Online Writing Tools

I thought I would take a few moments to share a few of my favourite writing tools online. Here are some links to websites I sometimes use to help me with my writing. Feel free to try them or not, I'm not being paid to suggest them or anything like that, I just thought some might find them helpful. This is by no means a complete listing of my favourite websites, but a glimpse. If you know of a website that might be helpful to writers, please leave a comment and tell us about it.

The Elements of Style, William Strunk Jr. -- THE book for writers, as far as I'm concerned. I reread it about once a year to refresh myself and reference it frequently between readings. I own two copies, both dog-eared, but find this online version also quite handy.

Ask Oxford.com -- There are a lot of fun things here including the word of the day, quotes, and games, but I most often visit this site to look up words in the Oxford English Dictionary, it's faster than thumbing through the pages myself (provided the book can be found under all the papers on my desk.)

One Look Reverse Dictionary -- When the right word is on the tip of my tongue, I know what it means but I just can't spit it out, this Reverse Dictionary comes to my rescue.

Rhymezone -- Exactly what it sounds like and so much more. Here you can search for words that rhyme, synonyms, antonyms, definitions, homophones, pictures, quotations, and more.

Behind the Name (First Names) -- I name my characters like I would children, with a lot of thought and research. Sometimes I browse names until I find one I like, other times I'll have a few names in mind and search to see which meaning behind the name best suits the character.

Behind the Name (Surnames) -- Again, I like my characters' surnames to represent who they are.

And that is just a few websites I use as tools to help me with my writing. If you have any favourites of your own, please tell us about them in the comments.