Stuff You Need

A list of books and software that writers might need to put onto their bookshelves and computers. Just to be on the safe side, put the software onto your computer and the books on your bookshelf.

And yes, I am shilling this stuff for Amazon. I get a tiny percentage if you buy from my referral and I really need the dough. Don't make me beg.

Publishing Company Guides

Whether you choose the Writer's Market or Literary Marketplace, you can find all the information you need about publishers, addresses, where to send things, who to send them to, and who the heck takes what sorts of books. Personally, I recommend the Writer's Market, simply because they are a heck of a lot cheaper than LMP. However, if you want a much more extensive listing, you should go with LMP. Unfortunately, since these books tend to change their information quite a bit (big turnover in the publishing world), you should be prepared to pick up a copy every year or two.

An Unabridged Dictionary

Let's face it, there is a limit to how many words you can look up online, since the free dictionaries usually don't provide unabridged content. So, it is nice to have an unabridged dictionary on hand. However, if you are not big on bound books, you can buy an electronic dictionary for your computer.

A Thesaurus

It always helps to have that word that is just right, and a thesaurus will always help. Or, you could just get an electronic thesaurus and get your words that way.

A Rhyming Dictionary

A pain in the rear when you first start using it, but very useful for looking up rhymes. Of course, most poets wouldn't use these anyway, but it's always nice to know they are there. They can be found in electronic form too, just like everything else.

Final Draft

For all those screenwriters and television script writers out there, this is the software that is the standard. It's some pretty cool software and it does all of the screenplay formatting for you. Needless to say, that is a serious relief for people who have to worry about margins while they are trying to create stories.