Apps With ‘Tude

Useful, muse pleasing apps for the chick lit writer. . .

~ By Melina Kantor

Hello Fellow Chick Lit Writers and Fans!

Congratulations! You’ve made it through another busy week.

If your week was anything like mine, you didn’t get any writing done.

But fear not. The weekend’s here! And for many, this weekend is three glorious days, so there’s plenty of writing time ahead.

However, my muses (aka “Basement Divas”), which I told you about earlier this week, have had the week off, and they’ve been sitting around doing nothing but drinking cafe au lait, putting their feet up and watching Buffy the Vampire Slayer.

Sadly, I think they may have forgotten me.

Hmm.

But that’s okay. Believe it or not, there is, in fact, an app for that! Many, actually. My iPhone is full of them.

So I thought I’d pop in here every so often, usually on Fridays as a kick off to the writing-filled weekend, and share some of them with you.

Surprisingly, most of the apps I’m talking about aren’t directly writing related. The most helpful to me are the ones I use to spark ideas and get my Basement Divas chatting.

Ready? Here are the apps for this week.

1. Develop Your Characters with the Horoscopes and Tarot app!

Need to find just the right challenge or weakness to torment your protagonist? Of course you do! With this app, all you have to do is click through the horoscopes and / or tarot readings until you find something suitable. I just clicked on it now, and was told, “It may seem like everyone around you is happy and getting what they want while you’re stuck in the trenches,” and goes on to warn “don’t compare yourself to others.”

And presto! The app has just given your muses a jealous, slightly insecure protagonist to work with! Dig a little deeper with a tarot reading and you’ll really know how to bring out her attitude.

2. Sweeten your story with the Top Romantic Ideas App

And what work of chick lit would be complete without at least a little romance?

Has your protagonist’s love interest gone and done something awful, for which he needs to redeem himself? Or worse, has he not even summoned up the courage to get your protagonist to notice him?

No problem. The Top Romantic Ideas app has a ton of romantic acts to draw from.

My favorite? The treasure hunt idea. The instructions couldn’t be more spelled out (let’s face it. . . some heroes need more guidance than others).

Oh, and here’s a twist: have the love interest mess up one of these romantic acts.

Will your heroine scoff at the romantic act and try to ignore it? Will she be angry and tell the guy off? Or will she run into his arms?

Trust me. If you use the horoscope app to help you figure your protagonist out, your divas will tell you.

3. Now that your muses are speaking to you again, use WriteRoom to write!

When you’re writing, do all the bells and whistles on your computer call to you like a siren? Really, how are we supposed to write when our computers are sitting in front of us, just waiting for us to email, look at photos, watch movies and play games?

That’s where WriteRoom comes in. It’s just a blank, distraction-free screen. I’ve got it on my phone. It’s great for when the Divas start chatting when I’m on the subway or walking the dog through the park and I just have to write.

Now go rest up from your week so you’ll be ready to start writing! Try these apps and let us know how they worked out for you.

And if you’ve got any writing apps to recommend, let us know!

Before I go, I’ll give you one last bit of inspiration:

Happy Writing!

Melina writes contemporary women’s fiction with a pinch of oregano and a dash of chutzpah. By day, she is an elementary school computer teacher (hence the affinity for apps). You can visit her at http://melinakantor.com.