've done as part of the same project.

This is how George and the Dragon looks in my version of Scrivener:


2.  Word

I still use Word I find there are things on word I am more comfortable with doing in word than in Scrivener; probably as I've been using it for 20 odd years.

3.  Pro writing aid                                                                                              

http://prowritingaid.com/

Keep your chapter length lower than 3000 words and you can use Pro Writing Aid for free and it is one of the best editing tools available on-line.  Try it you won't be disappointed.

3. Pixlr 

https://pixlr.com/editor/

Pxilr is an on-line image manipulation program that is second to none.  It takes a bit of learning but once you get the hang of it it's great.

4. Irfanview

http://www.irfanview.com/

Irfanview is a free to download installed image manipulation program.  I don't think it's as good a Pixlr but I still use it as I'm used to how it works.

5.  Cool Text

http://cooltext.com/

Cooltext is a great little on-line app for generating logos, like the one on this blog no less.

6.  The Logo Creator

http://www.thelogocreator.com/

For more complex logos I have a paid up version of the Logo Creator.  Like most software it has a bit of a learning curve but once you get used to it you can create some great looking results.

7.  Wordpress

http://wordpress.com/

Both www.philiptolhurst.co.uk and www.gerogeandthedragon.co.uk are created in Wordpress.  Wordpress websites don't have to have blog functions they can look and feel just like any other website.   The advantage of Wordpress is the many themes and widgets available that mean you can produce some pretty amazing results without having too much by way of prior knowledge in web design.

8.  Artisteer

http://www.artisteer.com/

The theme for this blog and both my websites were all designed with Artisteer.  If you've noticed the recent changes to this blog they were made in Aristeer.  With blogger themes you can simply click a button, enter your blog details, and Artisteer does the rest.  Wordpress themes are a little more complex but not overly so.

9.  Dropbox.

https://www.dropbox.com/en/

Cloud storage has it's downsides.  The most important of which is making sure your files have been uploaded to the cloud before shutting down your PC.  However, the upsides such as being able to access your Scrivener projects anywhere easily outweigh the downsides.  

10. Pluggio

https://plugg.io/

Pluggio helps me to manage my tweets and Twitter accounts.  It's invaluable especially when it comes to arranging for tweets to be posted while I'm sleeping but large parts of the world are just getting home from work.






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