37 tools that will make you a better writer

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Looking for resources to help you write better? Check out this solid list of 37 places to go for help, inspiration and more!

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Intr

o Wri$ng  skills  lie  at  the  heart  of  web  marke$ng.  Being  a  good  writer  is  essen$al  for  crea$ng  your  own  website  content,  and  excellent  wri$ng  abili$es  will  help  you  think  more  cri$cally  and  come  up  with  new  content  more  consistently  in  the  long-­‐term.  Here  is  a  list  of  37  tools  that  will  improve  your  content  wri$ng  abili$es.    

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e Basics: Grammar, Spelling, and Punctuation

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#1 Quick  and  Dirty  Tips  brings  you  Grammar  Girl,  a  place  where  all  kinds  of  gramma$cal  ques$ons  are  answered  for  anyone  and  everyone’s  benefit.  

Grammar Girl

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#2 “This  course  covers  approximately  the  same  ground  as  our  English  department’s  ENG  1320  Grammar  course.”  College-­‐level  grammar  educa$on  for  the  low  cost  of  free.  

University of Ottawa’s Hyper Grammar

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#3 I  know  that  wiki  pages  are  not  considered  “official  authori$es”  on  many  subjects,  but  this  ar$cle  has  been  edited  by  almost  110  different  experienced  website  contributors.  If  you  need  a  good  place  to  start,  this  is  it.  

WikiHow’s English Punctuation How-To

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#4 Excellent  ar$cles  on  sentence  structure  and  common  errors.  

Online Writing Assistant by Paradigm

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#5 26  free  wri$ng  $ps  from  an  interna$onally-­‐acclaimed  professional  writer  with  decades  of  experience.  

Writing Tips from Writer’s Block

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#6 Notes  and  examples  of  modern  gramma$cal  forms  and  features,  compiled  over  many  years  by  Jack  Lynch,  Associate  Professor  of  English  at  Rutgers  University.  

e Guide to Grammar and Style

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#7 A  complete  style  guide  for  technical  wri$ng.  

Technical Writing

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#8 Journalist’s  Style  Guides  are  excellent  resources  for  finer  points  and  odd  ques$ons  when  it  comes  to  wri$ng.  Style  guides  are  the  newsman’s  bible.  

e Economist Style Guide

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#9 Don’t  let  the  name  fool  you,  this  massive  list  of  other  resources  has  been  republished  all  over  the  place  because  it’s  just  plain  useful.  

Dumb Little Man’s 40+ Grammar and

Punctuation Tips

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Practical Guides to Better Writing Skills

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#10 Compiled  from  a  number  of  famous  wri$ng  guides,  this  primer  gives  writers  an  excellent  resource  for  improving  their  skills.  

A Guide to Writing Well

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#11 Engaging  tutorials  that  teach  you  the  basics  of  how  to  write  excellent  copy.  I’ve  referred  to  this  one  o]en.  

Copyblogger’s Copywriting 101

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#12  A  two-­‐part  list  of  101  excellent  resources  for  improving  your  copywri$ng  skills.  

FutureNow’s Ultimate Copywriting Cheat Sheets

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#13 Passive  voice  is  usually  frowned  upon,  but  for  writers  needing  a  place  to  inject  keywords,  passive  voice  can  be  an  excellent  tool.  

Passive Voice for Web Headings

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#14 Tips  on  how  to  write  headlines  that  will  demand  a^en$on.  

How to Write Magnetic Headlines

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#15 Another  excellent  Copyblogger  resource  on  landing  pages  and  how  to  make  them  work  for  you.  

How to Write Landing Pages

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#16 Michel  For$n  is  an  expert  when  it  comes  to  wri$ng  copy,  and  here  is  his  list  of  what  not  to  do  when  wri$ng  your  own.  

e Seven Deadly Sins of Website Copy

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#17 A  concise  list  of  $ps  from  great  writers  throughout  history.  

10 Writing Tips from the Masters

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#18 Tips  on  wri$ng  persuasive  anchor  texts  to  drive  conversions  from  content.  

How to Write Persuasive Links

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Cool Tools

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#19 Tips  on  wri$ng  persuasive  anchor  texts  to  drive  conversions  from  content.  

De"nr

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#20 A  word  map  that  connects  words  with  other  related  words  and  subjects.  

Visuwords Graphical Dictionary

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#21 Diagrams  and  images  that  visually  define  curious  words  for  writers  asking  themselves  “what  the  heck  is  this  thing?”  

Merriam-Webster Visual Dictionary

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#22 Feature-­‐rich  dic$onary  boas$ng  one  of  the  largest  English  word  databases  on  the  web.  

OneLook Dictionary

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#23 The  same  dic$onary,  but  backwards.  Ever  had  an  idea  that  you  needed  condensed  in  one  word?  Can  you  think  of  everything  about  a  word  but  the  word  itself?  This  dic$onary  lets  you  describe  a  concept  or  ask  a  ques$on  and  see  a  list  of  associated  words  in  response.  

OneLook Reverse Dictionary

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#24 Convenient  dic$onary  program  with  the  ability  to  work  completely  offline.  Great  for  digital  writers  that  o]en  find  themselves  on  the  go  without  an  internet  connec$on  to  rely  on.  

WordWeb Pro

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#25 Online  verb  reference  that  gives  you  proper  conjuga$on  for  English  verbs.  Features  downloadable  program  as  well.  

Verbix Conjugation Reference

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#26 Free,  instant  grammar  checking  for  any  documents.  

Grammarly

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#27 Take  all  your  notes  in  different  places,  keep  them  in  one  place  for  later.  Sync  across  computers,  across  devices,  and  across  mediums.  

EverNote

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#28 Online  freelancing  resource  specifically  for  writers  and  marketers.  Whether  you  write  copy,  fic$on,  code,  or  finance  reports,  if  you  can  write  it,  you  can  get  paid  to  do  it  here.  

Elance

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#29  I’ve  featured  this  before,  and  I’ll  feature  it  again.  This  excellent  li^le  word  processing  program  helps  you  focus  on  your  wri$ng  by  blocking  out  all  other  distrac$ons.  

OmmWriter

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Writer’s Blogs Worth Following

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#30 I’ve  already  referenced  this  site  a  few  $mes  because  they  produce  amazing  $ps  for  writers.  Stay  up  to  date  by  subscribing  to  their  blog.  

Copyblogger

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#31 Helpful  $ps  for  bloggers  looking  to  increase  their  revenue  streams  and  $ps  for  copywriters.  

ProBlogger

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#32 Helpful  $ps  for  bloggers  looking  to  increase  their  revenue  streams  and  $ps  for  copywriters.  

Write to Done

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#33 Exactly  what  it  says  on  the  $n.  Great  $ps  posted  daily  on  a  wide  variety  of  wri$ng  topics.  

Daily Writing Tips

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#34 Exactly  what  it  says  on  the  $n.  Great  $ps  posted  daily  on  a  wide  variety  of  wri$ng  topics.  

Daily Writing Tips

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#35 Wri$ng  $ps  delivered  from  25  years  of  copywri$ng  experience.  

Writer Underground

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#36 For  when  you  want  to  take  a  break  from  content  wri$ng  and  ad  copy,  Six  Sentences  offers  budding  fic$on  writers  a  challenge:  produce  a  short  story  in  six  sentences  or  less.  Submissions  are  posted  daily.  

Six Sentences

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#37 Jurgen  Wolff  is  a  professional  writer  credited  for  classic  TV  shows  including  “The  Love  Boat”  and  “Family  Ties.”  He  gives  wri$ng  workshops  and  has  published  a  handful  of  books  on  wri$ng  scripts  and  copywri$ng,  and  posts  $ps  on  how  to  succeed  with  your  wri$ng.  

Time to Write

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Conc

lusi

on

Of  course,  we  are  writers  ourselves.  We  use  all  of  this  stuff  and  even  more  for  our  products.  There  are  plenty  of  helpful  $ps  here,  but  if  a]er  all  this  you’re  s$ll  in  need  of  some  help,  check  out  our  blog  and  let  us  know  what  we  can  do  for  you.  

Or Just Ask Us!