How I'm Empowering My Novel Writing Journey with this Top App
Call it shiny object syndrome, or the search for a tool that probably doesn’t exist, but I’m always looking at ways I can make my writing process simpler. Sometimes that involves changing the process, sometimes it involves tools, but more often it involves both.
Since I started writing my first novel, I’ve tried a variety of writing tools and apps.
I started by doing all my writing in Google Docs, and keeping track of characters, settings, plot points, and so on, in Milanote. (I wrote about Milanote here.) When I got to the point in my revisions where I needed to delete and move a bunch of scenes around, I resurrected Scrivener, where it’s easy to make those kinds of changes. Along the way I tried out some online apps like Plottr, Fictionary, and My Novel Factory.
They all have their strengths. Plottr, as its name suggests, focuses on the plotting. But I wanted more. Fictionary has a great community, but the software just didn’t speak to me. My Novel Factory was better — it comes with lots and lessons and information, and it’s based on Swain’s excellent book, Techniques of the Selling Writer, which I keep on my desk at all times.
And then I found AutoCrit, which seems to check all the boxes for me.
It helps that I found a really good lifetime price with a 60-day guarantee, which meant I could try out the full version for two months (as opposed to the 14-day free trial that’s more common).
AutoCrit includes:
The Writer’s Desk, where you’ll find all your writing and interactive editing tools tools.
The Inspiration Studio, where you can work on plotting, character building and worldbuilding, and it includes a beat sheet. Although not labeled as such, it’s the 15 beats in Save the Cat Writes a Novel, which I also keep on my desk at all times, something that My Novel Factory doesn’t offer.
The Story Analyzer, which they describe as a “beta reader in your pocket.”
The Community, which adds a social element
The Academy, where you’ll find lots of guides and information, as well as courses and workshops (some are included in the Pro membership, and some carry an additional charge)
They also offer Author Services.
So far I’m liking it.
What I’m Reading
How Not to Murder Your Ex by Katie Marsh
Clio is a mess. Her ex-husband has taken her house, the business she invested her inheritance into, and her daughter’s college savings. Now he’s after the one item of value she has left, an heirloom ring left to her by her grandmother.
In those circumstances, what’s a peri-menopausal woman to do on her 45th birthday but celebrate with two friends who are also going through some hard stuff? Amber is reeling after being fired from her 20-year career as a police detective, and Jeannie, who never suffered an overabundance of confidence, is turning into a recluse since the birth of her twins the year before.
So they party at Clio’s, and they party hard. It’s all going great until Clio stumbles over the body of her ex on her doorstep. Except, contrary to what the detective in charge wants to believe, she didn’t kill him.
This is a delightful first-in-series, and I’m looking forward to the next, due out in March.
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Notable Quotes
The complete upheaval of Lord Reginald’s future started the moment he crumpled his newspaper into a ball and tossed it into the terrine of hot porridge sitting in the middle of the dining table.
- Murder, I Spy by Lynn Morris
This description conjures all sorts of images, and raises a bunch of questions. What a great opening line!
This December was colder than the previous ones I’d experienced in St. Marin’s, and I was resenting it hard. My rule was that if it was going to be this cold and gray, it had to snow. Unfortunately, the climate hadn’t bowed to my dictatorship as of yet.
- Picture Book Peril by ACF Bookens
I thought this was seasonally appropriate, given the horrendous cold that’s sweeping a lot of the US right now.