LF: Free writers tools programs

  • Thread starter Thread starter Ken B
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K

Ken B

Hi there I am looking for and freeware programs that will aid a budding
novelist in setting up and maintaining information contained in their
writing. It is to be used for character development and relationships,
plot development etc

Thanks

K
 
Ken B wrote in alt.comp.freeware:
Hi there I am looking for and freeware programs that will aid a
budding novelist in setting up and maintaining information contained
in their writing. It is to be used for character development and
relationships, plot development etc
Click to expand...

Most if not all novelists I know (of all levels of accomplishment) use
text files, treepad-type information managers and spreadsheets for
this. I do the same -- I have tried various "specialized" bits of
software and found nothing as useful as the three things I've just
mentioned.

But maybe someone else will have other suggestions :-).
 
Ken B wrote in alt.comp.freeware:


Most if not all novelists I know (of all levels of accomplishment)
use text files, treepad-type information managers and spreadsheets
for this. I do the same -- I have tried various "specialized" bits
of software and found nothing as useful as the three things I've
just mentioned.
Click to expand...
I am currently working on a novel and my most-used program has been
treepad lite. I have one file with several nodes: character
development, dialogue, background info, historical research, etc. I
also have separate nodes for each character and for each setting.

The most overlooked (I think) aspect of any good novel is character
development. In many books, even many best-sellers, the characters are
barely 2-dimensional and often little more than caricatures. You can
find some good tools for character development and other aspects here:

http://teenwriting.about.com/library/exercises/blexercises.htm

While the site is for "teens," it offers some excellent exercises that
apply to any writer.
 
Hey there,

Hi there I am looking for and freeware programs that will aid a budding
novelist in setting up and maintaining information contained in their
writing. It is to be used for character development and relationships,
plot development etc
Click to expand...

Below is a list of what I use and/or downloaded. I've archived quite a
few other writing-related programs that I can no longer find online,
so I didn't recommend them here. I use some of them currently, and
others I haven't tried out yet. I'd have to check their EULA's
carefully to make sure I can distribute them, and am willing to do it
if anyone asks.

Book Format Software
http://homepage.ntlworld.com/reynolds.christchurch/

I haven't tried this one.

<quotes from the page>
Software that takes a text file and formats it to print books.
<end quotes from the page>


Musings v2.0
http://www.grimsoft.com/products.htm

This one is registerware, but free to use, and I love it.

<quotes from the page>
Musings© is a tip-of-the-day style program that presents the user with
inspirational quotes about writing, as well as creative writing
exercises meant to awaken the muse within.
<end quotes from the page>

NameGenerator
http://www.niclasforsell.com/old/software.htm#name

I use and like this one.

<quotes from the page>
A easy-to-use program that makes names. Ideal if you can't come up
with a name for your dog, cat, fish, child or just anything that needs
a name. Press a button and NameGenerator makes 100 names and shows
them on the screen. Press print if you want to print them. You can
also change the length of the names, if you like. The latest version
of NameGenerator is 2.11
<end quotes from the page>

RoughDraft
http://www.rsalsbury.co.uk/rd.htm

Probably the best freeware word processor for writers. I use and love
this one.

<quotes from the page>
RoughDraft is a freeware word processor for Windows 95, 98, ME, NT,
2000 and XP. Although suitable for general use, it has features
specifically designed for creative writing: novels, short stories,
articles, plays and screenplays. It's designed to be as practical as
possible, offering all the features you need, but without being
complicated or awkward to use.
<end quotes from the page>

Sandbagger's Automated Manuscript Management Software (S.A.M.M.)
http://www.sandbaggers.8m.com/samm.htm

I've never tried this one.

<quotes from the page>
Writing is a wonderful, creative, liberating activity. Tracking your
submissions is just the opposite. On this page we list some links to
free programs you can use to ease the burden.
<end quotes from the page>

Sonar
http://members.iinet.net.au/~simonh/spacejock/index.html

I use this one, and it does exactly what it says with no fuss.

<quotes from the page>
This program will track your short story or article submissions. Who's
got each story? Has an article been sold or rejected? Which stories
are gathering dust instead of earning their keep? That's what Sonar is
for.
<end quotes from the page>

Vizual Einstein Millenium Edition
http://www.aadconsulting.com/einstein.html

I've never tried this one.

<quotes from the page>
Vizual Einstein Millenium Edition Version 8.0 is the latest upgrade of
Vizual Einstein 32, a revolutionary freeware standalone application
for investigators, researchers, academics, lawyers, scientists,
essayists, students, and writers. Vizual Einstein allows you to
visually develop a project document with notes, headings, subheadings,
and hyperlinks. Vizual Einstein is also Web-enabled and has full
database search functionality. There are many other features,
including bibliography and formatted essay report output.
<end quotes from the page>

Writer's Database
http://www.ultima-thule.co.uk/

I've never tried this one.

<quotes from the page>
WriteDB is a database system that enables writers to keep a track of
the works they have created, the potential publishers they have
identified and any submissions to those publishers. It allows you to
quickly and easily see what works are awaiting a submission, which
submissions are outstanding, which publishers you have tried etc. etc.
<end quotes from the page>

WriteThis
http://www.theprint.dk/writethis.html

This one is in beta, but I use and love it.

<quotes from the page>
Welcome to the home of WriteThis, a small freeware tool for writers.
The tool generates writing exercises, based on a set of keywords and
criteria. It can generate characters, locations, items and special
rules, and you - the writer - have a specified number of minutes to
combine these things into a story.
<end quotes from the page>

yWriter
http://www.spacejock.com/yWriter.html

I tried a lower version of this a long time ago and decided not to use
it (can't remember why).

<quotes from the page>
I'm a programmer and a novelist, and yWriter is the result of 3 or 4
years of development. I really struggled over my first novel because I
wrote whole slabs of text into a great big word processor file and
tried to make sense of the whole thing at once. I then tried saving
each chapter to individual files with great long descriptive
filenames, but moving scenes around was a nuisance and I couldn't get
an overview of the whole thing (or easily search for one word amongst
32 files) In the end I realised a dedicated program was the way to go,
and yWriter is the result. It may look simple, but as the author of
three books written with this tool I can guarantee it has everything
needed to get a first draft together.
<end quotes from the page>
 
On Wed, 20 Jul 2005 03:11:50 GMT, Little Girl


<<snip>>

Great list, Little Girl. Would you happen to have a comparable list or
URLs for the same stuff, only for a MAC??
 
Ken B said:
Hi there I am looking for and freeware programs that will aid a budding
novelist in setting up and maintaining information contained in their
writing. It is to be used for character development and relationships,
plot development etc

Thanks

K
Click to expand...

http://wnw.diatribes.co.uk
click on "Writers Software" in the links list
a few additions to "little girls" fine list.
crispy
 
Hey there,

Great list, Little Girl. Would you happen to have a comparable list or
URLs for the same stuff, only for a MAC??
Click to expand...

Thanks! I don't know if this helps, but the Sandbagger's webpage
mentions this Mac link:

Macintosh Software
http://janebuchanan.com/tracker/

Also, Mike Dee posted these links for Mac software in
alt.comp.freeware a while back with a warning that you need to sift
through the Shareware to find the freeware:
http://www.pure-mac.com/
http://home.earthlink.net/~gamba2/mac_software.html

This one Mike Dee said has an archive for older Mac programs, with the
same warning for sifting for the freeware:
ftp://mirror.apple.com/mirrors/info-mac

I don't know if Mike Dee's links have any writers' software on them,
but you never know what you might find. :)
 
Hey there,

After clicking the download link, I get this:
The requested URL /files/musings/musings2.zip was not found on this
server.
Click to expand...

I tested it as well, and had the same result.

The download link on the page (and the one I successfully used to get
the program in April) is:
http://www.grimsoft.com/files/musings/musings2.zip

Since sometimes webpage authors alter their links and forget to update
the page, I tried altering the link in various ways:
http://www.grimsoft.com/files/musings/musings.zip
http://www.grimsoft.com/files/musings2.zip
http://www.grimsoft.com/files/musings.zip

And none of those worked. Maybe you can come up with a combination I
haven't thought of. :)

I did a bit of sleuthing and found another link to Musings on the main
Home page <http://www.grimsoft.com/index.asp?Page=/main.htm> to an ftp
site:

ftp://ftp.grimsoft.com/musings/musings2.exe

When I click on this in Firefox 1.05, I get this result:

530-Unable to set anonymous privileges.
530 Login incorrect.

I tried using WS-FTP to log into it anonymously, and it connected, but
blocked me and disconnected. But I don't really know what I'm doing
with ftp. You might have better luck if you have experience with ftp.

There's a support page here:
http://www.grimsoft.com/index.asp?Page=/products.htm

They offer an email address and a quick contact form that they say
they monitor often.

And last but not least, I read every bit of documentation I have on
the program, and nowhere does it mention whether I have the right to
redistribute it. Does that mean I can? Or must it state that quite
clearly somewhere?

If it's legal for me to distribute it, I can upload it to You Send It
if you like. It's 1.83 MB for the executable, a screenshot, and a text
file I always include with a link to the homepage, a download link,
and the text from the webpage.

At any rate, good luck with this, and if I can help in any way, I
will.
 
substitute www for wnw

follow the links to freeware and then authors software


Thanks for the link


K
 
Ken said:
Hi there I am looking for and freeware programs that will aid a budding
novelist in setting up and maintaining information contained in their
writing. It is to be used for character development and relationships,
plot development etc
Click to expand...


Have you looked at yWriter? http://www.spacejock.com/yWriter.html He
also has a submission tracker.

Some others that I am beginning to find useful include:

FreeMind -- http://freemind.sourceforge.net/
KeyNotes -- http://www.tranglos.com/free/index.html


If you are not limiting yourself to software, the most useful writer's
site on the Web is Forward Motion http://www.fmwriters.com

For the last couple of years, starting every January They have been
having a "2-Year Novel Workshop." I am 18 months or so into mine.


Lisa S.
Web Site URL: http://www.worthywomanpage.com
ICQ-27424429 IM-lthrncnfssns Yahoo!-WorthyWoman

(This year, I've the honor and pleasure of
(believe it or not) serving time behind bars for "Jerry's Kids"
to benefit the Muscular Dystrophy Association. I need your help
to raise the dough to bail me out of jail. You can also pay to
keep me in! My Bail Page is at: http://tinyurl.com/dn9gv )
 
Mike Andrade said:
Tried 3 links...all 404.
Click to expand...

Hi, sorry about that.
all links now work and the http://wnw.diatribes.co.uk link is correct.
instant poetry is unfortunately no more and has been removed.
homepage links may point to pay versions of the mentioned software but the
download links work still pull the free software.
good luck
crispy sea
 
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