{"id":721,"date":"2018-02-06T07:27:21","date_gmt":"2018-02-06T07:27:21","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/refiction.com\/?p=721"},"modified":"2022-05-30T15:41:21","modified_gmt":"2022-05-30T15:41:21","slug":"pre-writing-strategies","status":"publish","type":"articles","link":"https:\/\/refiction.com\/articles\/pre-writing-strategies","title":{"rendered":"Pre-Writing Strategies and Brainstorming Tools"},"content":{"rendered":"<p>Getting your story notes together can be a process just as challenging\u2014and fun!\u2014as writing the story itself. Here is a collection of some of the best pre-writing strategies and brainstorming tools to help you in that important stage.<strong>\u00a0<\/strong><\/p>\n<h2>Idea Mapping<\/h2>\n<p>Many authors need to\u00a0<em>see<\/em>\u00a0character names, dates, and notes right in front of them as they plot. Okay, so many stalkers and police investigators need that, too\u2014but for authors, it happens to be a great way to visualize what they\u2019re working on. Here are some idea mapping, storyboarding and whiteboard software for writers.<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li><a href=\"http:\/\/www.spaaze.com\/\"><strong>Spaaze<\/strong><\/a><strong>\u00a0<\/strong>is a virtual, online corkboard that lets you tack memos, photos and other things to a virtual board to remember later. This is endlessly useful to authors. Similar services include\u00a0<a href=\"https:\/\/pinup.com\/\">PinUp<\/a><\/li>\n<li><a href=\"https:\/\/awwapp.com\/\"><strong>AWW App<\/strong><\/a><strong>\u00a0<\/strong>is real-time, online whiteboard software that allows you to write and draw your ideas in real-time and share it \u2013 should you need to \u2013 with anyone. Similar sites are\u00a0<a href=\"https:\/\/www.miro.com\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">Miro\u00a0<\/a>and\u00a0<a href=\"https:\/\/webwhiteboard.com\/\">WebWhiteBoard<\/a>.<\/li>\n<li><a href=\"https:\/\/visualizefree.com\/\"><strong>Visualize Free<\/strong><\/a>\u00a0is described as \u201cfree data visualization software\u201d &#8211; this means that it lets you see your data represented as any number of graphs or charts which you can pick from the website. Every choice, every person \u2013 everything has\u00a0<em>data<\/em>. Use it!<\/li>\n<li><a href=\"https:\/\/infogram.com\/create\/treemap\"><strong>InfoGram\u2019s TreeMap Creator<\/strong><\/a><strong>\u00a0<\/strong>helps you create a visual treemap for keeping track of multiple-choice selections, various plot points or other data.\u00a0<a href=\"https:\/\/www.lucidchart.com\/pages\/planning\/decision-tree-examples\">Lucid Chart\u2019s Decision Tree Maker<\/a>\u00a0does pretty much the same.<\/li>\n<li><a href=\"https:\/\/bubbl.us\/\"><strong>Bubbl<\/strong><\/a>\u00a0makes mind maps and allows you to share them with other people through the internet \u2013 or add them to your story plot\u2019s file.<\/li>\n<li><a href=\"https:\/\/www.familyecho.com\/\"><strong>Family Echo<\/strong>\u00a0<\/a>lets you create printable family trees for keeping track of your character\u2019s pedigree.\u00a0<a href=\"https:\/\/www.rootsmagic.com\/Essentials\/\">RootsMagic Essentials<\/a>\u00a0is another downloadable family tree creator.<\/li>\n<li><a href=\"http:\/\/www.flippingbook.com\/\"><strong>FlippingBook<\/strong><\/a>\u00a0is an online photo album creator that could help authors create a fictional, visual history for their characters or locations.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<h2>Words, Names &amp; Locations<\/h2>\n<p>Words and names hold power. That\u2019s why writers can take so damned long to come up with a good one. Here are some good word and name generators and dictionaries that\u2019ll help you out when you\u2019re in a hurry.<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li><a href=\"https:\/\/www.behindthename.com\/\"><strong>Behind the Name<\/strong><\/a><strong>\u00a0<\/strong>tells you the origin, popularity, and meaning of common first names and is a definite help when you don\u2019t know what to name a character.<\/li>\n<li><a href=\"https:\/\/www.behindthename.com\/random\/\"><strong>The Random Name Generator<\/strong><\/a>\u00a0is available from Behind the Name and will choose a name from its database at random. There\u2019s also\u00a0<a href=\"http:\/\/www.fakenamegenerator.com\/\">Fake Name Generator<\/a>\u00a0and\u00a0<a href=\"http:\/\/www.fantasynamegenerators.com\/\">Fantasy Name Generator<\/a><\/li>\n<li><a href=\"https:\/\/www.ancestry.com\/learn\/facts\/\"><strong>Ancestry.com<\/strong><\/a>\u00a0can help you out with the history, origin, and meaning behind surnames instead.<\/li>\n<li><a href=\"https:\/\/randomwordgenerator.com\/\"><strong>Random Word Generator<\/strong><\/a><strong>\u00a0<\/strong>generates random words by class: Phrases, adjectives, nouns or names. You\u2019d be surprised how many ideas can sprout from a single word.<\/li>\n<li><a href=\"http:\/\/www.synonym.com\/\"><strong>The Synonym Thesaurus<\/strong><\/a>\u00a0provides you with synonyms and antonyms if you\u2019re stuck on a word and are in need of an alternative.<\/li>\n<li><a href=\"https:\/\/www.random.org\/geographic-coordinates\/\"><strong>Random.org\u2019s Geographic Coordinates<\/strong><\/a>\u00a0will find you a random place on the planet \u2013 any place \u2013 by coordinates. Combine this technology with Google Maps and your lead character could end up anywhere in the world when they step through that portal.\u00a0<a href=\"http:\/\/www.geomidpoint.com\/random\/\">GeoMidPoint<\/a>\u00a0also calculates a random online location with coordinates and map.<\/li>\n<li><a href=\"https:\/\/www.randomlists.com\/random-country\"><strong>Random Country Generator<\/strong><\/a><strong>\u00a0<\/strong>chooses a list of randomized countries. Where should your character go next?<\/li>\n<li><a href=\"https:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Wikipedia:Random\"><strong>Random Wikipedia Articles<\/strong><\/a><strong>\u00a0<\/strong>are valuable and worth refreshing to see what pops up. Searching through a database containing millions of places, names, people, words and things it could lead any writer\u2019s mind in a new direction.<\/li>\n<li><a href=\"https:\/\/wordsmith.org\/anagram\/\"><strong>The Internet Acronym Server<\/strong><\/a><strong>\u00a0<\/strong>unscrambles (or scrambles) letters to tell you every single acronym it can find for the arrangement. Both fun and useful, and we\u2019d assume it might\u2019ve been how\u00a0<em>Tom Marvolo Riddle\u00a0<\/em>and\u00a0<em>I am Lord Voldemort<\/em>\u00a0worked in several languages&#8230;<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<h2>Dates &amp; Timelines<\/h2>\n<p>Timelines and chronology are vital to a writer. You might want to know\u00a0<em>what song<\/em>\u00a0was top of the charts on a certain day\u2014or need to figure out just what took place in the news on 6 December 1965\u2014or maybe you just need to keep track of your story\u2019s timeline. Here are the best resources for dates, times and timelines.<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li><a href=\"https:\/\/www.textfixer.com\/tools\/random-choice.php\"><strong>The Random Choice Generator<\/strong>\u00a0<\/a>makes a random choice from a selection of user-input choices. This is like the techy version of Choose Your Own Adventure, perfect for if you aren\u2019t sure which direction a character should take.<\/li>\n<li><a href=\"https:\/\/www.timeanddate.com\/date\/duration.html\"><strong>Duration Calculator<\/strong><\/a>\u00a0tells you the days, hours, minutes and seconds that have passed between two user-entered dates.<\/li>\n<li><a href=\"http:\/\/people.albion.edu\/imacinnes\/calendar\/Day_of_the_Week.html\"><strong>Day of the Week Calculator<\/strong><\/a><strong>\u00a0<\/strong>tells you, simply, what day of the week a certain date was \u2013 and yes, when referring to any flashback (or historical fiction) it\u2019s something you\u2019ll find useful!<\/li>\n<li><a href=\"http:\/\/www.thisdayinmusic.com\/birthdayno1\"><strong>This Day in Music<\/strong><\/a><strong>\u00a0<\/strong>tells you just that: What songs were #1 on the worldwide charts on a certain date, when musicians were born, albums got released: It\u2019s your historical music check-in site.<\/li>\n<li><a href=\"http:\/\/www.history.com\/this-day-in-history\"><strong>This Day in History<\/strong><\/a><strong>\u00a0<\/strong>tells you everything notable that happened on specific days in history. Extremely useful for cross-referencing and knowing, for example, what a character would have experienced or seen on the news that day.<\/li>\n<li><a href=\"http:\/\/www.newspapers.com\/Archive%E2%80%8E\"><strong>Newspaper Archive<\/strong><\/a><strong>\u00a0<\/strong>is a searchable newspaper archive containing newspapers all over the world. A paid subscription is absolutely worth it if you find yourself needing to refer to archived news on a regular basis.<\/li>\n<li><a href=\"http:\/\/timeglider.com\/\"><strong>TimeGlider<\/strong><\/a><strong>\u00a0<\/strong>creates timelines you can visualize and download. Similar tools include\u00a0<a href=\"https:\/\/time.graphics\/\">Time Graphics<\/a>,\u00a0<a href=\"https:\/\/www.officetimeline.com\/\">Office Timeline<\/a>,\u00a0<a href=\"https:\/\/www.smartsheet.com\/timeline-maker\">SmartSheet<\/a>, and\u00a0<a href=\"https:\/\/www.lucidchart.com\/pages\/timeline-maker\">Lucid Chart<\/a>.<\/li>\n<li><a href=\"https:\/\/www.timeanddate.com\/worldclock\/\"><strong>World Clock<\/strong><\/a>\u00a0tells you what time it is elsewhere in the world, and we guarantee it will come in handy.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<h2>Quotable Quotes and Verifying Facts<\/h2>\n<p>It\u2019s just as easy to get stuck on facts: What movie was that quote from? Did that really happen? Is it true that you shouldn\u2019t swim after eating? Here are some quick quote and fact checkers.<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li><a href=\"http:\/\/www.quodb.com\/\"><strong>QuoteDB<\/strong><\/a>\u00a0is the online movie quotes database which catalogs millions upon millions of movies and TV shows. You can also try\u00a0<a href=\"http:\/\/www.subzin.com\/\">SubZin<\/a>,\u00a0<a href=\"http:\/\/www.moviequotes.com\/\">MovieQuotes<\/a>,\u00a0<a href=\"http:\/\/quotacle.com\/\">Quotacle<\/a>.<\/li>\n<li><a href=\"https:\/\/getyarn.io\/\"><strong>GetYarn<\/strong><\/a><strong>\u00a0<\/strong>finds you video clips from movies and TV, searchable by topic or quote.<\/li>\n<li><a href=\"https:\/\/quoteinvestigator.com\/\"><strong>Quote Investigator<\/strong><\/a>\u00a0is a handy resource to keep an eye on if you want to know the origin of some famous quotes. You can also try\u00a0<a href=\"https:\/\/www.quotenik.com\/\">QuoteNik<\/a>,\u00a0<a href=\"http:\/\/en.wikiquote.com\/\">WikiQuotes<\/a>\u00a0and\u00a0<a href=\"http:\/\/www.saidwhat.co.uk\/quotes\/search\/\">SaidWhat<\/a><\/li>\n<li><a href=\"http:\/\/www.snopes.com\/\"><strong>Snopes<\/strong><\/a><strong>\u00a0<\/strong>is a long-reliable resource that helps check into urban legends and potentially sketchy news stories. Run something through here if you want to know whether something really happened or was just a clever hoax.<\/li>\n<li><a href=\"http:\/\/www.encyclopedia.com\/\"><strong>Encyclopedia.com<\/strong><\/a>\u00a0is an online encyclopedia alternative to Wikipedia \u2013 still free. Take a look at\u00a0<a href=\"https:\/\/www.britannica.com\/\">Encyclopedia Britannica<\/a>, too.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<h2>Media and More<\/h2>\n<ul>\n<li><a href=\"http:\/\/www.tineye.com\/\"><strong>TinEye Reverse Image Search<\/strong><\/a><strong>\u00a0<\/strong>finds you the origin of a photo and\/or similar images. Especially useful for researching the origin (or attributable copyright) of something.\u00a0<a href=\"https:\/\/reverse.photos\/\">Google Reverse Image Search<\/a>\u00a0works too.<\/li>\n<li><a href=\"https:\/\/search.creativecommons.org\/\"><strong>Creative Commons Search\u00a0<\/strong><\/a>finds you copyright-free images and other media: This can help you find images to tack on-to storyboards, images of places. Many writers use images like these to visualize characters, too. Other media databases include\u00a0<a href=\"http:\/\/flickr.com\/\">Flickr<\/a>\u00a0and\u00a0<a href=\"http:\/\/www.photobucket.com\/\">Photobucket<\/a><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<h2>Creative Character &amp; World Building<\/h2>\n<p>For some writers, building or visualizing a world for their characters to live in happens a little bit more creatively \u2013 or visually. Here are a few tools that will help you do that.<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li><a href=\"https:\/\/www.zeemaps.com\/\"><strong>ZeeMaps<\/strong><\/a><strong>\u00a0<\/strong>is an online map creator;\u00a0<a href=\"https:\/\/maphub.net\/\">MapHub<\/a>\u00a0also lets you create interactive online maps.<\/li>\n<li><strong>Blender<\/strong>\u00a0is an open-source 3D model creator software: It allows you to create (or import) objects and create full-scale worlds or rooms. And it\u2019s not that hard if you have the time to play around with the software after watching some tutorials.\u00a0<em>Build<\/em>\u00a0your world and walk around in it if you have to.<\/li>\n<li><a href=\"https:\/\/www.openhub.net\/p\/identikit\"><strong>The Identikit Open Source Project<\/strong><\/a><strong>\u00a0<\/strong>is a simple Java-based app that lets you create identikits \u2013 or as writers might refer to them for the purposes of writing, character faces.<\/li>\n<li><a href=\"https:\/\/www.blackdesertonline.com\/events\/ccm\/\"><strong>Black Desert&#8217;s Character Creator Tool<\/strong><\/a>\u00a0has been called one of the best in-game character creator tools available \u2013 and here you can download it without the game as a stand-alone application to create characters you can visualize. You can also download a demo version of the character creator that comes with\u00a0<a href=\"http:\/\/sims-online.com\/download-sims-4-create-a-sim-demo-now\/\">The Sims 4<\/a>\u00a0\u2013 surprisingly useful when you\u2019re trying to create a person from the ground up.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n","protected":false},"template":"","categories":[7,12,40,15],"acf":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/refiction.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/articles\/721"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/refiction.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/articles"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/refiction.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/articles"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/refiction.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/723"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/refiction.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=721"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/refiction.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=721"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}