Looking for software to make writing easier? You have a lot of apps to choose from. From distraction-free apps that take up your whole screen to feature-packed mainstays like Microsoft Word, weve put together a guide to help you choose the writing software thats right for you.
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There was a time not that long ago where your choices for writing apps boiled down to plain text or Microsoft Word. Things have changed a lot over the years. Nowadays, you have almost too many options.
With that in mind, weve tested out a stack of writing software to pick our favourites, based on what your needs are. Were leaving out notes apps here, so favourites like Evernote and Simplenote wont make an appearance. Instead, were concentrating on tools for long-form writing.
Microsoft Word dominates the word-processing space. Whether youre writing a novel, putting together some short stories, or just drafting up a memo for the office, Microsoft Word is the most powerful tool around.
Since Microsoft Word is the industry standard, its good to get your bearings with it. Word is the most popular because it has the most features. With Word, you can do just about anything you could imagine with your text. It features all types of formatting options, customisable toolbars, application-specific keyboard shortcuts, draft versions and collaboration features. Its the kitchen sink of word processors, and if thats what you need, Words you best option. That said, LibreOffices Writer is pretty good these days if you prefer free software.
Microsoft Word might be the default app for writing a novel, but its not necessarily the best. If youre looking for something created with long-form writing in mind, both Scrivener and Ulysses III are excellent choices.
Scrivener ($US45) is a Windows and Mac app that gives you a single place to dump all your ideas and writing. It includes tools to keep notes, collect research, outline, and organise your writing. With all that, you can navigate to different sections of your text, jump around to different parts of research, and find whatever youre looking for with powerful search options. Basically, Scrivener is like Evernote for long-form writing, and if youre looking for a way to organise and write in the same place, its an excellent option. Scrivener also integrated with Simplenote if you want to take your writing on the go.
Ulysses III ($56.99) for Mac takes a similar approach to Scrivener, but simplifies things a little bit. It uses plain text or Markdown for writing, but also includes statistics, notes, exporting and organisation. The Markdown support means you can use it for regular old blogging just as easily as for novel writing. Ulysses III fits somewhere between a minimalist writing tool and Scrivener. Its feature-packed, but offers a lot of options for hiding those features away too. If you want to take your writing on the road, Ulysses III integrates with Daedalus Touch on iOS.
Both Ulysses and Scrivener have demo versions, so check them out and see which works best for you.
Originally posted here:
The Best Apps For Any Kind Of Writing