Resources

Resources

The-Conjugation.com–Fantastic site. Has a database of verbs – you type in the verb, it gives all the forms. Also has French and Spanish conjugation if you need it.

Merriam-Webster Dictionary–This is the free edition. You can also subscribe for the most current edition, as well as the unabridged, medical, and foreign language dictionaries. MW is the dictionary recommended by Chicago Manual of Style.

Chicago Manual of Style–The online version of the Chicago Manual of Style. Requires a yearly subscription. The plus side is that it’s searchable and you can access it from any computer; it also has both the 15th and 16th editions available. On the other hand, for the same price you can get the hardbound edition and that’s a one-time cost. Essential style guide for fiction.

Consumer Affairs
Consumer Affairs Comparison of Password Managers–If you’re like me, you have dozens of sites you log onto, and Internet security is a huge deal. Password managers can make your life easier… but which one? Check out a list of the top ten solutions, a free resource from Consumer Affairs.

Dictionary.com–Free Online Dictionary

Thesaurus.com–Free Online Thesaurus

Memphis McKay
Memphis McKay–If you’re looking for a new website or a redesigned website, Laird Sapir at Memphis McKay is your woman. She’s a complete pro and a pleasure to work with!

Cover Me Darling
Cover Me Darling–Marisa Shor does book covers (custom and premade), formatting, and graphic design for logos and social media. She also will do photo shoots just for your cover. Her work is phenomenal with super attention to detail, and she’s a pleasure to work with. Tell her I sent you!

Streetlight Graphics
Streetlight Graphics–Cover design, maps, illustrations, formatting, logos, and business cards

KBoards Writers’ Cafe–Great community of Kindle users with an active and helpful author’s lounge. Just an all-around great hang-out.

Canva–Free online graphics-creation tool. You can create posters, marketing graphics, brochures, business cards–you name it.

Inspiration for Writers–Sandy Tritt, an all-around nice person, has helpfully posted a lot of free articles and tips on writing.


Reference books

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Productivity and Business Tools

Here are my go-to programs for behind-the-scenes stuff.

FastMail
FastMail–Email is critical. We all use it, and we transfer sensitive information daily. This is especially important when you work with intellectual property. Gmail and Yahoo! openly admit to data mining your emails. And I realize they’re free services, only–nothing in life is free. You’re paying for it with your information. If you want your email to be private and secure, I can’t recommend FastMail enough. It’s a robust service that’s reasonably priced and your information is yours. An added bonus is the ability to use your domain name. Win-win!

SaneBox
SaneBox–Speaking of email. Give SaneBox a try. It will seriously help you keep your sanity when it comes to your inbox. I can’t even imagine going back to life without it.

Online Task Management
Smartsheet–I have fallen in love with Smartsheet. It’s similar to Excel in that it’s a collection of spreadsheets that you can create and organize however you want. BUT–you can share entire sheets with people or just individual rows. You can attach files and conversations to rows, etc., and there’s a calendar view and Gantt chart layout. You can also ask for updates on an item with a couple of clicks. It’s super for any sort of project management, especially if you need to collaborate with multiple people. Give it a try for your next book 🙂

Online Task Management
17Hats–I just started using 17Hats. While it’s not ideal for invoicing and accounting (I’ll be sticking with Freshbooks), it’s fantastic for project management. Absolutely amazing!

ActiveCampaign
ActiveCampaign–I started out using MailChimp–hey, it was free. But when I needed something with more horsepower that would handle automations for my free email class, I switched to ActiveCampaign. Can’t recommend it enough.

Dropbox
Dropbox–Great file storage as it allows you to seamlessly transfer work to different computers. Different file versions are saved automatically and this saves your files off of your hard drive so you have backups. If you’re not a member yet, you can use my signup link and get 500 free MB of storage.


Services Directories

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