Bag of Tricks: Tips, Tools, & Techniques

STYLE GUIDES

• Chicago Manual of Style [CMS: Style Guide for All Published Books]
• Associated Press Stylebook [AP: Style Guide for All Journalism]

 

GRAMMAR A+ REFRESHERS

GRAMMAR REFRESHERS:

• DailyGrammar [Brush Up on Grammar]
• DrGrammar.org [RX for Your Writing]
• Grammar.About.com [Grammar & Composition]
• GrammarPhobia [Making It Fun]
• GrammarUnited [School of Journalism | AP, not CMS]
• Punctuation Aids [How to Use Punctuation]
• ThePunctuationGuide.com [All-Things Punctuation]
• WordSmyth.net [Quizzes and Brain Teasers]

GRAMMAR TIPS:

• DailyWritingTips.com [Tips for Writers]
• GrammarGirl [Quick & Dirty Tips]
• Guide to Grammar [Lynch at Rutgers]
• LousyWriter.com [Learn How to Write Well with Plain English Writing]

GRAMMAR BOOKS

• Bird by Bird: Some Instructions on Writing and Life by Anne Lamott
• Chicago Manual of Style, 16th Edition by University of Chicago Press Staff
• Complete Idiot’s Guide to Grammar and Style, The by Laurie E. Rozakis
• Eats, Shoots & Leaves by Lynne Truss
• Elements of Style, The by William Strunk Jr., E.B. White, Maira Kalman
• English Grammar for Dummies by Geraldine Woods
• Ernest Hemingway on Writing compiled by Larry W. Phillips (Editor)
• Essentials of English: A Practical Handbook Covering All the Rules of English Grammar and Writing Style, 6th Edition by Vincent Hopper, Cedric Gale, Ronald C. Foote, Benjamin W. Griffith
• Grammar Girl’s Quick and Dirty Tips for Better Writing by Mignon Fogarty
• Handbook of Good English, The by Edward Johnson
• How to Read a Book: The Classic Guide to Intelligent Reading by Mortimer J. Adler, Charles Van Doren
• How to Write a Sentence: And How to Read One by Stanley Fish
• On Writing—A Memoir of the Craft by Stephen King
• On Writing Well: The Classic Guide to Writing Nonfiction (30th Anniversary) by William Zinsser
• Proofreading Secrets of Best-Selling Authors by Kathy Ide
• Strategic Rewriting by Anna Questerly
• Writer to Writer: Lessons from a Lifetime of Writing by Cecil Murphey
• Zen in the Art of Writing: Releasing the Creative Genius Within You by Ray Bradbury

GRAMMAR CHECKERS

GRAMMAR & SPELLING:

• GrammarCheck.me [Latest Grammar & Writing Resources]
• Spellcheck.net [Spell Checker]
• Tools.SEOBook.com [Spelling & Grammar Checker]

WRITING COMPREHENSIVE:

• Grammarly.com [Not Approved by CMS, But Great Tool]
• GrammarCheck [PaperRater]
• WritersDiet.com [Check Your Writing]

GRAMMAR HELP & CHEERLEADERS

WRITER ENCOURAGEMENT:

• Chicken Soup for the Writer’s Soul by Jack Canfield, Mark Victor Hansen, Bud Gardner

CREATIVE WRITING:

• BrainPickings.org [Read About Authors & Their Works]
• Creative-Writing-Now.com [Novel-Writing Helps]
• OneCoolSiteBloggingTips.com [5 Free Grammar Checkers for Bloggers]
• PracticalECommerce.com [18 Writing Tools for Grammar, Style, Content]
• WritingTipsAndRules [OpenCulture]
• WritingWorld.com [Tips & Helps for Writers]

MINDMAPPING:

• MindMapping.com [Brainstorming Help]
• SaraTooleMiller.wordpress.com [MindMapping HOW]
• TeachingVilliage.org [MindMapping WHAT]

GRAMMAR WORD-FIND

DICTIONARIES & THESAURUSES:

• Merriam-Webster.com [Dictionary Mostly CMS Approved]
• Dictionary.com [Not Approved by CMS, But Great Tool]
• OneLook.com [Compare Dictionaries in One Place]
• Thesaurus.com [Quickly Find Synonyms and/or Antonyms]

SEARCHES & RESEARCH:

• FindAPhrase.org [Phrases, Proverbs, Sayings]
• Wikipedia.org [For Research Directing; Not CMS Approved, But Useful]
• WordNik.com [Look Up Any Word or Phrase]
• WordThink.com [Trains the Use of Words You Already Know]

 

GENRE-SPECIFIC INTERESTS

ALL BOOKS:

• HowToWriteABookNow.com [Instructions on the Creation of a Book]

BIOGRAPHY:

• BiographyBiography.com [Biography Help]

FICTION:

• CaroClarke.com [Historical-Fiction Research]
• JosephFinder.com [How to Write Spy Novels]
• OnceUponARomance.net [Romance Helps]
• FecklessGoblin.com [Horror Writing]
• SFWriter.com [Sci-Fi]
• WritersDigest.com [Fiction Help]

MAGAZINES (Online):

• WriterMag.com [Short Stories]
• SplicketyPubGroup.com [Flash Fiction]

POETRY:

• AcrosticDictionary [Poetry Tool]
• MoreWords.com [Acrostic Help | Poetry Tool]
• Poets.org [Poetic Forms]
• RhymeZone.com [Poetry Tool]

SONG:

• SongLyricist.com [Song Help]

PUBLISHING & MARKETING AIDS

EXPANDING YOUR AUDIENCE:

• CopyBlogger.com [Build an Audience Who Wants to Hear from You]
• ExpandYourAudience [Tips on Getting Readers]
• StartABlog123.com [How to Start a Blog]

PROPOSALS & QUERIES:

• BookProposalSecrets [Nonfiction Book-Proposal Help]
• QueryShark.blogspot.com [Query Needs & Help]

PUBLISHERS:

• ABooksMind [Publishing Hybrid]

WRITER TRAINING:

• GoInsWriter.com [Tips on Writing & Creativity]
• HowToPlanWriteAndDevelopABook.com [Plan, Write, and Develop a Book]
• MenWithPens.ca [Websites & Copy Writing]
• NathanBransford.com [On Writing Contests]
• WritingCareerCoach.com [Get Help Along the Journey of Writing]
• WritingClasses.com [Train Yourself as a Writer]
• WritersMarket.com [Where & How to Sell What You Write]

WRITING GROUPS & TEAMS

• AbbasWriters.com [Group for Women Writers]
• Writing.com [Community of Online Writers]
• WritingForums.org [Talk with Other Writers]