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It's always helpful to know what others think of a resource you're thinking of using.
In this section you'll find reviews of books, software, and websites... and even occasionally some hardware.
Keep in mind that these reviews reflect other people's experiences with these products. Not everyone has the same needs or the same level of expertise, so what suits one person may not suit another.
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Review of Dragon NaturallySpeaking Preferred Version 10
There were several reasons prompting my decision to try speech recognition software. One was that I had a large number of writing projects happening at the moment. Another was that at work I was working on projects that involve sitting at the computer for long stretches of time. All in all I was spending a lot of time at computers and using programs that involve entering text... . . . keep reading
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Handy Software for Writers
Marg McAlister
Here's a collection of free software that will help to make your writer's life easier: XNoteTimer, yWriter, PageBreeze, NoteTab Light and ShortKeys. In short... a desktop timer, a program to help you organise your novel, an HTML (website) editor, a plain text editer and a text replacement program for text or information that you type repeatedly. . . . keep reading
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Crossing Genres or Age Groups
Marg McAlister
For one reason or another, you might be thinking of switching genres, or changing from one age group to another. What are the problems you might encounter? Do you have to re-learn or un-learn anything? What are the differences, say, in writing for adults when you've been used to writing for children - or vice versa? . . . keep reading
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Book Reviews: Writing them and Understanding Them
I've seen first-hand the devastation caused by a bad book review. For an author who has given their heart and soul to a work of fiction for months or years, a negative review is like a personal assault. After all, authors rarely write a book without caring whether people like it or not. You write it, you polish it - often you perform major surgery at the request of an editor - and you eagerly await its release to the world, hoping it will be hugely popular and sell many thousands of copies. A bad review can seem like the end of the world. . . . keep reading
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Writing Content for the Web - is it For You?
Marg McAlister
Writing content for websites can give you a nice little sideline (while you're working on your novel) or you can build it into a whole new career. It may be something you'd never thought of - which is understandable. Nobody tends to think much about who's behind those millions of words on the World Wide Web. We all simply take it for granted that when we 'Google' something, we're going to find an answer. . . . keep reading
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Barron's English the Easy Way - Review
My local bookstore chain offered a good cross section of books on grammar and writing like "Eats, Shoots and Leaves" and "Elements of Style" but I needed something that would reinforce the grammar lessons that did not stick when I was in school. I chose Barron's English, The Easy Way. . . . keep reading
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The "Better Writing Skills" Online Magazine
Produced by Tim North
It's always handy to have a resource or two on tap when it comes to improving your writing skills - specifically: grammar, punctuation and general usage. Tim North of Scribe Consulting has a regular "Better Writing Skills" Newsletter that could help you out... and he often responds to questions from subscribers... . . . keep reading
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Review of yWriter4
Free Software for Writers
Reviewed by Robyn Haynes
yWriter4 is novel writing software designed by Simon Haynes, software designer and author of the Hal Spacejock series. Simon describes yWriter4 as word processing software that organises chapters and scenes. But it is much more than that. . . . keep reading
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Voice Recognition Software
I interviewed two people about their experiences with voice recognition software - (1) Sally Odgers, the author of our column on writing for children, and (2) Peter Wheatley, who uses the software in the workplace. In the following interview, I've put their responses to each question side by side so you can compare their answers. . . . keep reading
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Ann Harth
