Favorite Writing Tools

How many do you use?

I was going to make a list of my own favorite writing tools, but then I decided to go straight to the experts. Several of my writing friends share the tools that make their writing lives easier. Take a look and then share anything you love in the comments.

USA Today Bestseller and Agatha Award winner Ellen Byron writes such great cozy mysteries. We’re all in for a treat later this year when the first in her brand new series featuring an LA sitcom writer turned manager of a rustic motel in the woods releases. In the meantime, Ellen shares the tools that keep her writing life running smoothly:

1. “When all the news broke about how sitting for hours is the latest health risk, as a writer whose duff is planted in a seat for hours on end, I panicked. Trading in my u-shaped workspace for a standing desk was not doable, but I did a search and discovered Amazon sells a standing desk converter. I can raise it and lower it whenever I feel like it. In fact, I’m standing as I type this! 

2. I print out hard copies of my first drafts and there is only one writing utensil I’ll use to edit: the Papermate Sharpwriter mechanical pencil. You twist to adjust the lead, which gives you much more control over it than the clicking kind of mechanical pencil, where I always ended up with pieces of lead that were too long and broke. The Sharpwriter has a top-notch eraser, as opposed to some of the cheaper ones on lesser mechanical pencils. I also use the pencils to write all my lists.

3. And speaking of lists, Post-its are critical to my survival as both a writer and general human being. I’m a lifelong list maker. The woman who moved into my college apartment after I graduated said she was still finding lists I made six months after I moved out. I love Post-its in all sizes but my go-to is the 4”x6” lined yellow pad. The color is important to. When yellow isn’t available, I’ve bought pink or blue but I find something about those colors in a Post-it pad distracting. I know. It’s weird. But we writers do have our quirks.”

E.J. Copperman is the author of the Jersey Girl Legal Mysteries, the Asperger's Mysteries, the Haunted Guesthouse series, and many more. The one thing all his books have in common is how much fun you’ll have reading them! He shares:

“I don’t have a favorite tool for writing. I know some authors still use legal pads and pencils, and if you want to live in 1938 that’s okay with me, but it’s not something I especially care to do. To each one’s own. Say la vie, I always c’est.

But I do have a least favorite tool, so naturally it is the one I use more than anything else. Last year (that is, 2023), I had to say farewell to my relatively ancient iMac desktop and replaced it with a considerably less ancient iMac desktop. The differences are subtle, but expensive.

The computer itself is fine, honestly. No problems with writing on this machine. I’m using it now. But one of those subtle expensive changes has made alternations to the keyboard I use, the one piece of technology with which I interface most often, and it has turned into my least favorite writing tool.

Here’s a photograph of the new keyboard. See that key in the upper right of the main section, above “delete?” The one that looks like a plain circle? That has screwed everything up.

It’s there so the computer will recognize me by my fingerprint, which I try to avoid. I believe that Apple is trying to frame me for a murder. But in placing it there, the designers have moved a number of other keys away from their previous locations, and so I can’t navigate as well as I used to, and there’s no button to eject the disc from the outboard CD drive I insist on having because I actually do live in 1994.

Little complaints? Maybe. Niggling details? Perhaps. But I spend a decent amount of my day using decidedly non-cozy language when I try to do one thing on my keyboard and end up doing another.

“Oh, give it time,” you say. “You’ll get used to it.”

It’s been a year. How long is this going to take?”

End Game, the latest installment in USA Today bestselling author Tracey Devlyn’s super exciting romantic suspense series centering around the dangerous world of asset recovery, is hitting bookshelves everywhere very soon. Tracey took a break from gearing up for publication to share her favorite tool.

“A tool that saved my bacon while writing my three recent novels is the reMarkable tablet. Every morning, I’d draft a barebones scene on my reMarkable, then use the tablet’s Convert to Text feature to transform my scribble into Times New Roman. In the afternoon, I’d upload the text to Scrivener (also a fav tool) and edit the scene. There’s something about writing longhand that taps deeper into my creative side. The reMarkable is also great for keeping character notes and brainstorming plot through sad-looking, hand drawn mind maps.”

Romance author Beck Erixson, whose absolutely delightful Love Is Awkward series will have you swooning, shares:

“My favorite writing tool is actually the one that reminds me I can write and how far I've come. In front of my monitor is a small group of Funko Pops. Once I finish a full draft of a manuscript, I reward myself with a walk to the local comic book store or to Pop Freak. I then pick out a figurine that reflects the theme or one of the characters of the book-to-be. They’re a reminder I’m only another __________ words away from moving to the next step with a book.”

Leslie Karst is another one of my favorite cozy mystery authors. The Lefty Award-nominated author of Molten Death, the Sally Solari Mysteries, and Justice is Served: A Tale of Scallops, the Law, and Cooking for RBG shares the tool that keeps her writing life humming:

“My favorite writing tool, hands down, is my laptop. Not only is it an amazing word processor (cut and paste, baby!), but it also acts as all of these things, as well: research library, thesaurus, dictionary, alarm clock, filing cabinet, photo album, and calendar--all vital tools for when I'm writing. And it's portable! Almost miraculous, if you ask me.”

Toby Neal is a highly prolific mystery, thriller, cozy, romance and memoir author. Jut when you think she can’t top herself, she always does. Here’s intel on how she stays on task:

“My favorite writing tool is a good pair of Bose wireless headphones, and a subscription to Brain FM. This instrumental or tonal music is scientifically proven to help with concentration. I can put my headphones on and choose Deep Work, Creativity, Light Work, or Relaxation/Meditation tracks, and once I put those headphones and the music on, I'm gone into the work.

Brain FM plays continuously or for timed segments I choose. It helps me tune out the world around me and go deep into "writing mode" whether I'm at the kitchen table, on a plane, in a coffee shop, or just at home in my house with the doorbell ringing and the dog barking. The fee is nominal and it's worth every penny!”

What are the tools that make your writing life easier? Share in the comments!

Until next time,

Inside an Editor’s Brain is written by Kristen Weber, a freelance book editor who has worked with thousands of authors over the course of her career. She aims to be a kind and trustworthy voice during the crazy-making writing and publishing business. You can read most articles for free, but if you’d like to support Kristen and her efforts and get access to a few bonus issues please consider upgrading to a paid subscription.