RESOURCES FOR WRITERS
The tools, books, and courses I actually use.
I'm not someone who recommends things lightly.
Everything on this page has genuinely made my writing life easier, better, or both. Some of these are affiliate links — which means I earn a little coffee money if you purchase through them, at no extra cost to you. But I'd be pointing you here anyway.
These are the things sitting on my actual desk, open in my actual browser, worn at the spine from actual use.
Software
Dabble — Writing App for Plotting and Drafting If you're serious about writing a book, you need a writing tool that thinks the way writers think. Dabble is built specifically for authors — it has the best plotting tools I've found, and it makes the messy process of drafting feel genuinely manageable. I use it myself and recommend it to every writer I work with. Find out more →
Vellum — Book Layout and Formatting Once your manuscript is ready, Vellum makes it look like a real book. Clean, professional, beautiful formatting for both print and ebook — without needing a design degree. It's the best book layout tool out there, and once you use it you won't go back. Find out more →
ProWritingAid — Writing and Editing Assistant ProWritingAid helps you catch what you can't see when you're too close to your own work — style issues, pacing problems, overused words, and more. It's not a replacement for a human editor, but it's a brilliant first pass before your manuscript goes anywhere. Find out more →
ThriveCart — Online Shop for Authors If you're selling anything online — courses, coaching, digital products — ThriveCart is the platform I trust for my own shop. It's clean, reliable, and built for creators. If you're thinking about selling your own products one day, this is where I'd start. Find out more →
Books
Save the Cat Writes a Novel — Jessica Brody The best story structure book for fiction writers, full stop. Jessica Brody took Blake Snyder's legendary screenwriting framework and made it work beautifully for novels. If you only read one craft book this year, make it this one. Find out more →
The Emotion Thesaurus — Angela Ackerman & Becca Puglisi This book lives permanently on my desk. When you know what your character is feeling but can't find the right way to show it on the page, this is where you go. An indispensable reference for any fiction writer who wants their emotional scenes to actually land. Find out more →
Please note that some of the links on this page are affiliate links, which means I may earn a small commission if you purchase through them. I only ever recommend products I use and genuinely believe in.