Useful Resources for Writers:
Online Etymology Dictionary –– like the OED (Oxford English Dictionary), except you don't need a paid account to access it. Get definitions of words with historical context! Side note, if you have membership at a university library (and even some public libraries) you may actually have OED access, check with your library.
Google's We Wear Culture –– a library of images and information about fashion around the globe and throughout history.
CRV's D&D Reading Room Worldbuilding Checklist –– Though this site is meant for GMs inventing worlds for their games, the concepts are the same and the questions can be super useful anyways!
WordHippo –– online thesaurus. find synonyms and antonyms and rhymes for words using their site!
mynoise.net –– infinite sound generators to listen to on desktop from coffee shops to water, to white noise. great for concentration when reading or writing. Get their App on iOS or Android.
Last Name Generator –– use this site to generate last names for your characters!
Google Ngrams viewer –– will the word I want to use in this period piece be anachronistic? find out the history and frequency of word usage of words in english (various versions) and a number of other widely spoken languages like spanish and french.
Onelook Reverse dictionary –– word on the tip of your tongue?? use onelook to look up a definition and find the word!
my tumblr writing ref tag –– curated list of tumblr posts about writing
@ writingwithcolor here on tumblr –– resources for writing with racial, religious and ethnic diversity.
Social Security Archives –– find out which names were common in US census records from various decades between now and the 1880s.
Polygon Map Generator –– good for GMs and fantasy writers alike, randomly generate maps of fantasy islands
Azgaar's Fantasy Map Generator –– another map generator, this is one is more complex than the polygon one, and can make multiple landmasses with labels.
Cold Turkey Writer –– download this program to write without distractions. Cold turkey writer can be configured to keep you from opening anything else until you hit a time limit or a word count, and does not show you pages or formatting tools. Nifty. The app is free, but you can also get a one time paid version with more features for $9 USD.
libreoffice –– free, open source alternative to microsoft word if you don't want to use google docs.
google scholar –– do an academic journal search for free
And, of course, because I wouldn't be me if I didn't say this.... your local library!
*annoying librarian hat on*
if you have research questions, we have answers. You can email research librarians from your local library or from other libraries with your questions, and we can help you. It's literally our job as librarians. You don't need a card, you don't need to live in the area. contact us today! it's free!
Not only that, we have all kinds of databases and resources that we pay for for YOU to use for FREE for research and learning. Heck, the library I work for even offers our cardholders inkie.org for free. nifty!
If any of my followers have anything cool to add to this post, please do!
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