Writing a book is a fantastic creative outlet, but it’s also much harder than some people think. Many writers start strong, only to falter shortly thereafter due to writer’s block or a lack of organization skills.
Both of these problems become much easier to handle when you have the right tools on your side. For example, high-quality writing software gives you the tools to organize all your notes, character profiles, chapter summaries, and everything else that turns an idea into a finished book.
If you’ve never used writing software, you might be wondering exactly how it can help. The following list contains a few of the numerous reasons that many authors consider writing software to be their BFF.
It Keeps You Organized
The longer your book becomes, the more difficult it will be to stay on top of everything. This is especially true if you’re including a lot of world-building with several characters, settings, and details. To avoid writing yourself into a corner or accidentally changing someone’s name halfway through the book, you can turn to the many organizational tools offered by writing software such as:
- Folders
- Tagging
- Color Coding
It Helps You Outline
Outlining might be one of the most contentious aspects of writing a book. After all, some authors swear by outlining, but others shun it. However, the simple fact is that outlining is a very helpful process that provides many benefits.
Of course, there are some challenges attached to outlines as well, including constant reorganization to deal with changing plot points, unexpected character development and more.
With writing software, you don’t have to worry about manually moving outline details on a regular basis. Instead, you’ll be able to reorder things by simply dragging and dropping them into the correct order. Additionally, you’ll get a nice visual representation of your outline that can help you spot plot holes and stay on track with your writing goals.
It Helps You Research
Whether you’re writing a non-fictional biography or a fictional horror novel, it’s always critical to conduct some research. Without this vital step, your book will lack authenticity, which is one of the quickest ways to turn off readers and get negative reviews.
Research helps you bring your book’s setting to life, verify the proper usage of certain words, and avoid unintentionally defying basic laws of the universe.
For many writers, research equates to hastily scribbled notes on scrap pieces of paper. Doing this is a one-way street toward losing important facts and wasting time looking the same things up over and over again.
When you switch to using writing software, you will put these difficulties behind you. Each of your notes can be organized and digitally put away for safekeeping. Whenever you’re ready to see a specific note again, it can be easily pulled up and reviewed.
It Helps You Focus
What’s the one thing that all writers have in common? No, it’s not obsessively drinking coffee or living a life of solitude, regardless of what you may have heard. The real answer is having difficulty staying focused.
There are so many things vying for a writer’s time, ranging from social media to getting sucked down a Google rabbit hole. When you add personal obligations into the mix, it becomes very easy to get distracted and forget many of your best ideas.
Writing software helps eliminate distractions by keeping everything organized and structured. Even better, most of these helpful tools give you the ability to write within a distraction-free mode. All unnecessary buttons and menu items will go into hiding when you’re writing, which will make it much easier to stay focused and in the zone.
It Saves You Time
Distractions and disorganization quickly become massive time sucks that make it nearly impossible to stick to a deadline. Even if you’re not a professional and are simply writing for personal pleasure, it’s still preferable to avoid wasting a lot of your potential writing time.
The higher efficiency and saved time that come with writing software will make it possible for you to produce better quality work in a shorter period of time.
After all, maintaining an organized, outlined approach often reduces the necessary editing time. You’ll also find yourself with more free time to work on other projects, thereby increasing your odds of making a living with your imagination.
Is Writing Software Right for You?
It doesn’t matter if you’re a seasoned professional or a hopeful novice who is still wondering how to write a book. As long as you’re willing to sit down and write, you will receive a lot of helpful benefits from utilizing writing software. Once the book is finished, you’ll even be able to export it to a PDF or Kindle file for easy publishing.
