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Last updated on Feb 07, 2023

The 23 Best Writing Tools of 2024: A Guide for Writers

Before the computer there was the typewriter, and before the typewriter there was pen and paper, and before pen and paper there were plenty of other lost tools of writing — like clay, papyrus, wood, slate, parchment, and, of course, pens made out of reeds. (Fun fact: the name “Reedsy” is inspired by the “reed pen,” which was used as early as 800 B.C. for documentation).

As you can tell by now, the act of writing has been a part of human culture from the days of chiseling stories onto the walls of caves — and as we have evolved, so have our writing tools . In fact, today’s writers and storytellers are spoiled for choice when it comes to deciding which tools to use.

The following list details our favorite writing tools and resources for taking any idea through to its written conclusion. If you want to cut straight to the chase and find out which is the right writing app for you, we recommend taking this quick 30-second quiz.

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Otherwise, let's dive in!

Writing tools

We all know Google Docs and Microsoft Word, so we’re not going to waste your time giving those two a run-down in our list. Below are four other word processors you might not know about, and that are worth checking out.

1. Reedsy Book Editor

Cost: Free Does “fake it ‘til you make it” ring true to you? Well, the Reedsy Book Editor is a free, online word processor that formats your book as you write. See your drafts automatically turn into a professional-looking, ready-to-publish manuscript — and allow this glimpse of your work as the final product spur your motivation to write.

It comes with an automatic spell-checker — and a built-in goal reminder system to get you back into shape if you find that you're falling behind on your writing schedule! Another one of the Reedsy Book Editor’s best functions is that it lets you instantly typeset your manuscript to EPUB and print-ready PDF files.

Check it out if: if you want a writing tool that takes care of formatting and conversion for you.

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Cost: Free Do you like a helpful tap on the shoulder, reminding you about something you need to do? Well, you’ll likely enjoy Draft then, because the book writing software not only keeps track of how many words you write per day, it can also email you daily reminders about your daily word count goals. (Of course, if this sounds a little too “hands-on” for you, you can always turn the reminder function off).

Other than that, Draft functions a lot like Google Docs: allowing you to track changes, collaborate via suggested edits, and make comments on the doc.

Check it out if: you like Google Docs, but want an even simpler interface. 

3. LibreOffice

Cost: Free Yes, we did say that we wouldn’t mention Microsoft Word, because by now everyone knows that it’s a useful writing tool. But we didn’t say we wouldn’t mention its free counterpart: LibreOffice .

LibreOffice is the open source answer for people who want to try Microsoft without paying the price tag. (Open source means that the software is built on code that anyone can inspect and enhance). Plus it’s compatible with all of the regular file types people are used to, such as  .doc, .docx, .xls, .xlsx, .ppt, and .pptx files.

Check it out if: you like a classic word processor — and moreover, a free one.

Cost: $50 (or try a 30-day free trial) The people behind Mellel don’t just know word processing — they also know catchy, memorable marketing. Their description of why writers should choose Mellel starts like this: “Mellel is a writer's dream come true. To start, it is exceedingly boring: it just works, day in and day out, reliably. An enormous number of people used Mellel to write and they all report that their journey with Mellel was boring and uneventful. As well it should. In other words, it does all the mundane bits, and leaves the creative stuff to you.”

Mellel is not free (and note that it’s only for Mac). In return for the price tag, you’ll get more book-specific tools than other, perhaps more traditional word processors — such as outlining and bibliography-making functions. And, judging by the witty, funny copy on Mellel’s website, Mellel makes the process of writing much more fun than they let on.

Check it out if: you’re a Mac user who wants more than the Pages app offers.

Organization tools

Plotters tend to finish their writing projects quicker than pantsers — simply because when they hit a wall, they have their notes or outlines to reference, allowing them to jump straight over that hurdle and hit the ground running. P.S. You can grab a free template for your book outline here in this comprehensive guide to outlining .

The following resources will help you keep your thoughts organized so that any bouts of writer’s block don’t slow you down.

5. Milanote

Cost: Free for basic plan or $12.50/month for premium. Milanote is an easy-to-use creative writing app to organize your research, ideas, characters and outline in one place.

The vast majority of novelist-oriented writing software is organized around the idea of a linear document. But for most people, writing isn’t linear — because thinking isn’t linear. Writing is about gradually getting a jumble of ideas into shape, and Milanote's writing app matches the way writers think.

Check it out if: you're a plotter who likes a flexible workspace to organize ideas and see a birds-eye view of how your story outline is coming together.

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6. Evernote

Cost: free for basic plan or $9.99/month for premium. Its cute, little green elephant logo aside, Evernote is a great and easy-to-use option for writers who could do with a little more organization in their lives.

The app lets you quickly jot down thoughts, record audio notes, save online articles you’re hoping to reference, and it will sync all of this information across all of your Evernote-installed devices. What’s also handy about the app is the collaborative aspect of it: you can create shared accounts, so that multiple people can access saved documents at once.

Check it out if: you’re prone to getting great ideas while on the go, and need somewhere to make sure you don’t forget them by the time you’re home.

Cost: $5/month or $40/year (or try a 14-day free trial) While it’s ultimately a writing tool, one of the best assets of comprehensive programs like Ulysses or Scrivener are their organizational features. At the end of the day, whether you’re writing a blog post or a full-length novel, the seed of an idea doesn’t get too far without the ability to organize that idea into a cohesive piece of writing.

And that’s exactly what Ulysses allows you to do: organize your thoughts into a well-written work. This is accomplished through features like customizable writing goals and deadlines, plain text enhancements, a distraction-free typewriter mode, bookmarks, outlining functions, and more.

Check it out if: you’re working on a lengthy piece of non-fiction, like a blog post or essay. (For a comparison of Scrivener vs. Ulysses, keep reading!)

8. Scrivener

Cost: $45 (or a 30-use free trial) Literature and Latte ’s word processor is a popular writing tool — also, in large part, thanks to its organizational capabilities that seamlessly allow writers to turn fragmented ideas into a fully realized book/script/research paper/or whatever else you’re writing.

Scrivener vs Ulysses Apart from the price (Scrivener charges a one-time licensing fee while Ulysses charges yearly), the two platforms offer many of the same features. So we’ll focus on what makes the two programs different.

• Scrivener’s corkboard function is an absolute favorite for writers who rely on visual aid to help with outlining. The function looks like an actual corkboard, and lets writers pin notes to the board in chronological order.
• Scrivener offers templates for works such as fiction, essays, recipe collections, screenplays, comic books — which gives Scrivener another point for versatility.
• Ulysses boasts an interface that is slightly more clean and simple — so if ease-of-use is high on your priority list, it might be the better option for you.
• Ulysses offers a very helpful WordPress and Medium integration, which bloggers who publish on either of these platforms will love.

Check it out if: you’re working on a longer piece of content (like a book or screenplay) and want one comprehensive place to manage all your work. (And don’t forget to check out our equally as comprehensive review of Scrivener’s newest update : Scrivener 3!)

9. Hubspot's AI Content Writer

Cost: Free, with premium upgrade available

HubSpot’s Free AI Content Writer is designed to help bloggers streamline their content creation process. This tool can generate drafts of blog posts, website copy, emails, and more with ease and without additional resources, by relying on prompts or topics provided by users. For those suffering from writer's block, the AI content writer can also create outlines to help spur writing along. 

For those already using HubSpot's marketing and sales tools, the AI content writer's integration will be extra handy. 

Check it out if: you're a blogger short on time or inspiration.

Productivity tools

Alright, let’s kick things into high gear now. You know what you want to use to write, and your thoughts and ideas are concisely organized. If you’re finding it difficult to buckle down and get the job done (or struggle to write quickly or consistently), these resources will help you realize that Nike manta: just do it.

10. Ommwriter

Cost: free web version or $7 for the full program Do you find the clacking sound of old typewriters satisfying? Do you find soft, neutral colours calming? Does nothing really get you focused quite like a purposeful, long, deep breath? If so, Ommwriter might be the tool to help you reach your goal. As the site’s tagline reads, Ommwriter is “a perfect place to think and write.”

With soothing background noises, customizable keyboard noises, and peaceful backgrounds to choose from, Ommwriter could just be the “break” from everything else going on around you that you need to write.

Check it out if: your very best writing ideas come to you while in “savasana.”

11. To Doist

Cost: free or $4/month for premium plan Have you ever woken up in a cold sweat, panicking about something important you forgot to do? Or, god forbid, gripped in dread about how far behind you are on your word-count goals?

Well, To Doist might be able to help. It’s the ultimate app for creating to-do lists — but these aren’t your grandma’s pen-and-paper lists with little check marks beside them (though we mean no offense to your grandma). It lets you get a daily or weekly overview of your tasks, prioritize the tasks that are most important, and even lets you assign tasks to other people if you’re working on a specific goal with other collaborators.

Check it out if: you have never been able to find an agenda that’s souped up enough to keep you on track.

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12. Marinara Timer

Cost: Free The Pomodoro Technique is a time management method meant to promote productivity. In a nutshell, it stipulates that you should work for 25 minutes, then take a 5-minute  break, then work for 25 minutes, take another 5-minute break, etc., etc.

The free-to-use Marinara Timer makes this easy for you by alerting you each time your work sessions and breaks are up. It also offers customizable timers in case the 25/5 isn’t quite right for keeping you on track. Fun fact: taking a break to stand up or walk (or do anything but sit!) every hour is also a good way to protect your back if you sit hunched at a computer working for long stretches at a time.

Check it out if: consistent breaks from work help actually keep you focused on the task at hand.

13. Cold Turkey

Cost: Free for basic plan or $20 for premium plan “Meet your match, Zuckerberg,” says Cold Turkey ’s tagline. In case that, paired with the writing tool’s name, doesn’t make it clear enough, Cold Turkey is a program that allows you to completely rid yourself of distraction. And when we say “completely,” we mean completely.

With Cold Turkey, you can block yourself from accessing certain websites — or even your entire computer — for periods at a time, only allowing you to use the current document you’re working on.

Check it out if: “willpower” is not a characteristic you’d ascribe yourself, and the only way for you to get something done is in a totally distraction-free state.

14. Freedom

Cost: $7/month or $29/year (or a 7-use free trial) Apart from pleasantly getting the “freedom” refrain from Aretha Franklin’s “Think” stuck in your head, the Freedom app is another resource that can turn your devices into tools of productivity once more.

It functions like Cold Turkey; however, a unique function of Freedom is the ability to sync your distraction-free periods across all your devices. So if you know that on Tuesdays, you want your computer, phone, and tablet to all block access to Twitter, Instagram, and Facebook — you can!

Check it out if: letting other people know not to bother you during your non-negotiable writing time isn’t enough, you need to let yourself know not to interrupt, well, yourself.

Cost: Free If total silence encourages your mind to wander, whereas light sensory action keeps your thoughts on the task at hand, Noisli will be a friend to you. The tool lets you choose from a range of soundtracks, such as rain, coffee shop, wind, lake, and more. You can mix several sounds at once, and choose the volume for each one. So let’s say you want to create the atmosphere of writing by a babbling brook, with a fire crackling next to you, and the moon shining brightly overhead. Noisli will make this happen for you!

Check it out if: you get the most work done with white noise.

Editing tools

If you’re planning to publish a book — or any kind of writing you’re hoping to make a profit from, it’s crucial that your work is thoroughly edited. To that end, working with a professional editor is an investment you should give serious thought to.

In the meantime, here are a few editing tools that can help you out along the way. Hopefully, they’ll either ensure a typo-free draft, so by the time you do work with an editor, they can spend less time fixing small typos and more time on big-picture work, or, if you decide to forego a professional edit, you’ll have the tools to do the best editing job you can.

16. Hemingway

Cost: Free The Hemingway app claims to make your writing “bold and clear.” It has a number of handy features like a word-counter and an automatic readability score. But its real use lies in the features that make suggestions to your prose. For instance, it might highlight a complex sentence that’s hard to read. It also highlights instances of passive voice , qualifiers, and adverbs. Let’s take a look at how this passage from Ernest Hemingway’s very own To Have and Have Not fares:

“Just” is highlighted because it’s a qualifier, and Hemingway suggests, instead: “Be bold. Don’t hedge.” The sentence in red is highlighted as being hard to read. And “probably” is pointed out as an adverb — the app suggests using a forceful verb instead.

Check it out if: you want to bring out your inner Ernie. (Curious what else Hemingway offers? Check out our full review of the app right here .)

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17. Fictionary

Cost: $19/month or $169 per year 

The Fictionary Story Editing software creates intelligent visuals that help you improve your story's structure, characters, plot, and settings. Using Natural Language Processing, Fictionary identifies your key story arc scenes and gives you actionable insights to improve the structure of your book.  Annual subscribers get access to year-round live classes on writing and editing. Think of it like Peloton for writers. Check it out if:  You want to get your story structure in the best possible shape before submitting to agents and/or editors.

18. Marlowe Pro

Cost: $29.95/mth or $199/year; $45 for single reports

This manuscript assessment tool will provide in-depth feedback on your novel within minutes. Using artificial intelligence, Marlowe can analyze your plot, pacing, story beats, and readability — then provide actionable insights (as well as comp titles ) based on its database of bestsellers across a number of genres.

To try out this AI editor, claim a free report by entering REEDSYFREE at checkout. And for a 15% discount on a Marlowe Pro subscription , enter REEDSY15OFF when prompted at checkout.

Check it out: to take a scientific and methodical approach to your developmental edits.

19. Cliché Finder

Cost: Free Cliché Finder is exactly what it says on the tin: it combs through your writing in search of clichés, and then highlights them for you. It’s not always necessarily bad to use clichés in your writing, but when you do, you want to be purposeful about it (and not to mention aware of it!).

Check it out if: you want to avoid clichés like the plague, and for your book to sell like hotcakes — and the rest is history.

20. Grammarly

Cost: Free Have you ever sent an email, only to realize that you'd made a glaring typo just as you hit “Send”? Well, no more!

Grammarly essentially functions like the spell checker tool from Microsoft Word or Google Docs, but here’s the great part: it’s a plug-in that will work wherever you happen to writing. That means Twitter, Gmail, Google Docs, Facebook — anywhere. Plus it offers vocabulary or alternate word suggestions — for instance, it might suggest you replace “walking aimlessly,” with the word “wandering.” For a more in-dept analysis, check our full Grammarly review . 

Check it out if: you’re typo-prone! (Read below for a comparison of Grammarly vs. ProWritingAid.)

21. ProWritingAid

Cost: Free browser extension or $79/year for the full software ProWritingAid is a tool you can install that will proofread and spell check your material for you , no matter where you’re writing. It will also offer suggestions to improve your overall language — outside of just grammatical technicalities. (You can even get 10% off via this special offer !) 

ProWritingAid vs Grammarly The two programs offer a lot of the same services, so you might be wondering which one to pick. We have a review of ProWritingAid  that dives deep into this comparison, but the main differences are:

• Grammarly is free to use, and while ProWritingAid offers a free Google Chrome plug-in, this free option only offers spell checking services, it won’t make editorial suggestions.
• ProWritingAid is slightly more tailored towards authors, while Grammarly is a slightly better fit for articles and essays. Ultimately, both tools lend a very helpful editing hand, so deciding between the two mostly boils down to the one you enjoy using more.

Check it out if: you want to make sure your writing is as polished as possible.

Workspace tools

At the end of the day, all you really need to write is a pen and paper. All the fancy tools and apps in the world won’t get the words out for you. That being said, creating an environment that’s appealing — and conducive! — to write in can make the whole process more enjoyable, and encourage you to get the job done.

Here are few physical tools to look over if you’re thinking of sprucing up your workspace.

22. Livescribe Pen

Cost: starts at $100 If you prefer writing on paper, but dread the process of transferring your words to a computer, Livescribe will likely be right up your alley. Through Bluetooth technology, the pen can actually transcribe your pen and paper words to your device. What’s more, it can also transcribe voice notes into digital documents for you.

Check it out if: you’ve ever felt envy at Rita Skeeter’s Quick-Quotes Quill in Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire .

23. Ergonomic desk setups

Cost: Varies As more and more of the workforce moves to sedentary jobs where the majority of 9am to 5pm is spent sitting — usually hunching — at a computer, a growing number of sitting-related health injuries have been occurring. That’s why looking into more ergonomically friendly desk setups is a good idea for writers who spend long hours at the computer — or even writing in a notebook. This could be a standing desk, or even just a number of textbooks piled under your desktop so that your screen is eye level, resulting in less stress on your shoulders.

Check it out if: you don’t want writing gains to come at the cost of growing back pains.

24. Computer Glasses

Cost: Varies Writers are all familiar with computer-caused eyestrains. Because you blink far less when looking at a screen than you do otherwise, computer vision syndrome (CVS) is a condition people have been developing due to long stretches of staring at a computer.

One way to help alleviate this — other than just making sure to take time looking away from your computer — is to invest in some computer glasses. They typically come in blue or amber shades, and are coated with a protective coating.

There are several brands you can check out, such as Pixel Eyewear or Felix Gray .

Check it out if: you notice itchy or tired eyes after long writing sessions.

Have you tried any of the above writing tools — and if so, which were your favorites? Or maybe you feel there are some great resources missing from this list? Let us know in the comments below!

Mystic says:

24/10/2019 – 03:38

I tried Cliche Finder several times and it found a couple of items in my text, but it didn't highlight where it was at. The rest of the tools here, that I can use since I'm on a strict income, are amazing!

Comments are currently closed.

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Top 24 Writing Tools for Students in 2023 (Unbiased)

Table of contents

As students, we have a lot going on. Back-to-school season means more assignments, research, essays, papers, and reports. Generally, more writing, and writing takes a lot of time. 

But hey - it’s the 21st century. Despite the lack of time, we cannot complain about the lack of tools and apps that help us do everything we need to do - better, faster, and cheaper.

The best AI tool for students in 2023 > The best AI tool for students in 2023 >

The essay writing process

By utilizing the latest writing tools for students, we can greatly improve our processes and grades.

The right tools can help students in various ways:

• They can help you manage your time more efficiently.
• You'll be able to automate tasks such as checking grammar, spelling and punctuation.
• They can improve more advanced aspects of writing essays like language, structure and tone, for better overall readability.

The writing process can be broken down into three main stages: conceptualize, create, and check.

Let's examine each stage, and see how to optimize each one to save us time and get the job done efficiently. 

Stage 1: Conceptualize

First, we must conceptualize what we intend to write about. Are you having trouble getting started on your writing assignment? These tools can help.

Essay Topic Generator

Choosing the right topic and title is crucial to your success. Are you familiar with first impressions? That's what your paper's title and topic do.

Using a free tool like EssayTopicGenerator , which takes in keywords and generates topic ideas in seconds, gave me lots of ideas.

These are just rough ideas or thought starters, as you can see from the screenshot. Take a look at these titles and try to turn them into something. 

I would choose option 23. Aside from being clearly worded, it also gives me a fascinating new angle to study: how capitalism can develop within communist states.

To write a successful paper, you will need a strong position or perspective. For many students, writing a thesis can be a challenge.

By using Wordtune , I was able to turn my thoughts into more carefully considered words and make my final thesis statement as compelling as possible. In addition, I selected the option for it to generate suggestions with a more formal tone, which made them sound more academic.

You could benefit from services such as ThesisStatementWriter if you only have disconnected ideas and need help formulating a basic thesis. 

In academic writing, you need to gather and analyze existing research. This is not only to build your knowledge, but also to ensure your own work adds a unique angle without repeating others. Zotero and ReadCube can be really useful assistants to collect, organize, annotate, cite, and share research easily and quickly; and Pockt and Memonic can help larger teams easily access all the curated and collated research painlessly.

Your arguments will be more persuasive if you use high-quality references. Organizing them smartly is not enough. It's difficult to read, comprehend, connect, write, and build upon several GBs of research documents. How do you do it without missing your deadline?

While speed reading and skimming may help you get through your reference research, they do not guarantee comprehension.  Wordtune Read promises to read and summarize complex research papers, reports, and essays tirelessly.

I pasted a link to a 5,000-word essay into the panel, and within seconds it summarized all the key ideas and concepts. The Spotlight option, on the right side of the screen, highlighted all the keywords that needed my attention. 

Rather than spending weeks reading through mountains of information, I could focus on the real challenge - making a strong argument based on what's already out there. The ability to analyze more papers with Wordtune Read added to my perspective. This made my own research and arguments much stronger than they would have been if I had only read a few.

Stage 2: Create

Putting a mere idea into 2,000 words or more is the heart of the assignment. Smart writing tools can really make a difference here.

All your research and ideas are in place - now it's time to create the frame that will hold your essay. Bubbl.us , MindMeister , Miro, and MindMup are all virtual mind mapping tools that help you brainstorm, get ideas flowing, and build your own outline by connecting logical ideas in the research.

It's not everyone's cup of tea to write, and it's even harder to write well. Your job as a student is to come up with a compelling, evidence-based argument that proves or disproves your thesis. It's time to flesh out the outline. 

Wordtune made my sentences sharper, smarter, and tighter. While I wrote, it was like having my favorite English teacher improving my writing, sentence construction, and rephrasing my thoughts on a one-to-one basis.

Writing for academic purposes is not creative writing. It should be properly organized and argued, usually in the third person, in a formal tone. You should also use the most appropriate vocabulary, especially subject-specific terms and jargon. By using Wordtune, you can improve your tone and style, as well as choose the most appropriate words.

Ludwig is another writing assistant that helps you write better while on the go. With its multiple contextual options, it describes itself as a 'sentence search engine'.

Collaborative assignments are common among students. Google Docs is a helpful tool for writing with a team. Tutors, experts, and even parents can be granted read, comment, or edit access to it, and version control is maintained. 

Similarly, Miro helps larger teams collaborate and brainstorm visually, allowing complex ideas and perspectives to come to life. This is particularly useful for distributed and remote teams, since everyone can work on weekends or even during breaks.

For more complex or advanced assignments, distributed teams may have different roles assigned to them. A student working on a product launch assignment at a business school may assign one member to research, another to design, and another to conduct market research.

Depending on the team, a collaboration tool like Trello can keep the project on track, flagging bottlenecks, delays, and upcoming deadlines as they arise.

Wordtune Read

Once you've written all your words, check the flow. Do all the sections, heads, and subheads follow the right themes? Is it possible to group and consolidate themes that repeat themselves? A friend can give you feedback on whether they understand the gist of your argument by skimming the flow. 

You can check whether all the key points of your argument are covered with a tool like Wordtune Read , which will summarize and highlight key points from your essay (remember we used it to summarize and distill our research material as well?).

If you want to improve the visual side, then tools such as Canva , Book Creator , and Storybird can help you with format and design, visual illustrations, or any specific format and template.

Stage 3: Check

Now that all your thoughts and ideas are on paper, it's time to tidy up. Smart editing tools are more than capable of helping you, and you need an objective third party:

The use of tools like Hemingway editor ensures you won't overlook anything when it comes to editing your content for grammar, punctuation, and spelling errors. In addition, sentences that are too long, too short, too complex, too passive, too repetitive, or just the wrong tone will be highlighted.

With Wordtune , you can flesh out short sentences and fill in content-thin paragraphs, as well as shorten long or complex sentences without losing meaning. Use Wordtune if you get a low readability score - which measures how easy or difficult it is for someone to comprehend your content - to tweak and rephrase your sentences, and improve sentence variety and paragraph transitions.

Bottom line: smart tools enhance the quality of your content, not just speed up the editing process.

• Copy and plagiarism checks: like millions of others, you can quite comfortably trust tools such as Wordtune and Hemingway to ensure there are no spelling, grammar or punctuation errors in your copy. Use Plagscan to ensure you don't inadvertently copy existing material into your essay.
• Citations and biblio : following any writing convention, such as APA, MLA, and Chicago style, and writing bibliographies and citations of your references, will make the rest of your assignment process a breeze. It's easier than ever to source and cite research with apps like BibMe , Citavi , EndNote, and Citethisforme . 

Write essays with confidence, speed and style!

You can find the right task and tool with this handy chart.

As long as you have these tools at your disposal, you will be able to ace this school year.

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10 of the Best Sites for Student Writing

Imagine a world where writing is as easy as a gentle breeze, effortlessly carrying your words across the page. Like a warm embrace from a close friend, the best websites for student writing provide a haven where young minds can unleash their creativity and hone their skills.

Whether you’re a budding poet, a future novelist, or simply someone looking to improve your grammar and style, these virtual sanctuaries have got you covered. There’s been a lot of changes since we first created this list back in 2013 – you’ll want to read on to see how technology has progressed.

Table of Contents

6. read, write, think, 7. hemmingway editor, 8. storiumedu, 9. boomwriter, 10. writereader, frequently asked questions about online writing tools.

In this article, I will introduce you to a collection of online platforms that will transport you to a realm of literary wonder. From interactive story creation tools like Storybird and Story Jumper, to collaborative writing projects on Boomwriter and Storium.edu, there is something for every aspiring writer.

So join me on this literary adventure as we explore the best websites for student writing. Together, we will unlock the power of words and embark on a journey towards self-expression and discovery. Get ready to improve your student’s literacy skills,  unleash their inner wordsmith and embrace the beauty of the written word.

Key Takeaways:

• There are numerous websites available for teaching and learning writing skills, catering to different grade levels and interests.
• These websites offer a range of resources and tools, including writing prompts, interactive activities, free grammar checking to ward off errors, and collaborative writing projects.
• Some websites integrate coding or multimedia elements into writing, while others focus on specific genres like poetry or comic strips.
• Popular websites for student writing include Grammarly , Storybird , Writing A-Z , and Boomwriter , among others.

1. Grammarly For Education

Using Grammarly for Education is like having a personal writing assistant that not only checks for typos and grammar mistakes but also helps students improve their communication skills to become more confident writers. It is a popular website among students and educators, offering a wide range of features to enhance the writing process.

With its advanced AI technology , Grammarly can detect and correct more mistakes than regular word processors, making it an invaluable tool for students looking to improve their writing. One of the key benefits of Grammarly for Education is its ability to provide suggestions for improved word choices. This helps students expand their vocabulary and develop a more sophisticated writing style. Additionally, Grammarly offers a plagiarism checker, ensuring that students are submitting original work and avoiding any potential academic misconduct.

Using Grammarly for Education can also help students develop their editing and proofreading skills . By receiving real-time feedback on their writing, students can learn to identify and correct their own mistakes, ultimately becoming more independent and self-reliant writers.  

With its user-friendly interface and comprehensive features, Grammarly for Education is an essential tool for kids of all ages and skill levels. It not only improves the quality of their writing but also helps them become more confident in expressing their ideas. By utilizing Grammarly for Education, students can take their writing to the next level.

With iWrite, students can unleash their inner creative geniuses and transform into writing prodigies at the click of a button! This incredible website offers a wide range of resources and activities for students in grades 1-8, allowing them to explore different forms of writing and develop their skills in a fun and interactive way.

Here are three reasons why iWrite is a must-visit website for student writers:

– Creative Writing Activities: iWrite provides a plethora of creative writing activities, from story starters to journal prompts, that inspire students to think outside the box and let their imagination run wild. These activities help students develop their storytelling abilities and encourage them to experiment with different writing styles and genres.

– Illustration Tools: iWrite also offers illustration tools that allow students to bring their stories to life. With the ability to create their own illustrations or choose from a library of images, students can enhance their storytelling by adding visual elements to their work. This feature not only engages students but also helps them develop their visual literacy skills.

– Interactive Feedback: One of the unique features of iWrite is its interactive feedback system. Students can submit their writing assignments and receive personalized feedback from teachers or peers. This feedback helps students improve their writing skills and provides them with valuable insights into their strengths and areas for growth.

3.  Magnetic Poetry

Immerse yourself in the world of magnetic poetry and let your creativity flow as you arrange words on the screen, creating captivating and heartfelt poems that will stir your soul.

Ideal for both introducing younger kids to poetry and engaging older students with the genre in a fun and creative way, this simple site is a digital form of the popular fridge poetry fridge phenomenon. Students are given a blank white screen and a group of ‘magnetic’ words to position how they choose, taking the pressure out of creating poetry and making it a fun and creative experience. New words can be added at any time if students get stuck, and the final result can be saved and shared with other students or parents.

Magnetic Poetry is a fantastic tool for students of all ages to explore the beauty of language and express their thoughts and emotions through poetry. Whether you want to write a love poem, a haiku, or a thought-provoking piece, this website provides an interactive and visually appealing platform to do so.

By playing with words and experimenting with different combinations, Magnetic Poetry encourages creativity and helps students develop a deeper understanding of language and its nuances. It also fosters a sense of belonging as you become part of a community of poets who share their creations and provide feedback to one another.

4.  NaNoWriMo Young Writers Program

The NaNoWriMo Young Writers Program offers an exciting opportunity for aspiring writers to participate in novel writing challenges and receive support from a community of fellow writers and educators.

NaNoWriMo, which stands for National Novel Writing Month, takes place every November and encourages students to write a complete novel of at least 50,000 words in just one month. The program provides resources, inspiration, and a supportive online community to help young writers achieve their writing goals.

Participants in the free NaNoWriMo Young Writers Program can track their progress, set personal word count goals, and connect with other writers through the program’s website. They can also access resources and writing prompts to help them stay motivated and overcome writer’s block.

Students can join virtual write-ins and participate in forums to share their experiences and receive feedback from their peers and mentors. In addition, the program offers classroom resources for educators to incorporate novel writing challenges into their curriculum.

By participating in the NaNoWriMo Young Writers Program, students not only have the opportunity to develop their writing skills, but also to become part of a supportive writing community. This sense of belonging can greatly enhance their confidence and motivation as writers.

So, if you’re looking to take your writing to the next level and join a community of passionate writers, the NaNoWriMo Young Writers Program is definitely worth exploring.

Explore PicLits, a captivating e-learning platform that combines stunning photography and creative keywords to ignite your writing skills and transport you to imaginative worlds.

With PicLits, you can enhance your writing abilities in a fun and interactive way. Here are three reasons why PicLits is a must-try website for student writers:

1. Engaging Visuals: PicLits provides a vast collection of captivating photographs that serve as inspiration for your writing. These visuals not only stimulate your creativity but also help you develop descriptive writing skills by prompting you to imagine and describe the scene.

2. Creative Keywords: Alongside the photographs, PicLits offers a selection of keywords that you can incorporate into your writing. These words act as writing prompts, guiding your thoughts and encouraging you to think outside the box. By using these keywords effectively, you can enhance the depth and richness of your writing.

3. Interactive Learning: PicLits is designed to be an interactive and collaborative platform. You can share your creations with others, receive feedback, and even participate in writing challenges. This fosters a sense of community and belonging, which can be motivating and inspiring for student writers.

Get ready to dive into the world of Read, Write, Think, an online resource that will take your writing skills to new heights!

Read, Write, Think is a high-quality education website that offers a wide range of interactive tools and resources for K-12 students. Whether you’re looking for writing prompts, interactive activities, or lesson plans, Read, Write, Think has got you covered.

One of the great things about Read, Write, Think is that it provides standards-based lesson plans that have been written and reviewed by educators. This means that you can trust the quality of the content and know that it aligns with your curriculum. The website also offers an app, so you can access the resources on the go.

Read, Write, Think is not just limited to writing. It also helps students plan essays or dissertations, providing them with a step-by-step guide to ensure they produce high-quality work. The website is user-friendly and easy to navigate, making it a valuable tool for both teachers and students.

Let’s dive into the powerful world of Hemingway Editor and discover how it can revolutionize your writing with its insightful feedback and style enhancements.

Hemingway Editor is an online tool that helps you improve your writing by highlighting errors and suggesting improvements. Here are two key features that make Hemingway Editor a must-have for any student writer:

– Clear and concise writing: Hemingway Editor helps you identify and eliminate unnecessary words, complex sentences, and passive voice constructions. By simplifying your writing, you can communicate your ideas more effectively and engage your readers.

– Readability and style enhancements: This tool analyzes the readability of your writing and provides suggestions to make it more accessible to your audience. It highlights long and hard-to-read sentences, excessive adverbs, and complicated language. By improving the clarity and style of your writing, you can create a more enjoyable reading experience.

Using Hemingway Editor can greatly enhance your writing skills and make your work more professional. It is a valuable resource for students who want to improve their writing and create compelling pieces.

Immerse yourself in the world of Storium.edu, an innovative collaborative writing game that will ignite your creativity and turn storytelling into an exhilarating adventure. Storium.edu is a unique platform that uses digital story cards as prompts to inspire and guide your writing.

Whether you’re a student or a teacher, Storium.edu offers a fun and engaging way to develop your writing skills and create captivating stories. The game works by presenting you with a set of story cards, each containing a different element or prompt. You can choose a card that appeals to you and start developing your story based on that prompt.

As you progress, you can invite other players to join your story and collaborate with them to create a cohesive narrative. This collaborative aspect not only allows you to learn from others but also fosters a sense of belonging and community.

Storium.edu encourages creativity, critical thinking, and problem-solving skills as you navigate through different story arcs and challenges. The platform provides a safe and supportive environment for writers of all levels to explore their imagination and develop their storytelling abilities.

Boomwriter, a dynamic web-based publishing platform, offers a range of collaborative writing projects that will inspire your creativity and propel your storytelling skills to new heights.

With Boomwriter, you can embark on three different types of writing projects: StoryWriter, WordWriter, and ProjectWriter.

Under StoryWriter, you have the opportunity to co-author your own book. This project allows you to collaborate with your classmates in creating a captivating story. Each participant takes turns writing a chapter, building upon the previous contributions. It’s a great way to experience the joy of storytelling while honing your writing skills.

The WordWriter project, on the other hand, focuses on the power of vocabulary. You are given a story starter, and your task is to continue the narrative by incorporating engaging and descriptive words. This project encourages you to expand your vocabulary and make your writing more vivid and compelling.

Lastly, the ProjectWriter project allows you to work on various types of writing, such as poetry, plays, and even non-fiction pieces. You can choose from a selection of prompts and create your own unique piece of writing. This project allows you to explore different genres and experiment with different writing styles.

Boomwriter provides an interactive and collaborative environment for students to develop their writing skills. It’s a platform that fosters creativity, teamwork, and a love for writing. So why not give it a try and see how Boomwriter can take your writing to the next level?

I am thrilled to have discovered WriteReader, a web-based literacy platform that has completely transformed many classrooms. Founded in 2012 by Janus Madsen, Babar Baig, and Ulrik Jensen, WriteReader offers an array of incredible features that have revolutionized the way teacher manage classrooms and facilitate remote learning.

One of the standout aspects of WriteReader is its quick classroom management capabilities. With just a few clicks, one can easily monitor students’ progress, provide feedback, and track their growth. This has saved me a tremendous amount of time and allowed me to focus more on individualized instruction.

In addition to its classroom management capabilities, WriteReader also excels in providing remote learning opportunities. Especially in today’s digital age, this feature has been an absolute game-changer. It has allowed me to seamlessly transition to online instruction and ensure that my students are still receiving a high-quality education, regardless of their physical location.

What truly sets WriteReader apart is its multimodal book creation platform. This feature empowers my students to become authors while simultaneously practicing various language skills. It has been incredible to witness their creativity and confidence soar as they craft their own stories. Furthermore, the platform aligns perfectly with the Science of Reading practices, making it an invaluable tool for evidence-based reading and writing instruction.

I am also grateful for the support that WriteReader provides. The platform offers templates that make it easy for me to create and share books with my students. Additionally, their customer service team is always available to assist me via phone and email, ensuring that I have the support I need to make the most of this incredible platform.

It’s worth mentioning that WriteReader has received numerous accolades and partnerships that further highlight its success and innovation. From partnering with Egmont, one of Scandinavia’s largest publishing houses, to being selected for Intel’s EdTech Accelerator Program, WriteReader has truly made a name for itself in the education industry.

How does Grammarly for Education differ from other writing aids?

Grammarly for Education differs from other writing aids by offering more comprehensive grammar and spelling checks. In fact, it corrects more mistakes than word processors. Additionally, it provides improved word choices, making it an invaluable tool for students looking to enhance their writing skills.

What are the specific features and benefits of the iWrite website?

The iWrite website offers a range of resources for teaching and exploring different forms of writing. It provides free online creative writing and illustration activities for grades 1-8, making it a valuable tool for students looking to improve their writing skills.

What is unique about the Magnetic Poetry website and how does it engage students with poetry?

The Magnetic Poetry website engages students with poetry by allowing them to position magnetic words on the screen, creating their own poems. The poems can be saved and shared, encouraging creativity and collaboration in a digital format.

How does the NaNoWriMo Young Writers Program support young writers and educators in novel writing challenges?

The NaNoWriMo Young Writers Program supports young writers and educators in novel writing challenges by providing resources, guidance, and a supportive community. It encourages students to set goals, write daily, and complete a novel in a month.

What are your favourite online tools for student writing? Let us know below!

Laura is a writer and recent Cambridge graduate with particular experience in the area of education technology. She has worked with a variety of different education companies and is active in the 'edtech' community on Twitter, so she prides herself on always being in touch with the latest developments and exciting new tools in e-learning.

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Free tools to make your students better writers and readers .

Quill.org, a non-profit, provides free literacy activities that build reading comprehension, writing, and language skills for elementary, middle, and high school students.

Writing Across the Curriculum: Quill's nonprofit mission is to now build both reading and writing skills through free, OER content across the curriculum. Over the coming years, we will be building a library of free ELA, social studies, and science activities that engage students in deeper thinking through writing prompts that provide immediate feedback.

9 million students have written 2 billion sentences on Quill.

Quill Reading for Evidence

Provide your students with nonfiction texts paired with AI-powered writing prompts, instead of multiple-choice questions, to enable deeper thinking.

Students read a nonfiction text and build their comprehension through writing prompts, supporting a series of claims with evidence sourced from the text. Quill challenges students to write responses that are precise, logical, and based on textual evidence, with Quill coaching the student through custom, targeted feedback on each revision so that students strengthen their reading comprehension and hone their writing skills.

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Social Studies Topics

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Quill Connect

Help your students advance from fragmented and run-on sentences to complex and well structured ones.

Using the evidence-based strategy of sentence combining, students combine multiple ideas into a single sentence. They then receive instant feedback designed to help them improve their clarity and precision.

Quill Lessons

The Quill Lessons tool enables teachers to lead whole-class and small-group writing instruction.

Teachers control interactive slides that contain writing prompts, and the entire class responds to each prompt. Each Quill Lessons activity provides a lesson plan, writing prompts, discussion topics, and a follow up independent practice activity.

Quill Diagnostic

Quickly determine which skills your students need to work on with our diagnostics.

The diagnostics cover vital sentence construction skills and generate personalized learning plans based on the student’s performance.

Quill Proofreader

Proofreader teaches your students editing skills by having them proofread passages.

Students edit passages and receive personalized exercises based on their results. With over 100 expository passages, Proofreader gives students the practice they need to spot common grammatical errors.

Quill Grammar

Students practice basic grammar skills, from comma placement to parallel structure.

Quill Grammar has over 150 sentence writing activities to help your students. Our activities are designed to be completed in 10 minutes so you have the freedom to use them in the way that works best for your classroom.

How Quill Works

Set up your classroom, without it.

You can quickly and easily set up your classroom in Quill by inputting student names or providing students with a unique code. If you use Google Classroom or Clever, you can automatically set up your classroom with one click.

Choose activities

Decide if you want your students to proofread passages, combine sentences, or complete a diagnostic. Use our ten minute activities as building blocks during your classroom instruction.

Use easy-to-consume reporting

Use our reporting to spot trends and identify growth opportunities. Monitor comprehension on specific writing standards.

Get immediate feedback for your students

Save time grading and watch your students correct their mistakes instantly.

Intervene where students struggle

See exactly where your students need intervention with our comprehensive reports.

Differentiate learning to meet the needs of all students

Assign specific activities for ELLs and students with learning differences.

Engage students with adaptive activities

Challenge students with questions that automatically adapt based on their previous responses.

Align with the Common Core Standards

Easily meet Common Core language standards with our aligned activities.

Easily sign up with Google Classroom

With one click all of your students and classes will be imported.

Over 100 concepts totaling 50 hours of quality curriculum.

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Join over 2,000 schools using Quill to advance student writing.

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191 Best Writing Tools And Resources Every Student Needs

Have you ever struggled with your writing assignments? Essays, reports, term papers… There are so many various types of academic writing.

Now it’s time to throw out all those struggles because we’ve picked 198 writing tools and resources that will help you to enhance your studies.

Check them out now!

Academic Papers: Feel the Difference

• Choose Your Topic
• Research Your Topic
• Boost Your Creativity
• Ace Your Writing
• Check Grammar and Punctuation
• Say No to Plagiarism

Bonus: 29 Must-Have Apps for Every Student

What’s the difference between an essay and a research paper, a term paper and a critical academic paper?

Each type of academic assignment has a specific purpose and helps students develop their analytical and writing skills in unique ways.

Knowing the various types of academic writing is essential because each university and college has its own specific standards for assignments.

With the help of this chapter, you will understand the difference between the basic types of academic writing.

Let’s start our short overview:

The purpose of the essay as an academic paper is to defend an argument, state a personal opinion, or answer questions on a topic by providing supporting evidence.

Essays are the most popular type of academic writing. Depending on the purpose, there are many different types of essays: descriptive, critical, admission, personal, comparison, cause and effect, and so on.

Typically, an essay will be around one page in length or between 1,500 and 6,000 words.

Check out these resources to get a better understanding of which elements to use in your next essay:

• Essay Basics | SUNY Empire State College
• Basic Essay Format | Utah Valley University
• How To Write an Essay |Thought.Co
• The Basics of Effective Essay Writing | Education Corner

Research paper

A research paper is another type of academic writing. It is based on the author’s original research on a specific issue, as well as an analysis and interpretation of the research findings.

A research paper should start with the author’s interests, including the questions and subjects that the author finds important:

• Research Paper Basic Guidelines | Iowa State University
• Ten steps for writing research papers | American University
• Make your online research more effective [8 super hacks] | IvyPanda

Reaction or response paper

Sometime during your studies, you will surely be asked to write a response or reaction paper. These types of assignments are just what they sound like. You have to write down your thoughts and feelings related to an assigned text or film.

Review the following guidelines to use when reacting to text or film content:

• Writing Summary, Analysis, Response Papers | Owlcation
• Writing a Response or Reaction Paper | Hunter College
• 10 tips for writing a good reaction paper | Honest College
• Response Paper | Duke University

This type of academic assignment is written once a semester or term. Why do students need to write term papers?

The bottom line is…

By writing a research term paper, you’ll deepen your knowledge base of the course content, increase your proficiency level in that subject area, and sharpen your analytical, research, and writing skills:

• Term paper guidelines | College Of Social & Behavioral Science – The University of Utah
• Guideline for writing a term paper | Universität Freiburg
• Essays and Term Papers | College of Earth and Mineral Sciences PSU
• Term Papers Online: 99+ Sites for Your FREE Paper | IvyPanda

Book or movie review

During your career as a student, you may be assigned a book or movie review. A typical book review contains three essential parts:

• A short summary of the book
• Your critical assessment of the content
• A conclusion about the meaning or significance of the author’s argument

Typically, the length of a movie or book review is about 750 – 1,000 words.

• Writing Academic Book Reviews | USCLibraries
• Book Review Guidelines | Armstrong State University
• Book Reviews | GoodReads
• Movies and TV shows database | IMDB

Synthesis essay

When you’re instructed to write a synthesis essay, you should focus on comparison and contrast, division and classification. Synthesis essays can be both informational and persuasive. The main difference is in how you present your ideas and arguments.

Want more information? Just check out these guidelines:

• Help…I’ve Been Asked to Synthesize! | Bowling Green State University
• Synthesis Introduction |Lumen Learning

Annotated bibliography

An annotated bibliography is a list of sources that includes short evaluations and descriptions of each source. Don’t forget to choose the right formatting style!

• Basics of Annotated Bibliographies | Walden University
• Information Literacy 101 – The Basics of Using the Salmon Library |  The University of Alabama in Huntsville
• Bibliography and Annotated Bibliography | Eastern Institute of Technology
• How to Prepare an Annotated Bibliography: The Annotated Bibliography | Cornell University

Writing a Paper: Choose Your Topic

Choosing the right topic accounts for almost 50% of any assignment’s success. Nevertheless, selecting a subject can be a difficult task, even for an experienced researcher.

You may ask…

What should I do?

Here are three simple steps for finding good writing ideas:

• Within the content of the course, pick something that appeals to you.
• Analyze the chosen topic. Is it too broad? Don’t try to embrace a topic that’s too large.
• Check whether there are enough resources for your research topic.

This all may seem easy to say. But there are a few common mistakes you should avoid when choosing good research topics:

• Don’t select a tedious subject just because it seems simple to write about. When you’re bored with the issue you’ve chosen, you’re more likely to compose a dull, colorless assignment.
• Don’t choose too original of a topic. You may not find enough sources for your research.
• Don’t hesitate to ask your professor for advice on what subject to write about.

Here are more useful resources on choosing research topic ideas for your next writing assessment:

• Choosing and Narrowing a Topic to Write About (for Research Papers) | Sophia
• Choosing Research Paper Topics: Reading for Information | Write.com
• Organizing Your Social Sciences Research Paper: Choosing a Title | USC Libraries

If you still have no idea where to start, try the tools below:

• Essay Topic Generator
• IvyPanda Essay Idea Generator
• Ashford Thesis Generator
• Random Topic Generator

Writing a Paper: Research Your Topic

Well, you’ve picked your essay topic. What’s next?

Time to do some research.

First of all, don’t leave your assignment until the last minute, because you may need more time than you expected.

The second step to successful research is to understand your research question thoroughly. If you skip this essential step, you may end up taking the wrong direction with your research.

Third, clarify what you already know about the topic and identify any informational gaps. Doing this will help you narrow the research you need to do.

Fourth, while doing your research, don’t forget to take notes as you go along. Write only fragments that can help you answer the essay question. Research a range of perspectives on the chosen problem.

Here are some guides on how to gather the information for your paper:

• Strategies for Gathering Reliable Information | University of Minnesota
• 6 Tips to Finding Research Paper Sources that Set You Apart | StudyRight

Moreover, we believe that you’ll want to use the tools listed below:

• Google Scholar
• ERIC (Education Resources Information Center)
• Microsoft Academic
• Wolfram Alpha
• iSEEK Education
• ResearchGate
• Hyper Articles en Ligne (HAL)
• MyScienceWork
• LazyScholar

Writing a Paper: Boost Your Creativity

First and foremost, what you need to do is overcome your writer’s block. Have you ever felt like you just couldn’t write even a single sentence?

Most writers share a fear of the blank page.

Think about the concept behind the assignment. You may want to begin with a brainstorming session. Take a look again at the notes you took while doing research. Check out some essay samples . Use a mind map to generate writing ideas and plan your future essay:

• 10 Ways to Use a Mind Map | SmartDraw
• 10 Longtime Brainstorming Techniques that Still Work | Inc.
• The Complete Guide on How to Mind Map for Beginners | IQMatrix
• Effective Brainstorming Techniques | Medium

You may also want to use these free writing tools for brainstorming:

• SpiderScribe
• Mind Maps | GoConqr
• WiseMapping
• Imagination Prompt Generator

Do you want even more creative writing tips? Just look through these guides and strategies:

• 13 Ways to Make Your Writing More Interesting to Read | Oxford Royale Academy
• 10 Tips on How to Write Without Distractions | WriteToDone
• Time Management: The Essay Writing | College Essay Advisors

Writing a Paper: Make a Draft

So, you’ve chosen your essay topic, created your mind map, and done thorough research.

What’s your next step?

Time to write the first draft.

Compose a draft assignment

Let’s take a closer look at the drafting process. A draft is simply a rough sketch of your writing assignment. Try to write it as fast as possible. This can prevent you from losing interest.

Here are some useful guides on writing your first draft:

• Creating a Rough Draft for a Research Paper | University of Minnesota
• Dos and don’ts of writing the first draft of your science paper | Elsevier
• Putting pen to paper: How to write a rough draft | Inklyo
• Essay Writing Basics: The Fast First Draft | My College Advice

You may ask: Are there any free writing tools to help with drafting?

Sure! Check out these apps:

• Write 2 Lite

While writing your draft, be sure to structure it!

Start with an outline

Make a list of 3 – 5 crucial essay points. Put them in a logical order. Then write 3 – 5 subpoints below each point. These subpoints should support the logic of the main point:

• Writer’s Web: Creating Outlines | University of Richmond
• Prewriting and Outlining | University of Maryland

If you wish to automate the outlining process, the tools below will come in handy:

• BubbleUp Essay Outline Generator
• Essay Generator
• Online Outliner
• Thesis Statement Generator

Your professor may ask you to include a summary of your assignment, or an abstract, with your research paper. An abstract is usually one paragraph of 300 words or less that introduces:

• The purpose of your research and the issues you investigated
• The basic structure of the essay
• Significant trends or findings from your research
• A summary of your conclusions

Here are few useful guides on how to write an abstract:

• How To Write A Great Essay Abstract With 4 Simple Questions | NaijaWritersCoach
• How to Write an APA Abstract | Verywell mind
• How to write a scientific abstract in six easy steps | Serendipity

Do you need an online summarizer? Pick it up from the list below:

• Automatic Text Summarizer
• Summary Generator
• Tools4Noobs Summarizer
• SummarizeThis

Introduction

Consider the introduction to be a plan that must answer the following questions:

• What was my research about?
• Why did I choose to investigate this topic?
• What did we already know about this issue before I conducted my research?
• How will my research boost new points of view or new knowledge?

For more advice, check out these academic writing sources:

• How to Write an Introduction | Explorable
• 10 tips for writing an effective introduction to original research papers | ThinkScience
• How to Write an Effective Introduction for a College Research Paper | Pen and The Pad

Writing the body for an essay is often one of the most complicated parts of the assignment.

What should you do?

First of all, look back at your outline. You may use it as a guide. When writing the body of your essay, you should not only expand your opening statement but also dive into the research methods you used and give answers to the questions you examined.

Look through the guides below to ace your essay body writing:

• How to write a good paragraph | TU Eindhoven
• The Secrets to Good Paragraph Writing | Time4Writing
• Strong Body Paragraphs | University of Washington
• ICE: Introduce, Cite, and Explain Your Evidence | Penn State Abington

Now you’ve come to the last (but not the easiest) part of your assignment.

When writing an essay conclusion, you should not merely summarize the main topics covered, but also synthesize the key findings of your research and recommend new ideas for future investigation of selected issues:

• Essay Conclusions | UMUC
• Introductions and Conclusions | University of Toronto

Do you want more tips and hints on academic writing?

Just keep reading!

Try to avoid passive voice

Using the passive voice makes your academic writing assignment sound indefinite and less direct. This may cause the paper to lose the reader’s attention.

There are a few situations where the passive voice in writing may be appropriate:

• Using the active and passive voice in research writing | Editage
• When To Use The Active Voice | College of Earth and Mineral Sciences PSU

If you decide to wipe out the passive voice from your writing, use one of the tools below:

• Analyze My Writing
• Passive Voice Detector
• “To Be” Verbs Analyzer
• Passive Voice Checker
• Expresso App

Eliminate clichés

Clichés are a part of our daily life—that’s why they’re clichés! But when you are writing an academic assignment, you’d better avoid using them.

It’s simple. Clichés can irritate people and make you seem like a lazy writer who lacks careful thought. So it’s better for you to learn how to avoid writing cliches:

• What is cliché? Cliché examples (and how to avoid) | Now Novel
• 5 College Essay Clichés You Should Avoid | Stanford University

If you want to quickly find a cliché in your writing, check these services:

• Cliche Finder
• Cliche Finder – S. Morgan Friedman’s
• Cliché Finder | Writerly Words
• Pro Cliche Finder

Use metaphors and similes correctly

Similes and metaphors are similar, but they’re not the same figures of speech.

Metaphors equate things for a descriptive purpose, while similes compare something to something else using the words like and as.

Browse through these guides to learn how to improve writing using good similes and metaphors:

• How to Use Effective Metaphors in an Essay | BookRags
• Using Metaphors When Writing A College Essay | CollegeLax
• 100 Metaphor Examples | EreadingWorksheets
• How to Spice Up Your Writing With Similes and Metaphors | HobbyLark

Keep sentences short

Using sentences that are too long in academic papers may decrease the quality of your writing. The logical flow will be disrupted.

At the same time, however, using too short sentences might sound like you can’t link words correctly or have a poor language level.

Learn more about sentence length here:

• Editing Tip: Sentence Length | AJE
• Sentence Length | GrammarGirl

Good news! You don’t need to count each word in your writing. Just use the tools from our list below:

• Word Count Tool
• Count Wordsworth
• WordCounter
• Word Counter

Write clearly

To write precisely, you should cut out unnecessary words and create strong mental pictures.

Discover how to write concisely and clearly:

• 8 Steps to More Concise Writing | Daily Writing Tips
• Writing Concisely | UNC Writing Center
• Writing clearly and concisely | The University of Arizona

Avoid overused words

In academic writing, it’s crucial to avoid overly vague, exaggerated, informal, subjective, generally incorrect, and unnecessary words and phrases.

Below are some lists of words that you should cut out from your essay:

• 18 Overused Words to Replace When Writing | Oxford Tutoring
• Overused and Tired Words | ThoughtCo
• 44 Overused Words & Phrases To Be Aware Of (Infographic) | GrammarCheck

You can use web apps below to replace overused words in your essay:

• PowerThesaurus
• ProWritingAid

Use abbreviations properly

Abbreviations are shortened words or phrases, and they come in many forms: initials and acronyms, Latin abbreviations, titles, measurements, dates, and so on.

These guides will help you figure out how and when you should use them in your assignment:

• Grammar: Abbreviations and Acronyms | GCFLearnFree
• When is it appropriate to use abbreviations? | APA Style

Writing a Paper: Check Grammar and Punctuation

When you have a lot of classes to attend, tests to prepare for, and papers to write, it’s no wonder that foolish grammar mistakes can easily slip into your assignment.

When using grammar checkers, you should keep in mind these simple tips and hints:

• Most grammar checkers are useful for finding subject/verb issues and reducing the passive voice but are extremely poor at recognizing the proper use of articles.
• Use a grammar checker to detect your typing errors, such as an unintentionally repeated word, an unnecessary space before a comma, a sentence with no end punctuation, etc.
• Don’t eliminate a manual check of your assignment. You can ask your friend to conduct a grammar check of your essay or ask IvyPanda’s Academic Experts for proofreading.

You may also want to try these free grammar tools for writing:

• SpellCheckPlus
• GrammarCheckForSentence
• Ginger Grammar Checker
• GrammarLookup
• Punctuation Check
• Hemingway Editor
• Sentence Checker
• After the Deadline
• LanguageTool
• Virtual Writing Tutor

Writing a Paper: Say No to Plagiarism

And the last but not the least thing that scares most students is the risk of being involved with plagiarism.

How can you avoid this?

Try these simple ways:

• Paraphrase original texts using your own words.
• Put quotes into your paper.
• Summarize the original document or book.

Bottom line?

Don’t forget that any borrowed material must have a proper citation. Be sure that you present any relevant features of other authors’ publications in your own words.

In terms of which citations styles to use, it usually depends on the discipline involved. For example:

• Modern Language Association (MLA) style is usually used in the Humanities.
• Chicago style citation should be used when writing Fine Arts, History, or Business assignments.
• American Psychological Association (APA) style is applicable for Sciences, Psychology, and Education academic writing.

For properly cited sources, use these bibliography citation makers:

• Citation Generator
• Citation Builder | NC State University
• KnightCite | Calvin College
• Citation Machine™
• CiteThisForMe

Plagiarism is a quite critical ethical offense for a student. It is recognized as a violation of academic honesty principles. Because it’s so important, you should never forget to check your assignment for any uncited borrowings.

There are a lot of paid and free writing software that will check your assignment for plagiarism.

We are sure that you may want to try one of these online tools for students:

• DupliChecker
• Plagiarisma
• PlagiarismChecker
• PlagTracker

Do you want more online writing tools for students?

We’ve gathered a few of the best writing apps and tools that will come in handy for you and your friends:

• WorkFlowy . Shape your thoughts by creating structured plans and outlines for your academic assignments.
• CheckVist . This is another excellent tool for creating and sharing plans, checklists, and outlines.
• Etherpad . You can use this online writing editor to collaborate with your mates.
• EverNote . This is a great tool that every student needs. Take your notes and organize your daily schedule on any device.
• Google Docs. Google Docs is perhaps one of the most well-known online writing editors, allowing you to create, edit, and collaborate with others on documents.
• PDF Pro . Edit PDF files for free. The tool allows you to convert Word, Excel, PowerPoint to PDF, add text and images, etc.
• Dropbox. Use this app to store your files in one place, sync them across all devices, and share them with your friends.
• Animoto. Make exciting video presentations for your assignments.
• Piktochart. Imagine that you could create presentations in three simple steps. Use ready-made designs or produce your own. You can also use this tool to share your slides or infographic with your classmates.
• Canva . Perhaps, you’ve already heard about this app for graphics. Use it to create presentations, diagrams, or even posts for your social media!
• Tinkercad . This free online app would be helpful for everyone who would like to create 3D designs but doesn’t want to pay hundreds of dollars for professional software. Use it for your projects or even for 3D printing.
• Skitch . The service allows you to get your point across using annotations, sketches, and shapes. You can use it to save your sources of inspiration too.
• Pocket . Use the tool to organize your college reading list.
• Thesis Creator . Create your assignment’s main statement with just five clicks.
• Summarizer . Use this tool to create summaries, abstracts, and statements.
• Quillbot . This online application will help you to paraphrase your sentences.
• De-Jargonizer . Wipe out the jargon from your writing with this easy-to-use online service.
• OneLook Reverse Dictionary and Thesaurus . This is not a typical thesaurus software. You may type a phrase or even a sentence and get multiple suggestions.
• Merriam-Webster . The online version of the famous dictionary would help you t find the exact meaning of the word, synonyms, and antonyms.
• MacMillan Dictionary . Another great online dictionary to boost your writing.
• Todoist . How many times have you missed important deadlines? This tool will help you keep organized and manage your time.
• MyHomeWorkApp . Track your assignments and classes with this free application. The service is available on all popular platforms.
• ResqueTime . This app tracks the time you spend on various websites and tools and provides you with an accurate picture of your day. Use it to analyze and eliminate distractions.
• TomatoTimer . Try this free online service to stop procrastination using the Pomodoro technique. Set the timer for 25 minutes and take care of your writing without being distracted by other tasks.
• Cold Turkey . A multi-system app that will help you to get rid of distracting websites, track the time and applications, and provide advice on your schedule.
• ScanBot . You don’t need to buy a scanner anymore to scan your notes. The ScanBot is a free app for your smartphone that scans documents and uploads it to popular services like iCloud, Dropbox, etc.
• The Student Room . Perhaps, you might want to join this student community to discuss colleges, student jobs, exams, and get a piece of advice on your assignments.
• Quora . Here you can find a lot of answers and get advice from people all over the world.
• Mavis Beacon . If you need a tool to improve your keyboarding skills, check this link. A simple but effective software will help you to make your typing faster and more efficient.

Academic writing can be a complicated task for any student. But using the best writing apps and resources will definitely reduce your stress.

Do you have any favorite writing tools or resources that you use for your assignments? Share them with us in the comments below!

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Awesome list thanks. As an academic, I also use Writefull. It’s like Grammarly but specifically designed for academic writing!

Thank you for the feedback!

Thanks you! thank you!! thank you!!!

Thanks for stopping by!

My friend has an interesting story of meeting a guy. She worked as a salesman in a store, a guy came and asked her to give me a piglet. The friend began to laugh very loudly and wave her arms in fits of laughter. She waved so that she simultaneously demolished the stand with gum and broke 2 fingers on her hand. The guy took her to the hospital, there they started talking, so much so that she is already a child and 4 years of marriage.

Searching for forward to reading far more from you afterwards!

We look forward to seeing you again. Thanks for stopping by!

When I’m writing, I tend to repeat myself. Hemingway doesn’t tag this kind of repetition. If anybody else has this problem, INK suggests that I change my sentences if they sound too much alike.

As a writer, I frequently scour the internet for helpful tips, clarifications, and editing assistance. Ms. McQuarrie’s article on writing tips for students covers a wide spectrum of topics and contains an extensive list of resources that are invaluable. I have bookmarked several to use myself.

Thank you for your kind words, Joan! I’m glad you enjoyed the article.

Thanks for sharing a great and lovely article. I hope you will share more articles for everyone here.

11 Fantastic Online Writing Tools for Free in 2022

by Suzanne Davis | Feb 10, 2022 | Writing Resources , Writing Technology

“ Suzanne, I have the perfect online writing tool for you.”

I receive many emails from people telling me about an excellent new app, tool, or website for writers or students. And since I tutor academic writing online, I try all kinds of writing tools and resources to see how they work, and experiment.  My goal? Find things that make the academic writing process easier and improve the quality of an essay, paper, or another project.

Only a small number of resources and websites are my go-to choices because I’m looking for online writing tools that make your writing life simpler. I don’t want to recommend online tools that are challenging to manage and require a lot of training to use. The writing process  doesn’t need to be harder. 

Today, I’m sharing my top 11  online writing tools for free that will help you achieve your writing goals.

Let’s look at how they can help you.

11 Online Writing Tools for Free in 2022

Online Tools for the Writing Process

#1 jamboard for prewriting.

Jamboard https://jamboard.google.com/    Jamboard is a Google Extension you can use to help you develop and plan out your writing ideas. It is perfect for prewriting because you can brainstorm and organize ideas using “sticky notes.” There are 2 ways I use Jamboard for writing. 

The first way is to come up with writing ideas.  To do this, start with an open-ended question like: What can I write?   Type every idea you have on an electronic sticky note.  You can change the color and size of the sticky notes and move them around in any order.  Here’s an example of a Jamboard with my ideas for writing a personal narrative. 

Jamboard example for Brainstorming Writing Ideas

The second prewriting activity you can use Jamboard for is to develop ideas on a topic.  You can use the boards for creating blog posts or essay content.  Create sticky notes for main ideas using one color; then, add supporting details to each of those main ideas on sticky notes of a different color. 

Here’s an example of some ideas I have for a blog post.  You can see all my supporting details are in yellow, and my main topics are in aqua. 

Jamboard Example for Writing Organization

There are other fun things you can do, such as change the background color and draw a line with a pen. Jamboard is simple to use, flexible, and creative. 

#2 Internet Archive for Online Research

Internet Archive   https://archive.org/   is an online public library with free books, videos, articles, websites, and audio files.  It has millions of sources from libraries all over the world.  You can find excellent credible primary and secondary sources. 

Type into the search bar your topic, title, or author, or perform an advanced search where you can specify the words contained, date range, author, and types of media.  This screenshot shows you results for the search term “Kennedy Assassination.”

Internet Archive Search Results for the “Kenned y Assassination.”

I use Internet Archive to find a lot of sources for teaching and writing.  My students love using it for research because they have access to many different types of media.  When I create Google Classrooms for my students, I always include Internet Archive as a top resource.

#3 Google Docs for Writing and Revising

Google Docs https://docs.google.com/   is similar to MS Word when it comes to composing, revising, editing, and publishing writing.  In  Google Docs you can write, comment, and edit a document with other people at the same time.  

You can use Google Docs with every aspect of writing, from brainstorming to publishing a final draft.  In this image, you can see the menu and document and comment on the side. 

Google Docs Example 

Since you can share a document with another person via a link or email, writing is interactive.  Another feature of Google Docs is that it is easy to download a file in a PDF or MS Word format (which is handy when you need to submit a piece of writing as an MS Word or PDF document). 

#4 Google Classroom for Collaboration and Writing Groups

Google Classroom   https://classroom.google.com / has been a favorite tool of mine ever since it was available to anyone with a Google Account.  Before 2017, you could only use Google Classroom if your school district used it. 

Since anyone with a Google account can create a classroom, writing groups can use a Google Classroom to share resources organized by topics and add writing for others to read. You can post anything in the stream from an attachment, video, link, or something in Google Drive and email members of a group.  

I use it with my tutoring students as a place to upload resources, share documents, and communicate with them through the stream. Below is a glimpse of a writing classroom I created. 

Google Classroom Example, “Online Writing Class Resources and More. “

To create a class:

• Go to https://classroom.google.com/ , or select your Google Classroom app, go to the right side and click on the + sign and select “Create a class.” 
• A box will pop up where you can create the name of your class or writing group.  T
• Type your information and select “create.” 
• Next, invite group members by sending them an email, copying an invitation link, or sharing the class code.
• Start adding materials for your group.

Check out this post and see how to create an amazing academic writing group  https://www.academicwritingsuccess.com/how-to-become-an-amazing-academic-writing-group/

Writing Tools for Focus and Productivity

#5 calmly writer.

If you find it hard to concentrate on writing and keep stopping to edit or “look something up,” try Calmly Writer https://www.calmlywriter.com/ . At the Calmly Writer website, you’ll see 2 choices: 1) The free online version and 2) The Desktop App, which costs #14.99. This blog post describes the free online version (not the desktop app).

Calmly Writer does not have a toolbar like Google Docs  or MS Word. It lets you write without complicated buttons that highlight any mistakes. Which means you aren’t stopping to fix and correct things. Instead, you can focus on composing and turning thoughts into writing. The online program has a blank space.  In the example here, you’ll see a word count tracker and “time to read tracker” at the bottom of the page.

Calmly Writer Example Text

You can choose a light or dark background setting. As you change paragraphs, you’ll see the previous ones fade; it forces you to move forward in your writing. You can set up simple preferences, such as font size, background, and noise (none or a typewriter sound). When you finish writing, you can download your document as a text, HTML, or Word Document file, or you can save it to Google Drive.

#6 Write More

Another tool that blocks distractions and keeps you on track with your writing is Write More https://writemore.io/ .  Write More is a brand new tool (as of January 2022). I set up my account with Write More (currently free). Write More asked me questions about my preferences for a theme (my font style and background color) and word count goal. Other features I could select were whether or not I wanted to have creative writing prompts and email or text reminders at certain times of the day.

Write More tracks my word count and saves my writing automatically. Each piece of writing is saved as a page. In the example below, you’ll see the page I used to write this blog post.

Write More Example of a Page

Now, I can open it whenever I need to and go back to it. Also, I can download my page as Word Document, Html, or Text File.  But one of my favorite parts is the analytics because I can see how much I’ve written each day over a more extended period. Looking at my analytics encouraged me to keep writing because I know the progress or lack of progress I made with my writing. I wrote my first draft of this post using Write More! 

I’m not sure how much longer Write More will be free, so try it and register for an account if it interests you.

Online Tools for Organization and Planning

#7 evernote.

Evernote https://www.evernote.com/ lets you write and record notes on your phone that sync with an online app. There is a paid version of Evernote with more features and storage. However, I have a free account. With the free account, You can save your notes to “Notebooks” around a specific topic.  

Example of an Evernote Dashboard with Notebooks

As you can see, I have notebooks for blog post ideas, fiction ideas, etc. Since I can record my thoughts on my phone, Evernote helps me capture ideas when I’m away from my laptop. It’s perfect for when I wake up in the middle of the night with a writing idea; I can record an audio note and go back to sleep.

Trello  https://trello.com is a popular place for all kinds of planning and collaboration. People can create boards to brainstorm, complete tasks, and keep track of everything they need to do. There is a section for writing where people can create an original board and design it or work from a popular template.

This photo shows you my Trello Dashboard and the templates available.

Trello Workspace Example

In Trello, you can add cards for different things like checklists, attachments from links, Dropbox, and Google Drive within a template board. You can check off things as you complete them, add bibliographic information with sources, and make sure you finish everything by a deadline.  Here is a card I developed for writing descriptions of academic sources.

Example of a Trello Card within a Board

There are different types of accounts that include a free option and different levels of paid options. In the free version, you can create 10 boards with an unlimited amount of cards on each board and unlimited storage. However, the free account does not include the features of assigning dates and inviting members.

Writing Resources for Word Choice

#9 visuwords.

Visuwords https://visuwords.com is more than a visual thesaurus because it also shows you the lexicon around a word. You can see how words fit within a phrase. When you type a word into the search bar, what comes up is a web that shows you both the parts of speech related to a term and the relationship of words (whether they mean the same thing, are examples of, are a type of something, etc.). You can see whole phrases put together.

Visuwords Example for the Word “Curious”

In the screenshot above, you can see the parts of speech related to the word “curious.” Each is color-coded: blue for a noun, green for a verb, orange for an adjective, and red for an adverb . The different lines that are solid or dotted note the relationship of a word or phrase to “curious.” For example, the solid blue color circle with the words “curiousness and inquisitiveness” are nouns. The solid gray line shows that they are words for “curious.”  Visuwords is free and runs on donations, so consider making a small donation if you use it regularly.

#10 Power Thesaurus

Power Thesaurus https://www.powe r thesaurus.org  shows you synonyms, antonyms, and definitions for a word. It’s community-driven, which means the words and sentences are gathered from multiple sources online. The benefit of that is it expands your word choices. In the screenshot below, I searched for synonyms for “curious.” There are 394 words and phrases. I selected the word “peculiar” and found its definition.

Power Thesaurus Example for the Word “Curious”

The downside of a community-driven website is that information may not be accurate. You’ll want to check words and phrases you are unsure of in a dictionary/thesaurus like Merriam-Webster. Power Thesaurus is free to use, but the free account includes pop-up ads. Hey, they need to make money some ho w . If you want to avoid ads, read more content, and get advanced extensions, you can purchase the Pro Subscription for $29.90 annually.

#11 Merriam-Webster Dictionary and Thesaurus

Every writer or student needs to have a good dictionary. Merriam-Webster Online https://www.merriam-webster.com/ combines its dictionary with a thesaurus. Like its book dictionary, you’ll find the meanings of a word and its variations. 

In the screenshot here, you’ll see the essential definitions and complete definitions of the word “curious.”

Merriam-Webster Dictionary Definitions for the Word “Curious”

If you scroll down the page, you’ll see these options

• Synonyms and Antonyms
• Words From…
• Choose the Right Synonym
• Did you know?
• More Example Sentences
• Learn More About…

The third option, “Choose the Right Synonym, ” helps you find the perfect word that fits the emotion and context of what you are writing. Here, you can see information about choosing synonyms for the word “curious.”

Merriam-Webster–How to Choose the Right Synonym

Merriam-Webster also has an online thesaurus to help you find synonyms, related words, near antonyms, and antonyms. When you use Merriam-Webster, you know that the words you select come from a credible source. You can use it for free, but Google Ads are on the right side and bottom of your screen. It isn’t enjoyable, but you get used to it.

How to Select Your Online Writing Tools

Try out these free online writing tools to discover which ones will help you write better. Consider what you need overall to brainstorm, plan, write, focus, and enhance your language. Don’t add all these tools at once,  but choose ones that make your writing life easier and even more fun!  

And stay tuned for my next blog post, where I look at the best free revising and editing tools for 2022.

Like this list? Please share it and spread these free online writing tools!   

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How Creative Writing Can Increase Students’ Resilience

Many of my seventh-grade students do not arrive at school ready to learn. Their families often face financial hardship and live in cramped quarters, which makes it difficult to focus on homework. The responsibility for cooking and taking care of younger siblings while parents work often falls on these twelve year olds’ small shoulders. Domestic violence and abuse are also not uncommon.

To help traumatized students overcome their personal and academic challenges, one of our first jobs as teachers is to build a sense of community. We need to communicate that we care and that we welcome them into the classroom just as they are. One of the best ways I’ve found to connect with my students, while also nurturing their reading and writing skills, is through creative writing.

For the past three years, I’ve invited students in my English Language Development (ELD) classes to observe their thoughts, sit with their emotions, and offer themselves and each other compassion through writing and sharing about their struggles. Creating a safe, respectful environment in which students’ stories matter invites the disengaged, the hopeless, and the numb to open up. Students realize that nobody is perfect and nobody’s life is perfect. In this kind of classroom community, they can take the necessary risks in order to learn, and they become more resilient when they stumble.

Fostering a growth mindset

One of the ways students can boost their academic performance and develop resilience is by building a growth mindset. Carol Dweck, Stanford University professor of psychology and author of the book Mindset , explains that people with a growth mindset focus on learning from mistakes and welcoming challenges rather than thinking they’re doomed to be dumb or unskillful. A growth mindset goes hand in hand with self-compassion: recognizing that everyone struggles and treating ourselves with kindness when we trip up.

One exercise I find very useful is to have students write a story about a time when they persevered when faced with a challenge—in class, sports, or a relationship. Some of the themes students explore include finally solving math problems, learning how to defend themselves, or having difficult conversations with parents.

I primed the pump by telling my students about something I struggled with—feeling left behind in staff meetings as my colleagues clicked their way through various computer applications. I confided that PowerPoint and Google Slides—tools (one might assume) that any teacher worth a paperweight has mastered—still eluded me. By admitting my deficiency to my students, asking for their help, and choosing to see the opportunity to remedy it every day in the classroom, I aimed to level the playing field with them. They may have been reading three or four grade levels behind, but they could slap a PowerPoint presentation together in their sleep.

For students, sharing their own stories of bravery, resilience, and determination brings these qualities to the forefront of their minds and helps solidify the belief that underlies a growth mindset: I can improve and grow . We know from research in neuroplasticity that when students take baby steps to achieve a goal and take pride in their accomplishments, they change their brains, growing new neural networks and fortifying existing ones. Neurons in the brain release the feel-good chemical dopamine, which plays a major role in motivating behavior toward rewards.

After writing about a few different personal topics, students choose one they want to publish on the bulletin boards at the back of the classroom. They learn to include the juicy details of their stories (who, what, when, where, why, and how), and they get help from their peers, who ask follow-up questions to prompt them to include more information. This peer editing builds their resilience in more ways than one—they make connections with each other by learning about each other’s lives, and they feel empowered by lending a hand.

In my experience, students are motivated to do this assignment because it helps them feel that their personal stories and emotions truly matter, despite how their other academics are going. One student named Alejandro chose to reflect on basketball and the persistence and time it took him to learn:

Hoops By Alejandro Gonzalez Being good takes time. One time my sister took me to a park and I saw people playing basketball. I noticed how good they were and decided I wanted to be like them. Still I told my sister that basketball looked hard and that I thought I couldn’t do it. She said,“You could do it if you tried. You’ll get the hang of it.” My dad bought me a backboard and hoop to play with. I was really happy, but the ball wasn’t making it in. Every time I got home from school, I would go straight to the backyard to play. I did that almost every day until little by little I was getting the hang of it. I also played with my friends. Every day after lunch we would meet at the basketball court to have a game. … I learned that you need to be patient and to practice a lot to get the hang of things. With a little bit of practice, patience, and hard work, anything is possible.

Originally, Alejandro wasn’t sure why he was in school and often lacked the motivation to learn. But writing about something he was passionate about and recalling the steps that led to his success reminded him of the determination and perseverance he had demonstrated in the past, nurturing a positive view of himself. It gave him a renewed sense of investment in learning English and eventually helped him succeed in his ELD class, as well.

Maintaining a hopeful outlook

Another way to build resilience in the face of external challenges is to shore up our inner reserves of hope —and I’ve found that poetry can serve as inspiration for this.

For the writing portion of the lesson, I invite students to “get inside” poems by replicating the underlying structure and trying their hand at writing their own verses. I create poem templates, where students fill in relevant blanks with their own ideas. 

One poem I like to share is “So Much Happiness” by Naomi Shihab Nye. Its lines “Even the fact that you once lived in a peaceful tree house / and now live over a quarry of noise and dust / cannot make you unhappy” remind us that, despite the unpleasant events that occur in our lives, it’s our choice whether to allow them to interfere with our happiness. The speaker, who “love[s] even the floor which needs to be swept, the soiled linens, and scratched records,” has a persistently sunny outlook.

It’s unrealistic for students who hear gunshots at night to be bubbling over with happiness the next morning. Still, the routine of the school day and the sense of community—jokes with friends, a shared bag of hot chips for breakfast, and a creative outlet—do bolster these kids. They have an unmistakable drive to keep going, a life force that may even burn brighter because they take nothing for granted—not even the breath in their bodies, life itself. 

Itzayana was one of those students who, due to the adversity in her life, seemed too old for her years. She rarely smiled and started the school year with a defiant approach to me and school in general, cursing frequently in the classroom. Itzayana’s version of “So Much Happiness” hinted at some of the challenges I had suspected she had in her home life:

It is difficult to know what to do with so much happiness. Even the fact that you once heard your family laughing and now hear them yelling at each other cannot make you unhappy. Everything has a life of its own, it too could wake up filled with possibilities of tamales and horchata and love even scrubbing the floor, washing dishes, and cleaning your room. Since there is no place large enough to contain so much happiness, help people in need, help your family, and take care of yourself.   —Itzayana C.

Her ending lines, “Since there is no place large enough to contain so much happiness, / help people in need, help your family, and take care of yourself,” showed her growing awareness of the need for self-care as she continued to support her family and others around her. This is a clear sign of her developing resilience.

Poetry is packed with emotion, and writing their own poems allows students to grapple with their own often-turbulent inner lives. One student commented on the process, saying, “By writing poems, I’ve learned to be calm and patient, especially when I get mad about something dumb.” Another student showed pride in having her writing published; she reflected, “I feel good because other kids can use it for calming down when they’re angry.”

To ease students into the creative process, sometimes we also write poems together as a class. We brainstorm lines to include, inviting the silly as well as the poignant and creating something that represents our community.

Practicing kindness

Besides offering my students new ways of thinking about themselves, I also invite them to take kind actions toward themselves and others.

In the music video for “Give a Little Love” by Noah and the Whale, one young African American boy—who witnesses bullying at school and neglect in his neighborhood —decides to take positive action and whitewash a wall of graffiti. Throughout the video, people witness others’ random acts of kindness, and then go on to do their own bit.

“My love is my whole being / And I’ve shared what I could,” the lyrics say—a reminder that our actions speak louder than our words and do have an incredible impact. The final refrain in the song—“Well if you are (what you love) / And you do (what you love) /...What you share with the world is what it keeps of you”—urges the students to contribute in a positive way to the classroom, the school campus, and their larger community.

After watching the video, I ask students to reflect upon what kind of community they would like to be part of and what makes them feel safe at school. They write their answers—for example, not being laughed at by their peers and being listened to—on Post-it notes. These notes are used to create classroom rules. This activity sends a message early on that we are co-creating our communal experience together. Students also write their own versions of the lyrics, reflecting on different things you can give and receive—like kindness, peace, love, and ice cream.

Reaping the benefits

To see how creative writing impacts students, I invite them to rate their resilience through a self-compassion survey at the start of the school year and again in the spring. Last year, two-thirds of students surveyed increased in self-compassion; Alejandro grew his self-compassion by 20 percent. The program seems to work at developing their reading and writing skills, as well: At the middle of the school year, 40 percent of my students moved up to the next level of ELD, compared to 20 percent the previous year. 

As a teacher, my goal is to meet students where they’re at and learn about their whole lives. Through creative writing activities, we create a community of compassionate and expressive learners who bear witness to the impact of trauma in each others’ experiences and together build resilience.

As a symbol of community and strength, I had a poster in my classroom of a boat at sea with hundreds of refugees standing shoulder to shoulder looking skyward. It’s a hauntingly beautiful image of our ability to risk it all for a better life, as many of my ELD students do. Recognizing our common humanity and being able to share about our struggles not only leads to some beautiful writing, but also some brave hearts.

About the Author

Laura Bean, M.F.A. , executive director of Mindful Literacy, consults with school communities to implement mindfulness and creative writing programs. She has an M.F.A. in Creative Writing and presented a mindful writing workshop at Bridging the Hearts and Minds of Youth Conference in San Diego in 2016.

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How to Help Students Feel Powerful at School

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10 Tools for Your Students’ Creativity Toolbox

Creativity is a process, and you can guide students to develop theirs with a set of tools for different situations.

“Creativity involves breaking out of established patterns in order to look at things in a different way.” —Edward de Bono

When I write an article, I usually draft two or three versions before I find the one I call the first draft. Creating an article requires exploring what I want to say and how I want to say it for my audience. I tell my children and students that the best writing begins during the revisions.

Creativity does not just occur in the arts—it happens within engineering design, policy making, problem solving, game strategizing, and especially lesson planning. And it’s a process that takes many forms, from conceiving an idea to shaping thoughts into something tangible to polishing a draft. During the process, there are likely many redos, as each draft and conversation inspires a new take on the idea, which may sharpen the picture of one’s creation.

It’s a mistake to believe that creativity is an inherent ability that some people have in plenty while others have little. Those are the thoughts of either self-doubters or people who struggle with explaining how to be creative. There are people who are gifted with a natural attunement to creative thinking, just as there are gifted athletes, scientists, and teachers, but dedicated study and practice can hone one’s creativity.

“Creativity is the process of having original ideas that have value. It is a process; it’s not random.” —Ken Robinson

Creativity is a fluid and flexible process. Sometimes the best way to make something new is to muck around. Accept that the first, second, or nth round or draft may not be what is wanted. It’s a messy process. In the act of doing, we find pieces that become the foundation of the product that is eventually shaped.

The Creativity Toolbox

Here are a few tools for your students’ creativity toolbox. Practice these techniques with students and they’ll begin to understand how to use them for themselves.

• Don’t settle for the first great idea. Keep generating until you have at least three workable ideas. Chalk Talk (pdf) is a silent idea-mapping activity where participants dialog through writing. Affinity Mapping (pdf) is a mixture of shared reflective responses to prompts followed by collaborative organizing of the ideas. Much can be recorded in the students’ journals.
• Draft and redraft an idea, concept, solution, or product. Redraft from different perspectives, such as audience, cultural viewpoint, or supporter vs. antagonist.
• Participate in structured conversations. Dialog with reflection can lead to new and revised ideas. Use structured protocols that support reflection, such as Spider Web (Harkness) Discussions , and feedback, like the Charrette Protocol .
• Make mistakes through trial and error. Finding flaws is a treasured opportunity to design something better or see a new approach.
• Set the product or idea aside to marinate for some time. Work on something else for a day, or a week. Return to the creative work with a fresh perspective. When I do this, my revision work is more effective.
• Grow a work portfolio. Produce a collection of first drafts to draw inspiration for creative projects.
• Keep a journal. Start small with a journal for a scientist, writer, mathematician, engineer, or other. Inspiration strikes in the moment. As students capture their thinking through writing, they can find connections between two or three notes, which can result in an epiphany.
• Research to learn new ideas. We don’t know what we don’t know. Research deepens students’ knowledge base and opens up ways of thinking that they were previously unaware of.
• Critique peer work. Feedback protocols for writing, designs, or solutions to problems are good ways for students to express their thinking, get feedback, and then process how they might incorporate some into their work. Try gallery walks and Charrette.
• Solve problems and puzzles for exercise on how to think differently. Use team builders like ones from Teampedia for students to practice creative problem-solving. Conduct a post-reflection experience where students unpack the tools used from their creativity toolbox.

Expand your students’ creativity toolbox by exploring and teaching three or four of these tools. As with curriculum skills, students build understanding and competency with the tools themselves, so that they can select the one that fits their current need. Conducting science experiments is unnecessarily difficult if one does not know the purpose and use of the scientific method or engineering design steps. Composing a quality research paper is hopeless if one does not have the skills for information fluency and finding authoritative references. The same is true with creativity.

“Creativity is a wild mind & a disciplined eye.” —Dorothy Parker

Being creative requires development of tools. Being creative means that a person can look in their toolbox and try one of the strategies they’ve practiced—and if the results are a failure, they can use that opportunity to rummage around for another tool. Students can practice independence when their creativity toolbox is well equipped. What matters most with creativity is getting started.

150 Best Writing Tools and Resources [2024 Edition]

I can almost hear you thinking:

The list with tools. Again. How many more articles like this do we need to decide on the best resources for writers? Or is it going to be a list of writing tools for students?

Whether you write essays, business articles, or books, you should bookmark this page. Here I’ve gathered all the best tools for writers by categories and needs. Now you can find them in one place and save time on searching.

• Inspiration and idea organization
• Writing apps for planning: titles, theses, outlines
• Distraction-free online writing tools
• Essay writing tools for students
• Business writing tools and resources
• Creative writing tools
• Book writing tools and resources
• Best writing tools for proofreading and editing
• Checking for plagiarism and quality
• Tools for writers to cite sources

Inspiration and Idea Organization

These apps will come in handy for everyone working with text content. They help take notes, organize thoughts, and brainstorm ideas for your future content. College students can use them to craft to-do lists for their academic assignments.

Writing Apps for Planning: Titles, Theses, Outlines

These tools are popular among bloggers and copywriters working with many articles daily. They help beginners plan tasks better. Feel free to use them for generating titles and outlines. If you’re at school or university, they help with research and essay writing.

Distraction-Free Online Writing Tools

Authors know how frustrating a writing process is when something disturbs you. These tools help overcome writer’s block, catch the muse by the tail, and write faster.

Essay Writing Tools for Students

College students often struggle with essay writing. No wonder: Too many rules to know and too many details to remember. These resources will assist with every step of academic paper creation.

Business Writing Tools and Resources

Whether you write emails, business essays in school, or business articles, check these resources. Here are glossaries, samples, and other handy information on business content creation.

Creative Writing Tools

These tools are great supplies for writers of creative content. They’ll help generate ideas, craft drafts, and write engaging assets for different audiences.

Book Writing Tools and Resources

Consider these apps and tools for creating characters and organizing book plots . They’ll help you remember the storytelling principles and overcome writer’s block. Some are book writing software to save your whole story in one place.

Best Writing Tools for Proofreading and Editing

Authors know the writing process isn’t over after a draft is ready. Now it’s time to revise and edit it. These tools are the best for proofreading your work and checking its grammar. If you don’t have resources for hiring a professional editor, the below list is your helping hand.

Checking for Plagiarism and Quality

These tools are the best plagiarism and readability checkers. They’ll help avoid duplications and polish your texts for better quality.

Tools for Writers to Cite Sources

For those crafting academic papers or nonfiction based on research, it’s critical to provide sources they used. These tools and resources will help to cite them right. (Practical for school or college students dealing with reference lists in essays round-the-clock.)

• What is the most used writing tool?

The most used writing tool is Google Docs. Authors outline and write drafts there, share docs with clients and editors, and save texts in a cloud. Grammarly is the most popular one for proofreading and editing your texts. And those willing to check their texts for originality use Duplichecker or PlagiarismCheck .

• What are the best AI writing tools?

For today, the best AI writing tools are Jasper, Copy AI, and Textero . Many content creators also use ChatGPT : It saves time on research and idea generation.

• Which Google Docs tool can help you find synonyms to improve your word choice?

There’s no separate tool to install for this feature but a built-in dictionary in Google Docs. Go to Tools > Dictionary to find synonyms or word definitions in your document. Or, you can press Ctrl + Shift + Y to see them.

• What are some apps that write essays for you?

School and college students make the most of AI tools for essay writing. They use ChatGPT, Copy AI, and Jasper . These tools are great for deciding on an essay topic idea, generating a thesis statement, or outlining your future essays. Such apps can also help with essay proofreading, and you can ask them for up-to-date information to use as evidence.

• What is the best book-writing software?

I would recommend Reedsy, Novel Factory, and yWriter . Each helps you develop characters, create narrative arcs, and organize story plots. For an all-in-one decision to write, publish, and distribute books, try Fast Pencil . Vellum can be your choice if you write business e-books and want to prepare them for publishing.

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• Essay writing
• Writing tips

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Educators Technology

Innovative EdTech for teachers, educators, parents, and students

Some of the Best Online Writing Tools for Students

By Med Kharbach, PhD | Last Update: May 16, 2024

Navigating the diverse landscape of writing tools available for students can be a daunting task. That’s why I’ve put together this comprehensive guide to the best writing tools out there, designed to meet various needs and enhance different aspects of writing for students. From graphic organizers that aid in structuring thoughts and developing ideas, to digital storytelling platforms that bring narratives to life, this guide covers a wide range of resources.

More specifically, we arranged these writing tools in various categories namely AI Writing Assistants, AI Story Generators, Digital Storytelling Websites, Comic Strip Tools, Mind Mappings Tools, Story Starters, Writing Mechanics (Grammar and Style), Graphic Organizers, and Websites to Publish Students Writing

Each category in this guide is tailored to address specific aspects of the writing process. Whether it’s organizing ideas, enhancing creativity, improving technical writing skills, or sharing and publishing written work, these tools provide valuable support for students in their writing journey.

For educators, these resources offer versatile and adaptable methods to enrich the teaching of writing and inspire students to engage more deeply with the craft. Let’s dive in and explore how these tools can make writing a more accessible, enjoyable, and successful endeavor for students of all ages and abilities.

Online Writing Tools for Students

Here is our collection of the writing tools for students:

AI Writing Assistants

AI writing tools have become invaluable tools for students and educators alike, offering a blend of technological innovation and writing support. Tools like Jasper, CopyAI, WriteSonic, ChatGPT, Frase, and Rytr are at the forefront of this digital revolution, each offering unique capabilities to enhance writing skills. From generating creative content to refining grammar and style, these AI assistants provide a range of services that cater to diverse writing needs.

Whether it’s crafting a persuasive essay, developing a research paper, or simply improving everyday writing tasks, these AI tools can significantly streamline the writing process. Their integration into the educational sphere represents a significant step towards combining technology with learning, making the art of writing more accessible, efficient, and engaging for students and educators.

Known as a top-tier AI content generator, Jasper excels in creating unique, less plagiarized content. It’s versatile for various content types, offering ready-made templates for quick, efficient writing. Ideal for educational, commercial, and media content.

A competent AI writer, similar to Jasper but without a chatbot feature. It offers a wide range of content creation templates, including various writing aids and idea generators.

3 . WriteSonic

Offers a ChatGPT-like chatbot and over 100 AI templates, supporting 25 languages. Features include an AI article writer, Sonic Editor, paraphrasing tool, text expander, and Article Summarizer.

4 . ChatGPT

Known for its conversational AI capabilities, it’s useful for generating outlines, brainstorming, and tutorial assistance. Requires fact-checking due to potential issues with factual accuracy and plagiarism.

Tailored for bloggers and SEO professionals, Frase offers content creation tools including sentence autocompletion, templates for blog intros and content briefs, and features for improving writing quality.

An AI assistant that generates content quickly, offering a variety of templates, over 20 tones of voice, integrated plagiarism checker, and tools for rewording or enriching text.

AI Story Generators

In the realm of creative writing, AI story generators have emerged as revolutionary tools, offering both students and educators an innovative approach to storytelling. These AI-driven platforms, such as Sudowrite, NovelAI, Picsart AI Story Generator, Simplified, Plot Factory, and Shortly AI, provide a plethora of features that can enhance the writing process.

They assist in generating ideas, structuring narratives, and offering stylistic suggestions, thereby aiding students in overcoming writer’s block, refining their writing skills, and expanding their creative horizons. By integrating these tools into the classroom, educators can provide a unique, engaging, and supportive environment that fosters creativity and improves writing competencies in students of all levels.

1. Sudowrite  

A comprehensive tool for novelists, Sudowrite guides users from idea inception to chapter development. Key features include enhanced autocomplete for narrative continuity, scene expansion, rewriting assistance, critical feedback, plot and character idea generation, and visualization tools for artistic storytelling.

related:  5 Best AI Voice Changers

2. Novel AI

Tailored for AI-assisted authorship, NovelAI offers a high degree of storytelling freedom. Its AI, trained on real literature, adapts to user styles. Unique AI Modules allow thematic direction, style replication, and personal data training, offering a diverse and immersive storytelling experience.

3. Picsart AI Story Generator

A versatile tool suitable for both professional and personal storytelling. It allows customization in tone, length, and creativity level, making it adept at creating stories across various genres, from thrillers to romances.

4. Simplified

 This tool suits both experienced and novice writers. Features include Long Form Writer and Short Form Assistant’s templates for crafting story elements like plot twists, character descriptions, and emotional depth. It also supports collaborative writing and social media sharing.

5. Plot Factory

Plot Factory An online writing tool that excels in story planning and execution. Notable features include a text-to-speech option, collaborative writing similar to Google Docs, character development sheets, and export options for both ePub and docx files, catering to self-publishing and querying needs.

6. Shortly A I

A dynamic writing partner offering features to continue writing in your style, brainstorm ideas, and develop narratives. Its user-friendly interface and /commands for instant rewriting or sentence expansion make it ideal for writers seeking creativity and focus in their writing process.

Digital Storytelling Websites

The advent of digital storytelling websites has opened up new avenues for enhancing writing and narrative skills in educational settings. Platforms like Adobe Express, Storybird, Book Creator, and Animoto offer unique opportunities for students to engage with storytelling in a modern, digital format.

These tools empower students to combine text, images, audio, and video, thereby enriching their narratives and making the storytelling process more interactive and multidimensional. For students, this means not only honing their writing skills but also learning to communicate effectively in a digital world.

These websites are particularly effective in fostering creativity, digital literacy, and critical thinking, as students learn to construct and convey their stories through various media forms. By integrating digital storytelling into the curriculum, educators can provide a more engaging and relevant learning experience, encouraging students to express themselves in innovative ways while developing essential 21st-century skills.

1. Adobe Express

This is a versatile tool that allows for the creation of videos, web pages, and graphics. It’s user-friendly and offers a variety of templates and design options, making it great for creating compelling digital stories.

2. Storybird

Specializing in art-inspired storytelling, Storybird lets users create visual stories with access to a library of artwork. It’s particularly good for younger students or for projects that emphasize visual storytelling.

3. Book Creator

This tool is fantastic for creating interactive and multimedia books. It’s very intuitive and allows students and educators to incorporate text, images, audio, and video into their digital books.

A video-making tool that’s great for creating quick, professional-looking videos. Animoto is perfect for digital storytelling projects that require a blend of images, text, and music.

5. VoiceThread

This is a unique tool where users can add narration to slideshows. It’s excellent for projects where voice-over explanations or narratives are essential.

Known for its graphic design capabilities, Canva also offers features for creating presentations and infographics, which can be used for storytelling purposes.

This is an online comic-making tool, ideal for creating storyboards or comic strips. It’s particularly engaging for students who enjoy visual and creative storytelling.

A cloud-based video editing platform that’s great for creating and editing videos online. It offers a range of editing tools, making it suitable for more advanced storytelling projects.

Developed by MIT, Scratch allows students to create their own interactive stories, games, and animations. It’s especially good for integrating coding and storytelling.

Comic Strip Tools

The integration of comic strip tools into the educational toolkit offers a unique and engaging approach to storytelling and writing. Tools like Storyboard That, Witty Comics, Make Beliefs Comix, Pixton, and Canva Comics provide students with a creative platform to express their ideas visually.

These tools are particularly effective in enhancing narrative skills, as they require students to think critically about story progression, character development, and visual storytelling. By crafting comic strips, students not only improve their writing and storytelling abilities but also develop a deeper understanding of visual literacy and sequential art.

This method of storytelling can be especially appealing to reluctant writers or visual learners, as it combines artistic expression with narrative construction. Incorporating comic strip creation into educational activities encourages students to engage with content in a fun and imaginative way, fostering creativity and a love for storytelling.

1- Storyboard That Create and narrate your stories using beautiful visuals and storyboards. It’s a fantastic tool for mapping out narratives in a visual and structured way.

2- Witty Comics Provides you with a set of pre-designed characters, scenes, and dialogue boxes to write your story. A user-friendly tool, but remember, you need to log in to save your work.

3- Make Beliefs Comix Create amazing comics using a wide variety of materials including characters, speech bubbles, props, backgrounds, objects, and many more. It’s great for younger students or those new to comic creation.

4- Pixton This tool allows you to create stunning comics using a drag-and-drop editor. With fully posable characters, dynamic panels, props, and speech bubbles, every aspect of a comic can be controlled in an intuitive click-n-drag motion.

5. Canva Comics

Canva offers a range of comic strip templates that you can customize to your storytelling needs. It’s an easy-to-use tool for creating visually appealing comic strips, combining the simplicity of Canva’s interface with the creative flexibility of comic design.

Mind Mappings Tools

Mind mapping tools represent a pivotal shift in how we approach writing and brainstorming in the educational arena. These tools, which also include platforms like MindMeister, XMind, and Coggle, offer students a visually engaging and efficient way to organize their thoughts and ideas.

By visually structuring information, mind mapping assists students in conceptualizing complex topics, enhancing their ability to plan essays, structure research papers, and develop creative stories.

These tools are particularly beneficial for visual learners, as they turn abstract ideas into tangible diagrams, facilitating a deeper understanding and retention of information. The interactive nature of mind mapping also encourages collaborative learning, allowing students to work together on projects and share ideas in a more dynamic and interconnected way.

Integrating these tools into the writing process not only aids in the organization of thoughts but also fosters creativity, critical thinking, and a more profound engagement with the writing process.

1- Bubbl.us A good tool for creating visually attractive concept maps. No software download required and maps you create can be saved as an image. It also supports different sharing and collaborative features.

2- Popplet It offers various features including: recording notes in different formats with text, images and drawings; link notes to each other; export your final work as PDF or JPEG; supports several languages and many more.

3- MindMup Lets you ‘create unlimited mind maps for free, and store them in the cloud. Your mind maps are available everywhere, instantly, from any device.’

4- Lucidchart You can use Lucidchart to design concept maps, flowcharts and different types of diagrams. It also support collaborative features and works across several devices.

Story Starters

In the world of creative writing, initiating a compelling narrative can often be the most challenging part. This is where story starter tools come into play, offering an invaluable resource for students and educators. Tools like ChatGPT, Scholastic Story Starters, The Story Starter, StoryToolz Half Title Generator, and others, provide a diverse array of prompts and ideas to ignite the creative process.

These tools are particularly beneficial in helping students overcome writer’s block, sparking their imagination, and guiding them in developing coherent and engaging stories. By offering a starting point, they encourage students to explore different narrative paths and styles, enhancing their storytelling skills and boosting their confidence as writers.

Incorporating these story starters into classroom activities or writing assignments can lead to a more dynamic and interactive learning experience, fostering creativity and expression in student writing.

1. ChatGPT by OpenAI

ChatGPT can generate creative story prompts, continue a story based on an initial idea, or even help overcome writer’s block by providing suggestions. Its AI-driven approach offers a unique and modern way to engage with storytelling.

2. Scholastic Story Starters

This tool provides a fun, interactive way for young students to generate story ideas. The student spins a wheel to get a prompt that includes a character, setting, and format.

3. The Story Starter

This website offers over one billion randomly generated story starters for all ages. It’s a simple yet effective way to kickstart the writing process.

4. StoryToolz Half Title Generato r

Aimed at more advanced writers, this tool generates intriguing half-titles to inspire stories. It’s perfect for those looking to challenge their creativity.

5. Writing Prompts by Writing.com

This app provides a variety of prompts, including scenes, words, sketches, texts, and more. It’s versatile and suitable for diverse writing levels and styles.

6. Plot Generator

This tool offers a range of options including genre-specific story prompts, character generators, and even entire plot outlines. It’s great for more in-depth story planning.

7. Rory’s Story Cubes

This is a physical tool but also available as an app. It provides images on dice that students can roll to generate visual prompts for story creation.

8. Storybird

While primarily a tool for creating digital books, Storybird also offers prompts and challenges to inspire writers and help them get started with their stories.

Writing Mechanics (Grammar and Style)

In the journey of developing proficient writing skills, tools that focus on writing mechanics play a crucial role. Resources like Grammarly, Hemingway, Quill, OWL, and others on the list provide invaluable assistance in refining the technical aspects of writing. These tools are designed to help students with grammar, punctuation, style, and overall clarity, ensuring their writing is not only correct but also compelling and readable.

They act as virtual tutors, guiding students through the nuances of the English language and helping them avoid common pitfalls. For educators, these tools are instrumental in teaching the intricacies of writing mechanics in an interactive and accessible manner.

By incorporating these resources into their writing process, students can significantly improve their writing proficiency, gain confidence in their abilities, and develop a stronger command of language. This is particularly important in an academic setting, where clear and precise communication is essential for success.

1- Grammarly A comprehensive tool that enhances your writing by checking and correcting spelling and grammatical errors. It’s an essential assistant for ensuring accuracy and clarity in your text.

2- Hemingway This application sharpens your writing style, streamlining your language structure and enriching your vocabulary. It’s designed to make your writing bold and clear, mirroring the style of Ernest Hemingway.

3- Quill Quill provides a suite of tools specifically designed to bolster students’ writing skills. This includes Quill Grammar for grammar improvement and Quill Proofreader for refining their written work, making it a versatile resource in the classroom.

4- Pudue OWL (Online Writing Lab) A comprehensive resource from Purdue University, the OWL offers an extensive library with materials on various writing aspects. This includes guidance on grammar, professional writing, research, APA and MLA formatting, resume crafting, and specialized writing topics, making it an invaluable resource for students and educators alike.

5. ProWritingAid

This tool offers in-depth writing analysis, helping users improve their style, tone, grammar, and punctuation. It’s great for older students or educators looking to refine their writing at a more advanced level.

6. QuillBot

QuillBot is an AI-powered writing and research tool that enhances writing efficiency and quality. It features a sophisticated paraphrasing engine, helping users to rephrase and refine their sentences while maintaining the original meaning. Ideal for academic writing, content creation, and general editing, QuillBot also includes a grammar checker and a summarizer, making it a versatile tool for improving overall writing clarity and effectiveness.

Also check Best Online Grammar and Spell Checkers

Graphic Organizers

Graphic organizers are a cornerstone tool in the educational toolkit, offering a structured visual approach to writing and idea development. Tools such as Venn Diagrams, Story Maps, KWL Charts , and others in the list serve as effective aids in organizing thoughts, structuring arguments, and planning narratives.

These visual aids help students break down complex ideas into manageable parts, fostering a clearer understanding and more coherent writing. Especially beneficial for visual learners, graphic organizers make abstract concepts tangible and facilitate critical thinking. They encourage students to see the relationships between ideas, leading to more logical and well-structured writing.

For educators, graphic organizers are versatile instruments that can be adapted for various educational objectives, from brainstorming and planning to analyzing texts and synthesizing information. Incorporating these tools into the writing process not only aids in organization and planning but also enhances creativity, making the act of writing more accessible and engaging for students of all skill levels.

1- Plot Diagram The Plot Diagram is a visual tool shaped like a pyramid or triangle, designed to help map and visualize the events in a story. By structuring the story’s progression, it enables both readers and writers to understand and analyze the key components and structure of narratives.

2- Essay Map This interactive tool assists students in structuring essays, guiding them to create a coherent outline. It helps in organizing an introductory statement, main ideas, supporting details, and a conclusion, ensuring a well-structured and thoughtful essay. 3- Compare and Contrast Map An interactive organizer, this tool aids in structuring comparison essays. Whether for a whole-to-whole, similarities-to-differences, or point-to-point comparison essay, it helps students outline their ideas methodically and clearly.

4- Venn Diagram This tool enables students to create two or three overlapping circles to visually organize and compare concepts. It’s ideal for identifying and recording relationships and differences between ideas, promoting logical and analytical thinking.

5- Persuasion Map An interactive organizer designed for planning persuasive essays or debates. Students map out their thesis and then structure supporting arguments with evidence. It’s an excellent tool for developing critical thinking and argumentative skills.

Websites to Publish Students Writing

The availability of websites where students can publish their writing marks a significant advancement in nurturing young writers and broadening their audience. Platforms like Book Creator, Google Sites, Google Docs, Edublogs, and others in the list offer students the unique opportunity to share their work with a wider community.

This act of publishing not only provides a sense of accomplishment but also exposes students to feedback and engagement from diverse audiences. Such exposure is invaluable in developing writing skills, as it encourages students to consider their readership, refine their voice, and communicate their ideas more effectively.

For educators, these platforms serve as powerful tools to motivate students, showing them the real-world impact of their writing. Additionally, publishing their work helps students develop digital literacy skills and understand the nuances of online communication. By leveraging these websites, students can transition from writing as a purely academic exercise to seeing it as a form of meaningful expression and connection with a broader community.

1- Book creator This dynamic platform enables students to craft and publish their own books, combining text, images, and audio. It’s an engaging way for students to share their writing creations with a wider audience.

2- Google Sites A user-friendly tool that allows students to create their own websites. Here, they can publish and share their writing projects in a web format, offering a real-world experience in digital publishing.

3- Google Docs Versatile and accessible, Google Docs allows students to publish their writings in various formats, including shareable web links. It’s an excellent option for collaborative writing and easy online sharing.

4- Edublogs Specifically designed for educational purposes, Edublogs lets students share their writing in blog format. It’s a great platform for ongoing writing projects and class blogs.

5. StoryJumper

An excellent platform for younger students, StoryJumper allows them to create and publish online books. It’s particularly good for creative story writing.

For students looking to reach a broader audience with their essays, opinions, and stories, Medium is a great platform. It’s more suited to high school students due to its public nature.

Bottom line

From the visually structured world of graphic organizers to the innovative realms of AI story generators and digital storytelling platforms, each writing tool we’ve explored offers unique benefits to support and inspire young writers.

The beauty of these tools lies in their ability to adapt to different learning styles, making writing more accessible and engaging for every student. Whether it’s organizing thoughts for a clearer narrative, refining grammar for more polished prose, or publishing work to share with the world, these tools provide the support and encouragement students need to express themselves confidently and creatively.

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Meet Med Kharbach, PhD

Dr. Med Kharbach is an influential voice in the global educational technology landscape, with an extensive background in educational studies and a decade-long experience as a K-12 teacher. Holding a Ph.D. from Mount Saint Vincent University in Halifax, Canada, he brings a unique perspective to the educational world by integrating his profound academic knowledge with his hands-on teaching experience. Dr. Kharbach's academic pursuits encompass curriculum studies, discourse analysis, language learning/teaching, language and identity, emerging literacies, educational technology, and research methodologies. His work has been presented at numerous national and international conferences and published in various esteemed academic journals.

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Top 12 apps and tools for teaching creative writing.

BY NANCY CHRISTINOVICH

Want to improve your storytelling craft? Where there’s a will there’s a way!  The educational software provides you with a large number of insights.

Creative writing requires both ideation and estimation skills. Need a brainstorm? The smart use of kickstarter apps will give rise to your inspiration flow and assist in organizing ideas.

The other tools are developed to improve the quality of writing. They help to develop your penmanship, wind up grammar, level up text readability and uniqueness.

Let’s consider top 12 writer’s’ helper-outers!

• Let the inspiration flow! 99 Words approach is based on the collaboration between e-learners. Each of them should create a chapter which has no less than 99 words. The story is passed from one author to another until it’s finished. An app sparks creativity, encourages users to improvise and work in a team. Write on!

Note Everything

• If you are mulling over a notion even when not actually writing, use this free app. Note Everything helps you to organize sketches, voice notes and even drawings. There’s no limit to your imagination! All you have to do is catch an idea – and note it down.

RedNotebook

• This tool provides you with open-source journaling option for Windows and Linux. You will be pleasantly surprised with RedNotebook usability. It lets you quickly search through old entries and find specific dates. You can export entries in PDF, Latex HTML or plain text format. Add images, links and templates – as you wish. Be imaginative and enjoy writing for yourself!
• The concept of the online editor is based on the American preeminent author’s approach. Hemingway is irreplaceable when you get down to the heart of writing process. The tool helps to edit text making it skimmable. The editor marks the passive voice and adverbs green and blue. When a word or phrase has a simpler alternative, it’s shown purple. Hemingway helps you to improve text readability. Make every single phrase clear!
• Free or Premium from $11.66 / month
• The free online tool is writer’s magic wand. After registration, you can download a document or copy paste text and check it for grammatical errors. Mistakes related to articles, spelling, punctuation and the sequence of tenses are indicated as critical issues. The service also offers advanced options of correcting stylistic errors or inappropriate words order. Grammarly can be installed as web extension at your browser to make emails and social media posts orthographic. Create airtight stories only!

Readability Score

• Free or Premium from $ 3 / month
• Text scoring tool helps creative writers to optimize their phrases and make the text easy to read. The grade level depends on the length of the sentences, words’ length, the number of adverbs, passive voice and cliche count. The concerned criteria of text quality are indicated with different colors so that a writer could alter phrases and make amendments. Readability-score suggests free checking three pages of unlimited length for each day. Develop your penmanship and have the guts to cut!
• Free or Premium for $4,91
• This free website assists you in organizing the thought-starter. Are you beginning a novel or narrative essay, us helps you to create the map of your ideas. Customize the bubble color, text size and formatting including hyperlinks. Even the registration is not required unless you want to save data. Brainstorm quickly with the online easy-to-navigate platform!

The Brainstormer

An app is responsible for the writers’ moment of inspiration. The wheel randomly combines plot, subject and style so that authors can make their conscious choices. Brainstormer has the thought-out and user-friendly interface which makes the process fun. Say goodbye to the writers’ block!

Story Skeleton

The tool for iPhone and iPad helps to structure the storytelling process. The electronic index cards jot down the ideas to construct the narration of plot elements and abstracts from the text. Story Skeleton is effective for creating outlines and structuring the narration. Download a text file or use index cards within the app — as you wish. Remember, even a ridiculous idea can be of use!

Writing Prompts

Here’s another effective source of lead for e-learners. Words, images, sketches, colors and current events combine billions of prompts to develop your imagination. You can store your favorite prompts as you wish. The tool is multitasking-friendly. When switching to another app, Writing Prompts works away right where you left off. Writing process is fun!

Clean Writer

A text editor hides away extra options and favors inspiration. The unique concept of Clean Writer is focusing on the plot instead of extra formatting and design options. An App is implemented on MacWorld, PCWorld and TheNextWeb.com. It handles only plain text files.

Clean Writer is perfect on the brainstorming stage and working on drafts. Focus on the score!

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The 10 Best Writing Tools for Every Writer’s Needs in 2024

Senior Content Marketing Manager

April 2, 2024

Most writers have a pretty love-hate relationship with the art of writing. 

On the one hand, it’s what you do and what you’re good at. On the other hand—it’s really hard.

The good news is that although writing will never be easy, that doesn’t mean it can’t get easier. With the early miracles of digital tools like Microsoft Word to the new era of AI content creation tools , creative writers have seen writing software drastically change—all in an effort to make the process easier.

However, writing tools are starting to become a dime a dozen. It’s hard to tell what writing tool would work for your specific needs. But that’s why we’re here!

We’re giving you a list of the 10 best writing tools you can use in 2023 so you avoid being stuck on a blank page and deliver content free of easily avoidable errors. First, let’s look at what makes a great writing tool in the first place.

What Should You Look For In a Writing Tool?

• 1. ClickUp 

2. Grammarly

3. hemingway editor, 4. power thesaurus, 5. google docs, 8. reedsy book editor, 10. evernote.

Great writing tools come in all shapes and sizes. Some help you avoid grammar and spelling mistakes, while others focus on keeping your brilliant scripts in some semblance of order. Today’s creative writers are spoiled with choices in online writing tools.

To make the process as easy as possible, you should put together a veritable writing software tech stack to help you at every stage of the writing process. Regardless of the writing tool, you want to keep a sharp eye on a couple of aspects that best writing tools share like:

• Integration capabilities : No one writing tool is going to do everything for you, so you’ll likely be relying on a couple of writing tools and editing software working together. You want to make sure that every tool you pick is going to play nicely with each other so that each tool makes the others more powerful. 
• Low price : You’re not made of money! If you’re going to shell out for a couple of writing tools, you want to make sure that the benefits outweigh the costs.
• Specialization : Great writing tools often specialize in one area, but there are options available that have all the features you could ask for—and more!

Writing software should go hand-in-hand with your productivity tools—because what’s the value of an unproductive writer?

The 10 Best Writing Tools

Whether you’re writing novels or a simple blog post, the best writing tools help you hit your word count goals, use a solid grammar checker, and keep you distraction-free. Let’s look at our favorite writing and editing tools you need to try.

1. ClickUp  

ClickUp isn’t just a writing tool with a surplus of project management features, it’s one of the best productivity tools on the market. And while we know we’re putting ClickUp at the top of this list—we’re not alone! ClickUp made the No. 1 spot in G2’s list of best collaboration and productivity tools for 2023!

Writers can use ClickUp as the central repository for all of their content—in a distraction-free space or as a collaboration tool with fellow writers. With tagging users or tasks, rich text editing, and powerful search functions, ClickUp works as your central writing tool for all types of content creation.

At the core of every ClickUp feature is productivity. And with the new AI writing assistant tools now in ClickUp Docs , you can use the power of AI writing tools ( like Writesonic ) directly within our platform!

This AI integration makes ClickUp a great writing tool for so many different teams with features to easily generate text and copy for any topic, make content shorter or longer, and run grammar checks in a flash. This handy tool can help content teams deliver blog post ideas or product teams create product requirement documents and design user-testing studies in seconds!

ClickUp Features: 

• Premade templates and organization tools make case studies , creating a content database , and more a super simple thing
• Collaborative whiteboards make real-time ideation so much easier
• Project management tools help you track and optimize your creative workflows

ClickUp Pros:

• Highly adaptable for a single person or an entire organization to assign tasks or comments
• Get started for free with access to thousands of templates
• Allows you to set writing goals to help you keep on track of your progress
• Integrated AI tools to create team-specific documents and use grammar checks

ClickUp Cons: 

• Not all features have made it to the mobile app
• AI functions are currently on a waiting list (for now!)

ClickUp Cost:

• Free Forever
• Unlimited : $7/month per user
• Business : $12/month per user
• Enterprise : Contact for pricing

ClickUp Ratings and reviews:

• G2: 4.7/5 (6,000+ reviews)
• Capterra: 4.7/5 (3,000+ reviews)

Grammarly is a set of grammar and plagiarism-checking editing tools that help writers polish their drafts into a professional sheen. Writers will benefit from Grammarly because it helps them create clearer and more effective writing. With this writing tool, you can be sure that your content is free from grammatical errors, awkward phrases, and plagiarism. 

Some key features of Grammarly include its automated spelling and grammar checker, writing style suggestions, plagiarism detector, and personalized feedback. It also has a built-in thesaurus so users can replace overused word choices. Regardless of whether you’re writing a poem for Grade 12 English or OKRs for your latest project , Grammarly is a tool that any writer should look to add to their toolkit. 

Compare Grammarly to Wordtune !

Grammarly Features: 

• Get a second opinion on your style and tone with its smart editor
• Use the plagiarism checker to make sure you haven’t inadvertently copied anyone
• Cut down on typos and grammatical errors with its spell checker

Grammarly Pros:

• Easy to use, even when you’re not in their editor
• Suggestions cover a broad range of common errors, mistakes, and omissions 
• Fantastic free version for anyone to use

Grammarly Cons: 

• Some suggestions get repetitive and feel unhelpful
• Formatting can get messed up when moving your writing between Grammarly’s editor and your preferred writing app 

Grammarly Cost:

• Premium : $30/ month
• Business : $14.50/ month per user (for teams with more than 10 people)

Grammarly Ratings and reviews:

• G2: 4.6/5 (1000+ reviews)
• Capterra: 4.7/5 (6000+ reviews)

Bonus: AI Marketing Tools

Hemingway Editor is a writing aid that aims to boost the readability of your writing. It achieves this goal by giving writers access to a free writing app that analyzes sentence structure and gives easy-to-follow feedback.

For instance, the Hemingway app will highlight any sentences it believes are too complex in red. So all you need to do is plug in your work and edit any red sentences until your piece is more clear and easier to read. Plus, it assigns your writing a readability score, so you can ensure your writing fits the intended audience. 

Hemingway Editor is such an impressive tool for writing because it can be hard to edit your own work for stylistic issues like over-relying on adverbs or passive voice usage. With Hemingway Editor, you can quickly fix these problems, improve an already great first draft, and become a better writer.

Hemingway Features: 

• Color-coded editing suggestions make it easy to skim your articles
• The program detects hard-to-read sentences so you can make your writing clear
• Easy importer allows for quick edits regardless of where you’re writing

Hemingway Pros:

• No login or signup to use
• Simple interface means anyone can use it
• Helps you cut down on hard-to-spot problems like sentence complexity and adverb overuse

Hemingway Cons: 

• Lacks a lot of features you’d see in other editing programs like Grammarly
• No way to integrate it with your actual writing tool like Microsoft Word
• Not ideal for writing ideas

Hemingway Cost:

• Paid Version : $19.99 (one-time payment)

Hemingway Ratings and Reviews:

• G2: 4.4/5 (46 reviews)
• Capterra: 4.4/5 (10 reviews)

Bonus: AI Text Generators

Power Thesaurus is a website that helps people find different words to use in their writing. This writing tool is great for those looking for a more convenient, digital thesaurus. With its search function, you can find synonyms that help you say what you want to say in a new and interesting way.

Plus, Power Thesaurus provides antonyms so writers can add variety and contrast to their stories. Power Thesaurus may not be the most exciting writing tool you’ve ever seen. However, the free version should be perfect for most people and it can be invaluable when you’re stuck looking for that exact word that’s currently escaping you.

Power Thesaurus Features: 

• Simple search bar allows you to input a word and get a list of synonyms, antonyms, and more
• Includes a chrome extension and mobile app
• Hit the ground running with endless synonym and antonym options

Power Thesaurus Pros:

• Simple UI that anyone can use
• No login or signup needed
• Community-run

Power Thesaurus Cons: 

• Doesn’t have a lot of features
• Free version contains ads

Power Thesaurus Cost:

• Pro : $2.49/ month (when bought annually) 

Power Thesaurus Ratings and reviews:

• G2: No current reviews
• Capterra: No current reviews

Bonus: Newsletter writing software !

Google Docs is a digital word processor that allows you to create documents, store them online, and share them with others. It’s great for writing letters, stories, notes, and more!

The Google Suite is important for writers because of its convenience and flexibility. First, its online nature means you can access your documents anywhere with an internet connection. This makes it easier to work on your writing when you’re away from home or need to share something with someone quickly.

Another great feature is its collaboration tools. This means you can work on a document with multiple people at once, so you don’t have to worry about sending out and keeping track of multiple versions of the same file.

Overall, this is an excellent tool for any writer who needs an easy-to-use word processor that offers a ton of functionality, even on the free subscription tier.

Google Features: 

• Full-fledged word processor
• Integrates with other Google products like Google Drive or Sheets
• Fully online for easier access and collaboration with teams

Google Docs Pros:

• Easy to use and an industry standard that most people are familiar with
• Frequently updated by Google
• Free version is fully functioning and great for small businesses

Google Docs Cons: 

• Keeping your docs organized is no small task
• Limited number of templates
• No native desktop version

Google Docs Cost:

These prices are for subscriptions to the Google Workspace and other Google programs like Gmail and Drive

• Business Starter : $5.40/ month per user
• Business Standard : $10.80/ month per user
• Business Plus : $18/ month per user

Google Docs Ratings and reviews:

• G2: 4.7/5 (6000+ reviews)

Notion is an incredibly powerful productivity tool for writers, offering a range of features that make it easy to organize and write their work. With Notion, writers can easily create documents, store them in the cloud, and share them with other people. It’s also great for tracking progress on stories or writing projects.

Plus, Notion offers a variety of templates that make it easier to get started with the tool right away. There are templates for different writing projects and even journals to keep track of your thoughts and ideas. Notion is also incredibly handy for collaboration; writers can share documents and notes easily, and it also supports multiple users editing the same document simultaneously.

Overall, Notion is a versatile tool for writers looking to stay organized and make the most of their writing process. From notetaking to collaboration and more, Notion has something for everyone.

Notion Features: 

• Notes and Docs system allows you to easily write and store whatever you need
• Notion AI gives you access to an AI writing assistant that can help you clean up your notes or rewrite a tricky sentence
• The Wiki system makes it simple for you to organize and share your writing with colleagues

Notion Pros:

• All-in-one system simplifies writing, organizing, and sharing your documents
• Search features help you find the exact piece of writing you want
• Lots of features and integration to help you with whatever you need

Notion Cons: 

• The UI can quickly become messy compared to a more basic Microsoft Word tool
• Not the most functional book-writing software since it’s hard to use with unreliable internet connections

Notion Cost:

• Plus : $8/ month per user
• Business : $15/ month per user

Notion Ratings and Reviews:

• Capterra: 4.7/5 (1000+ reviews)

LINER is the search assistant you didn’t know you needed. As a writer, you spend almost as much time writing as you do research. For this reason, you need a dedicated tool that’s going to make research so much easier and more efficient.

LINER can do exactly this.

LINER integrates with your browser and makes your Google searches more helpful. For instance, when you ask Google a question, LINER will use AI to give you a quick answer. Or if you find a useful article, you can use LINER to highlight the important parts and save it for later in your own knowledge base. All of this helps you spend less time on research and more time getting your writing done.

LINER Features: 

• Search assistant recommends content when you search for something
• AI summarizes your search requests and suggests new searches for better research
• Highlight anything anywhere on the internet and then save it for later

LINER Pros:

• Saves you time when researching a topic by providing simple AI-generated answers to basic questions
• Great way to store articles to read later
• Allows you to highlight articles, YouTube videos, and more

LINER Cons: 

• AI answers can sometimes give you incorrect or incomplete information
• Features may not be helpful to everyone

LINER Cost:

• Essential : $8.83/ month
• Professional : $10.49/ month
• Workspace : Contact for pricing

LINER Ratings and reviews:

Reedsy Book Editor is less a tool and more a community. Lots of great writers have tons of fantastic ideas for books, but they don’t know how to actually get their books published. Reedsy was started to help aspiring authors get their work published. It does this by offering writers access to a network of professional editors, designers, and marketers.

It also provides resources like blog posts, webinars, and tutorials that help writers create the best book they can. The tool itself is a simple online editor that makes it easy to format books for Amazon Kindle or print-on-demand services.

With its easy-to-use interface, you can quickly upload your manuscript and then make any necessary changes to get it ready for publishing. Overall, Reedsy Book Editor is an invaluable resource for authors who want to take their writing to the next level. 

Need a little extra help getting your book off the ground and running? Try our free Book Planning template for better results!

Reedsy Features: 

• Includes a free 10-day course on how to publish a book
• Reedsy Marketplace allows you to connect with all kinds of professionals within the publishing industry
• Plot and content generator helps you get past writer’s block
• Easy book editor simplifies the process of actually creating a published work

Reedsy Pros:

• A single place for you to find editors, designers, and more to help you create a book
• One of the few free-to-use book writing software options
• Lots of content and tools to help you write

Reedsy Cons: 

• Focused primarily on helping you create a new book or short story

Reedsy Cost:

Reedsy ratings and reviews:.

• G2: 4.5/5 (1 review)

Bear is an Apple notetaking tool that helps you write down and keep track of your story ideas and to-do lists. Where Bear really stands out from the pack of the best writing tools in this list is with its beautiful UI. It’s organized in a way that’s easy to understand, and its minimalist design fits really well with the writing process.

Plus, Bear has lots of tagging tools that make organizing your notes and ideas simple and efficient. So you can easily keep track of everything you’ve written or plan to write without feeling overwhelmed. Whether you’re a student, a professional writer, or just someone who loves writing and brainstorming ideas , Bear is an invaluable writing software to have in your arsenal.

Bear Features: 

• Use hashtags and links to keep your notes organized
• Encryption keeps your notes private
• Markup editor helps coders work in over 150 programming languages
• Looks gorgeous
• Perfect for taking notes on the go or writing your latest essay
• Syncs across devices so you can work on your iPhone, iPad, or Mac

Bear Cons: 

• Only supported on the Apple ecosystem
• Lack of advanced writing or organizational features
• Pro : $14.99/ month

Bear Ratings and reviews:

• G2: 4.5/5 (42 reviews)
• Capterra: 4.5/5 (6 reviews)

Check out these Bear App alternatives !

Evernote is another helpful notetaking tool for writers because it allows them to save ideas, documents, and notes in one place. Evernote also makes it easier to collaborate on writing projects since you can easily share documents with others. 

Additionally, Evernote has many features that make organizing your writing simple and efficient. For instance, you can use its tagging system to quickly find relevant documents and notes. Also, Evernote’s search function makes finding specific keywords within your documents easy. Finally, Evernote also works as an archive for documents you don’t need regularly, so you always have access to them.

Evernote may not be the prettiest or newest tool on this list, but it’s certainly one of the most useful. If you’re looking for a writing tool to help you keep your writing organized and accessible, Evernote is definitely worth considering.

Evernote Features: 

• Task tool lets you keep on top of the things you need to get done today
• Offline functionality means you can access Evernote anywhere
• Integrates with your calendar

Evernote Pros:

• Files are searchable regardless of whether they’re in a note or a PDF
• Easy to add and edit images
• Lots of features that simplify the notetaking process

Evernote Cons: 

• Free version lacks key features like adding due dates or connecting your Google Calendar
• Expensive compared to competitors
• Not really ideal for book writing software

Evernote Cost:

• Personal : $8.99/ month
• Professional : $10.99/ month
• Teams : $14.99/month

Evernote Ratings and reviews:

• G2: 4.4/5 (1000+ reviews)
• Capterra: 4.4/5 (7000+ reviews)

Find your favorite writing tools today

Writing is an essential part of life, and there are many writing software options available to help make the process easier. Whether you’re looking for AI, a search assistant, book editor, or notetaker, something will work well for you in this list to keep you distraction-free.

One way to get started improving your writing efficiency today is with ClickUp. ClickUp can help any writer by giving you a single place to create, store, and organize your creative works and documents. It’s one of the best writing tools especially if you’re working with a team, getting feedback, and collaborating with your colleagues. 

ClickUp is free to try, so get started today and see how you can get more out of your writing hours.

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The Best Student Writing Contests for 2023-2024

Help your students take their writing to the next level.

When students write for teachers, it can feel like an assignment. When they write for a real purpose, they are empowered! Student writing contests are a challenging and inspiring way to try writing for an authentic audience— a real panel of judges —and the possibility of prize money or other incentives. We’ve gathered a list of the best student writing contests, and there’s something for everyone. Prepare highly motivated kids in need of an authentic writing mentor, and watch the words flow.

1.  The Scholastic Art & Writing Awards

With a wide range of categories—from critical essays to science fiction and fantasy—The Scholastic Awards are a mainstay of student contests. Each category has its own rules and word counts, so be sure to check out the options  before you decide which one is best for your students.

How To Enter

Students in grades 7-12, ages 13 and up, may begin submitting work in September by uploading to an online account at Scholastic and connecting to their local region. There are entry fees, but those can be waived for students in need.

2.  YoungArts National Arts Competition

This ends soon, but if you have students who are ready to submit, it’s worth it. YoungArts offers a national competition in the categories of creative nonfiction, novel, play or script, poetry, short story, and spoken word. Student winners may receive awards of up to $10,000 as well as the chance to participate in artistic development with leaders in their fields.

YoungArts accepts submissions in each category through October 13. Students submit their work online and pay a $35 fee (there is a fee waiver option).

3. National Youth Foundation Programs

Each year, awards are given for Student Book Scholars, Amazing Women, and the “I Matter” Poetry & Art competition. This is a great chance for kids to express themselves with joy and strength.

The rules, prizes, and deadlines vary, so check out the website for more info.

4.  American Foreign Service National High School Essay Contest

If you’re looking to help students take a deep dive into international relations, history, and writing, look no further than this essay contest. Winners receive a voyage with the Semester at Sea program and a trip to Washington, DC.

Students fill out a registration form online, and a teacher or sponsor is required. The deadline to enter is the first week of April.

5.  John F. Kennedy Profile in Courage Essay Contest

This annual contest invites students to write about a political official’s act of political courage that occurred after Kennedy’s birth in 1917. The winner receives $10,000, and 16 runners-up also receive a variety of cash prizes.

Students may submit a 700- to 1,000-word essay through January 12. The essay must feature more than five sources and a full bibliography.

6. Bennington Young Writers Awards

Bennington College offers competitions in three categories: poetry (a group of three poems), fiction (a short story or one-act play), and nonfiction (a personal or academic essay). First-place winners receive $500. Grab a poster for your classroom here .

The contest runs from September 1 to November 1. The website links to a student registration form.

7. The Princeton Ten-Minute Play Contest

Looking for student writing contests for budding playwrights? This exclusive competition, which is open only to high school juniors, is judged by the theater faculty of Princeton University. Students submit short plays in an effort to win recognition and cash prizes of up to $500. ( Note: Only open to 11th graders. )

Students submit one 10-page play script online or by mail. The deadline is the end of March. Contest details will be published in early 2024.

8. Princeton University Poetry Contest for High School Students

The Leonard L. Milberg ’53 High School Poetry Prize recognizes outstanding work by student writers in 11th grade. Prizes range from $100 to $500.

Students in 11th grade can submit their poetry. Contest details will be published this fall.

9. The New York Times Tiny Memoir Contest

This contest is also a wonderful writing challenge, and the New York Times includes lots of resources and models for students to be able to do their best work. They’ve even made a classroom poster !

Submissions need to be made electronically by November 1.

10.  Nancy Thorp Poetry Contest

The deadline for this contest is the end of October. Sponsored by Hollins University, the Nancy Thorp Poetry Contest awards prizes for the best poems submitted by young women who are sophomores or juniors in high school or preparatory school. Prizes include cash and scholarships. Winners are chosen by students and faculty members in the creative writing program at Hollins.

Students may submit either one or two poems using the online form.

11.  The Patricia Grodd Poetry Prize for Young Writers

The Patricia Grodd Poetry Prize for Young Writers is open to high school sophomores and juniors, and the winner receives a full scholarship to a  Kenyon Review Young Writers Workshop .

Submissions for the prize are accepted electronically from November 1 through November 30.

12. Jane Austen Society Essay Contest

High school students can win up to $1,000 and publication by entering an essay on a topic specified by the Jane Austen Society related to a Jane Austen novel.

Details for the 2024 contest will be announced in November. Essay length is from six to eight pages, not including works cited.

13. Rattle Young Poets Anthology

Open to students from 15 to 18 years old who are interested in publication and exposure over monetary awards.

Teachers may choose five students for whom to submit up to four poems each on their behalf. The deadline is November 15.

14. The Black River Chapbook Competition

This is a chance for new and emerging writers to gain publication in their own professionally published chapbook, as well as $500 and free copies of the book.

There is an $18 entry fee, and submissions are made online.

15. YouthPlays New Voices

For students under 18, the YouthPlays one-act competition is designed for young writers to create new works for the stage. Winners receive cash awards and publication.

Scroll all the way down their web page for information on the contest, which accepts non-musical plays between 10 and 40 minutes long, submitted electronically. Entries open each year in January.

16. The Ocean Awareness Contest

The 2024 Ocean Awareness Contest, Tell Your Climate Story , encourages students to write their own unique climate story. They are asking for creative expressions of students’ personal experiences, insights, or perceptions about climate change. Students are eligible for a wide range of monetary prizes up to $1,000.

Students from 11 to 18 years old may submit work in the categories of art, creative writing, poetry and spoken word, film, interactive media and multimedia, or music and dance, accompanied by a reflection. The deadline is June 13.

17. EngineerGirl Annual Essay Contest

Each year, EngineerGirl sponsors an essay contest with topics centered on the impact of engineering on the world, and students can win up to $500 in prize money. This contest is a nice bridge between ELA and STEM and great for teachers interested in incorporating an interdisciplinary project into their curriculum. The new contest asks for pieces describing the life cycle of an everyday object. Check out these tips for integrating the content into your classroom .

Students submit their work electronically by February 1. Check out the full list of rules and requirements here .

18. NCTE Student Writing Awards

The National Council of Teachers of English offers several student writing awards, including Achievement Awards in Writing (for 10th- and 11th-grade students), Promising Young Writers (for 8th-grade students), and an award to recognize Excellence in Art and Literary Magazines.

Deadlines range from October 28 to February 15. Check out NCTE.org for more details.

19. See Us, Support Us Art Contest

Children of incarcerated parents can submit artwork, poetry, photos, videos, and more. Submissions are free and the website has a great collection of past winners.

Students can submit their entries via social media or email by October 25.

20. The Adroit Prizes for Poetry & Prose

The Adroit Journal, an education-minded nonprofit publication, awards annual prizes for poetry and prose to exceptional high school and college students. Adroit charges an entry fee but also provides a form for financial assistance.

Sign up at the website for updates for the next round of submissions.

21. National PTA Reflections Awards

The National PTA offers a variety of awards, including one for literature, in their annual Reflections Contest. Students of all ages can submit entries on the specified topic to their local PTA Reflections program. From there, winners move to the local area, state, and national levels. National-level awards include an $800 prize and a trip to the National PTA Convention.

This program requires submitting to PTAs who participate in the program. Check your school’s PTA for their deadlines.

22. World Historian Student Essay Competition

The World Historian Student Essay Competition is an international contest open to students enrolled in grades K–12 in public, private, and parochial schools, as well as those in home-study programs. The $500 prize is based on an essay that addresses one of this year’s two prompts.

Students can submit entries via email or regular mail before May 1.

23. NSHSS Creative Writing Scholarship

The National Society of High School Scholars awards three $2,000 scholarships for both poetry and fiction. They accept poetry, short stories, and graphic novel writing.

Apply online by October 31.

Whether you let your students blog, start a podcast or video channel, or enter student writing contests, giving them an authentic audience for their work is always a powerful classroom choice.

If you like this list of student writing contests and want more articles like it, subscribe to our newsletters to find out when they’re posted!

Plus, check out our favorite anchor charts for teaching writing..

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75 digital tools and apps teachers can use to support formative assessment in the classroom

There is no shortage of  formative assessment strategies, techniques, and tools  available to teachers who use formative instructional practice in their classrooms. Here is an extensive list of 75 digital tools, apps, and platforms that can help you and your students use formative assessment to elicit evidence of learning. We didn’t just add any old tool to this list. Here are the criteria we used for those that made the cut:

• Supports formative instructional strategies and ways to activate learners to be resources for themselves and peers
• Is free or awful close to it (under $10 per year, where possible)
• Allows both students and teachers to take the activator role when possible (sometimes teachers need to get things started)

Before you dig into the tools, I encourage you to spend some time thinking about exactly what you want to accomplish with your students.  “How to pick the right digital tool: Start with your learning goal”  by Erin Beard can help you wrap your head around goals and guide you in choosing the best tool for the task.  “27 easy formative assessment strategies for gathering evidence of student learning”  can help you decide what strategies work best for you and your students.

Record audio and video

• Animoto  Gives students the ability to make a 30-second video of what they learned in a lesson.
• AudioNote  A combination of a voice recorder and notepad, it captures both audio and notes for student collaboration.
• Edpuzzle  Helps you use video (your own, or one from Khan Academy, YouTube, and more) to track student understanding.
• Flip  Lets students use 15-second to 5-minute videos to respond to prompts. Teachers and peers can provide feedback.
• QuickVoice Recorder  Allows you to record classes, discussions, or audio for projects. Sync your recordings to your computer easily for use in presentations.
• Vocaroo  Creates audio recordings without the need for software. Embed the recording into slideshows, presentations, or websites.
• WeVideo  Lets you use video creatively to engage students in learning. Teachers and students alike can make videos.

Create quizzes, polls, and surveys

• Crowdsignal  Lets you create online polls, quizzes, and questions. Students can use smartphones, tablets, and computers to provide their answers, and information can be culled for reports.
• Edulastic  Allows you to make standards-aligned assessments and get instant feedback.
• FreeOnlineSurveys  Helps you create surveys, quizzes, forms, and polls.
• Gimkit  Lets you write real-time quizzes. And it was designed by a high school student!
• Google Forms  Part of the Google suite, Google Forms lets you create quizzes, polls, and surveys and see answers in real time.
• Kahoot!  A game-based classroom response system that lets you create quizzes using internet content.
• MicroPoll  Helps you create polls, embed them into websites, and analyze responses.
• Naiku  Lets you write quizzes students can answer using their mobile devices.
• Poll Everywhere  Lets you create a feedback poll or ask questions and see results in real time. Allows students to respond in various ways. With open-ended questions, you can capture data and spin up tag clouds to aggregate responses.
• Poll Maker  Offers unique features, like allowing multiple answers to one question.
• ProProfs  Helps you make quizzes, polls, and surveys.
• Quia  Lets you create games, quizzes, surveys, and more. Access a database of existing quizzes from other educators.
• Quizalize  Helps you create quizzes and homework.
• Quizizz  Guides you through designing quizzes and lets you include students in the quiz-writing process.
• Quizlet  Lets you make flashcards, tests, quizzes, and study games that are mobile friendly.
• Quizmaker  Helps you write quizzes quickly and easily.
• Survey Hero  Designed to build questionnaires and surveys.
• SurveyMonkey  Helpful for online polls and surveys.
• SurveyPlanet  Also helpful for online polls and surveys.
• Zoho Survey  Allows you to make mobile-friendly surveys and see results in real time.

Brainstorm, mind map, and collaborate

• AnswerGarden  A tool for online brainstorming and collaboration.
• Coggle  A mind-mapping tool designed to help you understand student thinking.
• Conceptboard  Software that facilitates team collaboration in a visual format, similar to mind mapping but using visual and text inputs.
• Dotstorming  A whiteboard app that allows digital sticky notes to be posted and voted on. This tool is best for generating class discussion and brainstorming on different topics and questions.
• Educreations Whiteboard  A whiteboard app that lets students share what they know.
• iBrainstorm  Lets students collaborate on projects using a stylus or their finger.
• Miro  Allows whole-class collaboration in real time.
• Padlet  Provides a blank canvas for students to create and design collaborative projects.
• ShowMe Interactive Whiteboard  Another whiteboard tool to check understanding.
• XMind  Mind-mapping software for use on desktop computers and laptops.
• Equity Maps  These discussion maps can help you ensure every student has a chance to share their ideas.

Present, engage, and inspire

• BrainPOP  Lets you use prerecorded videos on countless topics to shape your lesson plan, then use quizzes to see what stuck.
• Buncee  Helps students and teachers visualize, communicate, and engage with classroom concepts.
• Five Card Flickr  Uses the tag feature from photos in Flickr to foster visual thinking.
• PlayPosit  Allows you to add formative assessment features to a video from a library or popular sites, such as YouTube and Vimeo, to survey what students know about a topic.
• RabbleBrowser  Allows a leader to facilitate a collaborative browsing experience.
• Random Name/Word Picker  Facilitates random name picking. You can also add a list of keywords and use the tool to prompt students to guess words by providing definitions.
• Socrative  Uses exercises and games to engage students with a topic.
• Adobe Express  Lets you add graphics and visuals to exit tickets.
• Typeform  Helps you add graphical elements to polls.

Generate word or tag clouds

• EdWordle  Generates word clouds from any entered text to help aggregate responses and facilitate discussion. Word clouds are pictures composed of a cloud of smaller words that form a clue to the topic.
• Tagxedo  Allows you to examine student consensus and facilitate dialogues.
• Wordables  Helps you elicit evidence of learning or determine background knowledge about a topic.
• WordArt  Includes a feature that allows the user to make each word an active link to connect to websites, including YouTube.

Get real-time feedback

• Formative  Lets you assign activities, receive results in real time, and provide immediate feedback.
• GoSoapBox  Works with the bring-your-own-device model and includes an especially intriguing feature: a confusion meter.
• IXL  Breaks down options by grade level and content area.
• Kaizena  Gives students real-time feedback on work they upload. You can use a highlighter or give verbal feedback. You can also attach resources.
• Mentimeter  Allows you to use mobile phones or tablets to vote on any question a teacher asks, increasing student engagement.
• Pear Deck  Lets you plan and build interactive presentations that students can participate in via their smart device. It also offers unique question types.
• Plickers  Allows you to collect real-time formative assessment data without the need for student devices.
• Quick Key  Helps you with accurate marking, instant grading, and immediate feedback.

Foster family communication  

• Remind  Lets you text students and stay in touch with families.
• Seesaw  Helps you improve family communication and makes formative assessment easy, while students can use the platform to document their learning.
• Voxer  Lets you send recordings so families can hear how their students are doing, students can chat about their work, and you can provide feedback.

Strengthen teacher-to-student or student-to-student communication

• AnswerGarden  Gives you access to formative assessment feedback.
• Biblionasium  Lets you view books students have read, create reading challenges, and track progress. Students can also review and recommend books to their peers.
• Classkick  Helps you post assignments for students, and both you and your students’ peers can provide feedback. Students can also monitor their progress and work.
• TeacherEase Rubrics . This paid tool can help you ensure your rubrics are clear and accurate.
• Lino  A virtual cork board of sticky notes, it lets students ask questions or make comments on their learning.
• Online Stopwatch  Provides dozens of themed digital classroom timers to use during small- and whole-group discussions.
• Peergrade  Helps you create assignments and upload rubrics. You can also anonymously assign peer review work. Students can upload and review work using the corresponding rubric.
• Verso  Lets you set up learning using a URL. Space is provided for directions. Students can add their assignment, post comments, and respond to comments. You can group responses and check engagement levels.
• VoiceThread  Allows you to create and share conversations on documents, diagrams, videos, pictures, and more.

Keep the conversation going with live chats

• Yo Teach  A backchannel site great for keeping the conversation going with students.
• Chatzy  Supports live, online chats in a private setting.

Create and store documents or assignments

• Google Drive  Google Drive allows you to create documents students can collaborate on in real time using smartphones, tablets, and laptops.
• Piazza  Lets you upload lectures, assignments, and homework; pose and respond to student questions; and poll students about class content. This tool is better suited for older students as it mimics post-secondary class instructional formats.

There are several resources for learning more about formative assessment and responsive instruction strategies. Consider our  formative practices workshops , where school and district teams can gain a better understanding of the role formative practice plays in instruction and the four foundational practices to use in the classroom. Or for a quick start, download our eBook  “Making it work: How formative assessment can supercharge your practice.”

Jump in, try new tools and methods, and have fun!

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Making it work: How formative assessment can supercharge your practice

Formative assessment isn’t new. But as our education system changes, our approaches to any instructional strategy must evolve. Learn how to put formative assessment to work in your classroom.

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Traveling arts organization sparks creative writing skills in students across Santa Barbara County

SANTA BARBARA COUNTY, Calif. – They are called story pirates.

“Part of a group of folks who take stories from students and live action play them out before they’re very eyes," director of education Jenna Hamilton-Rolle of the UCSB Arts & Lectures.

The actors create a fast-paced fully-improvised show.

The results are hilarious.

“The main character is a purple slug named tom and he's making paintings," student Mason Sancez of Brandon Elementary School.

Hosted by the UCSB Arts & Lectures Art Adventures Program, the focus is bringing kids into the story creation zone to create a story on the spot.

"They're in there telling their stories will the pirates reenact their imagination. so they’re having their story come to life," said parent Sara Sanchez of Brandon Elementary School.

UCSB Arts & Lectures believes Story Pirates will help kids open their minds and use their imaginations

"So excited the students are having a great time. they’ve been looking forward to the story pirates and we’ve been so blessed to have them come to our school," said Sara Sanchez.

The Story Pirates are best known for their podcast which has more than 70 million downloads.

And their hope is to remind students that they are all creative geniuses.

“Have value in the words that they use and so encouraging them to bring those that creativity in those arts to life," said Hamilton-Rolle.

“It’s super fun. it’s like … the best assembly i’ve seen," said Mason Sanchez.

The Story Pirates team hopes the students can now set sail on their own journeys to become the story-tellers of tomorrow.

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ChatGPT: The Challenges It Presents for Writing Assignments

• Original Paper
• Published: 03 June 2024

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• Hagit Meishar-Tal   ORCID: orcid.org/0000-0001-5951-6595 1  

This paper critically analyzes the potential impact of ChatGPT, a creative artificial intelligence tool, on learning and teaching, focusing on its impact on using writing assignments as a means of assessing knowledge. The paper examines the challenges this tool presents to learners and teachers in various aspects, including writing as a means of constructing knowledge, designing writing assignments, and assessing ChatGPT-assisted writing tasks. The paper examines the challenges posed by ChatGPT for writing from three different aspects: the role of ChatGPT as a learning support tool, the consequences of using ChatGPT for acquiring 21st-century skills, and challenges regarding the evaluation of the learners. The analysis indicates that ChatGPT might serve as a performance support system rather than a learning support tool. It also argued that incorporating ChatGPT into the learning process requires a significant degree of critical thinking from both students and teachers. It is crucial that they utilize this tool with the primary objective of enriching their thinking and writing abilities rather than seeking to circumvent the cognitive information processing mechanisms as a shortcut to produce writing products.

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Meishar-Tal, H. ChatGPT: The Challenges It Presents for Writing Assignments. TechTrends (2024). https://doi.org/10.1007/s11528-024-00972-z

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Accepted : 23 May 2024

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