Three Great Writing Websites

Here are some interesting websites for writers that have been recommended to me recently. It's a varied selection, so hopefully there will be something here for everybody!

Seventh Sanctum was recommended by CradleThief, a member of my forum at www.mywriterscircle.com. The site contains a wide variety of idea generators for fiction writers. Here's what they say on their homepage:

Even the best writers sometime need a little stimulation, if only for practice. Otherwise, writers may face the dismal monstrosity of writer's block. These generators are here to help when you need that plot, that idea, or that challenge to keep fresh.

Just a few of the many idea generators on the site include the Quick Story Generator, which comes up with basic plot ideas, and the Envisioner, which "combines legends, tales, and stories with new or unexpected elements". When I tried out the Envisioner this morning, it came up with the following possibilities:

* The story of Ali Baba envisioned as a high-school comedy tale.

* A fusion of the story of Aladdin and the tale of William Tell.

* The legend of Johnny Appleseed being about a group of network engineers.

* A fusion of the legend of Ilmarinen and the legend of Orion envisioned as a for-the-gentlemen tale.

* The story of Sinbad set in heaven.

You have to admit that there are some intriguing possibilities there! Seventh Sanctum also has generators for character names, superheroes, organisations and even magic spells. A lot of these are admittedly quite tongue-in-cheek, but if you ever find yourself running short on inspiration, a quick visit to this site should certainly prime your pump again.

My second featured site is Writing Fix. This site was recommended to me by Jenny Hall, a purchaser of my course Write Any Book in Under 28 Days. Writing Fix is another site that aims to help writers find inspiration. It has an educational bias, and is suitable for both adults and children.

Writing Fix includes over 200 interactive on-line writing games. These games are structured series of activities designed to produce a finished piece of writing. They are much more detailed and interactive than the lists of writing prompts you will find on other websites.

The Build Your Own Adventure Story game, for example, takes you step-by-step through the process of choosing your adventurer's name, outlining three exciting moments that will happen during his or her adventure, then mapping and writing the paragraphs that will comprise the story.

Writing Fix would be a great resource for writing teachers or writers who work in schools, though it can equally be used by individual writers seeking inspiration as well. There is also a section dedicated to younger writers which (my correspondent Jenny tells me) was a huge success with her seven-year-old. You can access this section directly vis this link.

Finally, I heard about Abcwritersnetwork from its proprietor, Kevin Hart. This promising new site features a range of articles, advice and information for freelance writers.

One particularly useful section is the database of writing contests. To find this, click on Competitions in the left-hand menu. An article 'Ten Tips on How to Win' will appear. Above this, however, you should see a grid with the months of the year on it. Click on any month and a list of all writing contests ending that month will be displayed.

The contests listed are based all over the world, though predominantly in the US and the UK. Basic details are provided, along with a link to the relevant website. As well as contests, some other writing opportunities are also listed, e.g. anthologies which are currently accepting submissions.

Abcwritersnetwork is a new site and still developing, but already it looks a very useful resource for writers who enjoy entering competitions in particular.

So there you are - three interesting and varied websites for you to explore and use in your writing. Happy browsing!