Resources are a basic component of survival. As living beings, we need food, shelter, water, and clothing to keep us warm or cool. These are basics needs to be met to keep us alive. There are, of course, several layers of needs. If you think about it, we need access to proper health care and for some, the ability to progress academically to obtain a position that provides financial stability.
As writers, resources are just as essential to the survival of our craft. It might sound strange to those who aren’t into writing that there’s more to it than sitting down and putting a bunch of words together. After all, how hard can writing really be?

Picture this: You’re a writer and are currently working on a fiction piece. There you are, typing avidly, the story flowing from you in waves. At some point, you use a word you don’t quite like or find it’s not appropriate for the emotion you’re trying to convey. Or maybe you’re the writer who tends to use the same word too often and you’d like to replace it with another one. Which word do you use? What if you can’t recall a word and need to find one?
A dictionary and thesaurus are excellent ways to find words: ones that have a similar meanings and sound different or ones that sound the same and have different meanings. Dictionaries and thesauruses are crucial resources to the completion of your story.
Listed below, you’ll find numerous links to resources indispensable to your writing. As writers, we’ll need to use every tool we can get in our arsenal to help our work progress and to encourage our craft to stand out. Even simple details, such as the words we use to tell our stories, are vital in the drafting stage. Just as water is imperative to our survival, utilizing resources available to improve our writing is key to our success as writers.

  1. Perdue Online Writing Lab – Offers writing, research, style guides, and grammar aid. Visit:  https://owl.english.purdue.edu/
  2. Writer’s Alley – A boost of inspiration to fuel your writing when you’re almost on empty. Visit: http://www.thewritersalleyblog.com/
  3. Writer’s Digest – Writing tips, guides, and provides additional resources for every writer in need. Visit: http://www.writersdigest.com
  4. Grammar Girl – Bust those grammar errors into the next century with quick tips, tricks, and reminds of how to write in the lines! Visit: http://www.quickanddirtytips.com/education/grammar
  5. Styleguide – For those who prefer a journalistic approach. Visit: http://www.economist.com/styleguide/introduction
  6. Poynter – A little bit of everything in one place. Visit: http://www.poynter.org/tag/writing-tools/
  7. Copyblogger – For ambitious copywriters who are ready to take on the world. Visit: http://www.copyblogger.com/copywriting-101/
  8. Freelancingwritinggigs – One stop shop for everything writing related. Visit:http://www.freelancewritinggigs.com/category/fwj-resources-area/writing-tips-fwj-resources-area/
  9. Writer mag – A magazine for writers to find out where to go, who to submit to, and what to do when they don’t know. Visit:http://www.writermag.com/writing-resources/
  10. Writers Helping Writers – Resources compiled by other writers FOR writers. Visit: http://writershelpingwriters.net/resources-for-writers/