[UPDATED AUGUST 2017]
As a freelance writer, did you know your smartphone can help you increase your productivity in your business, find just the right word or a clever quote, or even impress a potential client with a professional-looking writers’ resume? You can use them to make lists and notes when you are away from your desk and even combat writer’s block! We’ve assembled a list of iPhone apps for freelance writers for your consideration.
How iPhone Apps Can Help Freelance Writers
You can use iPhone apps in the following ways to increase your productivity when you are on the go:
- Take notes and record your ideas as they come to you; the best ideas may not come at a time when you are close to your computer or even a pad of paper to mark them down.
- Organize your ideas and send them along to other services, as necessary.
- Provide you with reference material so that you can conduct research when you are not actually composing.
- Allow you to respond to monitor your blogs and respond to comments quickly and easily.
The best iPhone apps will allow you to perform these types of functions and help you to stay on track, which will make you more focused when you do sit down to pull your ideas together and write.
The Best iPhone Apps for Freelance Writers
1. Lists for Writers – Ideas for Creative Writing
Do you need help with prompts or ideas for brainstorming sessions? Lists for Writers delivers suggestions for character naming, personality thoughts/behaviors, occupations, obsessions, hair, skin/complexion, and more. If you are working on an essay, short story or a novel, this app is worth the $2.99 cost to download it.
2. WordPress
Download the WordPress app and you can keep track of your own blogs (personal and the ones you are managing for clients), as well as create and edit pages, upload media, moderate comments and check stats – all from your iOS device. As long as you have a WordPress.com blog or a self-hosted WordPress.org site running version 3.6 or higher, you’re all set. You’ll need
iOS 7.0 or later and this app is optimized for iPhone 5, iPhone 6 and iPhone 6 Plus. It is compatible with the iPhone, iPad and the iPod touch.
3. iA Writer
Download iA Writer for only $4.99 and you will have access to an app that does only one thing, but does it extremely well. It gives you a plain writing wall which allows you to focus on the text you are composing, without any distractions. Text is instantly synched to iCloud and files can be stored in Dropbox.
4. Write 2 Lite
Write 2 Lite has been named as one of the one of the “Top Free Productivity Productivity Apps” in over 47 countries around the world! it allows you to type and read in full screen without any distractions. You can also synchronize your text and mark-down files between several devices, including your iPhone, iPod Touch, Mac, Windows, Blackberry, Android, and more.
Write 2 Lite allows you to customize font types and sizes, track your word and character counts and automatically save your files. A search function lets you find your work quickly when you want to go back to a previous project. You can optimize the auto-correction, cut, copy, paste, and replace functions from the iOS as well.
5. OOReader
If you are ever sent and ODF document created with OpenOffice or LibreOffice, you are going to need some help to get it open. OOReader costs $2.99 and offers an in-app purchase. The supported file types are as follows:
- Text Documents (ODT, OTT, ODM, SDW, STW, SXW)
- Spreadsheets (ODS, OTS, SDC, STC, SXC)
- Presentation (ODP, OTP, SDD, SDP, STI, SXI)
- Drawings (ODG, OTG, SDA, SXD)
- Formula (ODF)
- Word (DOC, DOT, DOCX, DOTX)
- EXCEL (XLS, XLT, XLSX, XLTX)
- PowerPoint (PPS, PPT, POT, PPSX, PPTX, POTX)
- WordPad (RTF)
Read files by page or view them in a slideshow. Convert them into PDF format, rename or print them. Note that you will not be able to edit the files in any way and you are limited to a maximum of 100 pages per file.
6. Quick Resume
Have you just heard about the perfect gig but the client wants to see a resume? Not a problem, when you have the Quick Resume app on your iPhone! This app will help you create a professional-looking resume in minutes. You simply enter your information and the app will import data from LinkedIn to help you get the job. At the low price of $1.19 for in-app purchase, it’s a worthwhile one to add.
7. Story Tracker
Do you find it challenging to keep track of your submissions? Story Tracker makes it easy to keep on top of where you have submitted your articles, stories, novels and poems. You never need to worry about simultaneous submissions because the app will keep the information stored for you on your iPhone, iPad or iPod Touch.
The app costs $9.99, and for that price you can store details and guidelines for markets accepting written submissions:
- Magazines
- Book publishers
- Websites
- Movie studios
Add details of each story submitted, such as the title, word count, genre and any relevant notes. Highlight approaching deadlines from the market list when you are creating your submissions. This app will also help you track your income earned from each submission.
8. iDeas for Writing
Got writer’s block? The iDeas for Writing app will help you get your creative juices flowing again. Buy it for $1.99 and it will give you first lines, titles, characters, random words and writing exercises to help you improve your writing.
9. Webster’s Writer’s Dictionary
As a writer, you need to be very precise in your language, and the Webster’s Writer’s Dictionary app allows you to do just that. It shows you words on a large list, just like you were looking in a paper dictionary. You may find yourself getting sidetracked by some of the language featured here, and it’s possible you may learn some new vocabulary along the way. Be sure to check out the Word of the Day Widget that you can get as an in-app purchase, too.
10. Famous Quotes
Have you ever wanted to grab your reader’s attention by referring to a quote? This app, with its 75,000 listings, will give you plenty of material to choose from. Find what you are looking for by category, authors, or keyword. If you are feeling particularly adventurous or simply want to get some inspiration for your day, ask the app to select a random quote for you. The app is compatible with your iPhone, iPad, or iPad Touch.
11. Hubstaff
Hubstaff is an established name in the time-tracking sector. It “runs as software on your desktop or as a mobile app making it easy to track time. Once the time is tracked you can invoice clients, pay employees, and see in-depth reporting.” It is perfect for handling remote teams – especially handy when your freelance writing business grows. And, even if you’re still a one-man team, Hubstaff is still an efficient way to track your time and send invoices. You can get the iPhone app here.
On another note, you can also use another resource of Hubstaff. Called Hubstaff Talent, this platform is essentially a venue to find jobs. It is 100% free, and since its launch six months ago, its user base has grown to 20,000+ freelancers. Note, though, that it isn’t solely for freelance writers.
Parting words
Which iPhone apps do you use most often? Is there something you think we should add to the list? Share your favourites in the comments section and tell us why they are so helpful to you.
Image Credit: istockphoto.com
Image Credit: istockphoto.com
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