When we write we want to be able to get our point across without any “fuss and feathers” (whatever that means). Sometimes (like when you’re having trouble getting to sleep) the words just aren’t there which can be frustrating. The best writing tools can help with this because they can actually get your creative juices flowing.
In this article, we featured the best writing tools that will make you more productive.
Inkredible
This one’s great for creative writers lucky enough to have bigger screens, and who feel that there’s no way to write quite like handwriting. Yes, Inkredible is designed for actual handwriting rather than typing, and if you have a stylus handy then you should take to its super-manual take on mobile writing.
You can add various paper backgrounds to your writing, such as lined paper with margins or graph paper, and its super stripped-back UI really brings home the feeling that you’re writing on paper than than on a digital interface.
As you write, Inkredible optimizes your writing to make it look neater (great for messy scribblers like me), and for tablet users it has a Palm Rejection feature which ensures that it doesn’t register your palm should it lean on the screen as you write.
Character Story Planner 2
Price: Free (with ads)
Character Story Planner 2 is actually an app for table top gaming. We’re talking about stuff like Dungeons and Dragons, Hackmaster, and similar types of games. However, this can be an excellent resource for novelists and short story writers. You can create characters with back stories, places, creatures, gods, magic, or whatever else you want. You can basically create an entire world with its own rules, characters, races, and places. In addition, the app includes a creation process for scenarios, story events, and other types of scenes. You can basically write a whole book here and then eventually just transpose it into a word processor later. The app is free with advertising so it’s good for writers on a budget too.DOWNLOAD ON GOOGLE PLAY!
Google Docs, Drive, and Keep
Price: Free / $1.99-$199.99 per month
Google Drive is a fairly powerful online office suite. It has a word processor with Google Docs, cloud storage with Google Drive (or Google One), and a note taking app with Google Keep. This is an excellent set of apps for writers. Google Docs is big enough and powerful enough to house a novel, screenplay, etc. I personally use it for script writing for YouTube videos. Google Drive is a cloud storage platform so you can access your writing on a computer, phone, or any other device with an Internet connection. Finally, Google Keep is a decent, free note taking app where you can house ideas and snippets. It all integrates into Google Drive. All of the apps are free and you get 15GB of free Google Drive space. The subscription costs are in case you need more space.
iA Writer (iOS, Android)
iA Writer is one of the most well-known writing apps available, and for good reason. It looks great and works brilliantly across iOS and Android. While the Android version is a little behind in terms of features, it is still a good writing app for the platform.
The iOS app has extra features, such as syntax highlighting, which allows you to see adjectives, nouns, adverbs, verbs, or conjunctions in the document highlighted and much more. The iOS app also has full support for iOS 9 specific features like split screen. I’d say the Android version is more of a beta compared to the iOS version at this point, but regardless of your platform, iA Writer is a good choice.
Download iA Writer for Android (Rs. 70) | iA Writer for iOS (Rs. 1,200)
JotterPad (Android)
JotterPad is well designed and has a boatload of features that make it one of the better writing apps out there. It sports a Material Design look and has export options to PDF and DOCX. It even supports Markdown. The app is free to download but many of these features are behind a one time in app purchase of Rs. 350 to unlock Creative Mode.
The great use of design and the smooth operation of JotterPad make even the free version a good option is you’re looking for a scratchpad that works great on Android. The full featured version is even better, and can measure up to most of the other apps on the list for some serious writing.
Download JotterPad (Free)
Editorial (iOS)
Editorial is one of the most powerful apps that exists today, without even narrowing this to writing apps. It does everything that a good writing app should do, and so much more, with support for workflows and an intuitive and powerful interface.
Editorial has robust Dropbox sync, with version support and a healthy workflow community online that can make exporting and even publishing from the app a cinch. Editorial is the perfect combination of a great interface that adapts to your needs. Editorial is professional grade software that’s a little expensive, but well worth your money.
Download Editorial (Rs. 620)
Monospace Writer BETA (Android)
While it is currently in beta, Monospace is a nice barebones writing app. I like the dark theme a lot. One interesting feature is the ability to organise with hashtags instead of folders. The current version supports Dropbox sync as well.
Download Monospace Writer BETA (Free)
Drafts 4 (iOS)
While Drafts can be used as a proper writing app, its best use is for quick entry of your thoughts, to use elsewhere later. Drafts also lets you send text to tons of services and apps. Think of it as the best scratch pad available for writers.
It also has an Apple Watch app to view your Drafts inbox and it supports split screen on iPad. One of the best things about the app is the customisable bar above the keyboard for Markdown shortcuts.
Download Drafts 4 (Rs. 620)
Microsoft Word (iOS, Android)
I never thought I’d recommend using Microsoft Word over many writing apps because it has always felt too bloated. Recently Microsoft has been improving the iOS and Android apps with each update and now Word has become a good overall writing app.
The iPad app even supports iOS 9 specific features. Dropbox integration being added was a surprise and things like that along with a nicely thought out interface make Word a great app.
Download Microsoft Word for iOS | Microsoft Word for Android (Free)
Grammarly Keyboard
Price: Free
Writing with a virtual keyboard is not the ideal way to write things. However, sometimes it’s unavoidable. Grammarly Keyboard is a decent keyboard app for writers. It does basic things like auto-correction for spelling errors. The app also helps with your grammar. It tells you when it spots a grammar issue and offers a correction. Now, in many cases, things are worded a specific way for a reason and some characters just talk with bad grammar. However, it’s still nice having a keyboard with capabilities like this. To be fair, though, we imagine most people are using a Bluetooth keyboard or a Chromebook for this so a keyboard might not be necessary.
DOWNLOAD ON GOOGLE PLAY!
Joe Hindy / Android Authority
JotterPad
Price: Free / $5.99-$14.99 once / $0.99 per month
JotterPad is a writing app specifically for writers. It has a variety of features for things like novels, screenplays, and other similar types of writing work. The app also comes with a no-distraction mode to really get into the zone. Some other features include a dark mode, a word counter, Markdown support, typewriter style scrolling, and support for cloud storage. There is also split-screen support but only on tablets and Chromebooks. The free version comes with most of the features. A single $5.99 purchase adds some extra stuff while the $14.99 option unlocks everything. There is also a $0.99 per month option for cloud storage support. We’re not big fans of paying monthly for support to Google Drive’s free storage, but you can always skip that if you want to.
DOWNLOAD ON GOOGLE PLAY!
Joe Hindy / Android Authority
Monospace Writer
Monospace Writer is a minimalist app that allows you to focus on your writing without any distractions. The app doesn’t offer as many features as iA Writer, but it does have its own strengths.
On installation you will be greeted by a clean and well-designed interface that you should feel right at home with. There are a few tutorials that will show you how to use the app and the options available.
You get only the most basic formatting options (such as bold, italics, blockquotes) but not much more. You can organise related articles using hashtags, and exporting to Markdown or plain text is available. Monospace also features Dropbox and Google Drive integration, but the latter is only available in the pro version.
Conclusion
When you sit down to write something, how many different writing tools do you open on your computer? Are you a writer who prefers writing with pen and paper? Are you someone who breaks out the digital voice recorder and talks while typing at the same time? You may be surprised to find out that although one of these methods is faster than the others, all of them can ultimately get your thoughts written down on paper.