As a freelance writer, your digital tool kit is everything. Sure, the best writing apps (in most cases) can’t make up for having solid writing skills. But they can supercharge your accuracy, speed and productivity.
If you are still just using a word processor like Word or Google Docs, you aren’t working to the best of your ability.
In fact, you’re losing out on time and money.
Let’s get this straight: Writing tools aren’t going to do all of the work for you. Well… most of them won’t. BUT, there are some that can actually write for you.
The reality is, there are hundreds of valuable new pieces of writing software and apps created every day. Start-ups are blowing up the scene with new writing assistants, editing software, GPT-3 /AI writing software, plagiarism scanners, and more.
That being said, it would be almost impossible to include all of the best writing apps in a single post. To better cover our bases, I think it’s more important to talk about the best types of writing applications software.
Lucky for us, there are a few types of writing apps that should be a part of every writers software stack. these market-leading, top-performing, best writing applications will help you save time, write better, write faster, reduce mistakes, and even increase your revenue. Cha-ching!
If you don’t have time to read this entire post, no sweat! Here is my minimum viable stack of writing performance multipliers:
- Writing Assistant: A writing assistant that reviews spelling, grammar, punctuation, clarity, engagement, and delivery mistakes. Like Grammarly or Hemingway Editor.
- GPT-3 and Writing AI Software: Destroy writer’s block, exponentiate productivity, write better content and copy faster, while improving traffic, engagement, conversions, and your rate. Like Jasper.AI, GoCopy.IO, Outranking.IO, Rytr.me, and Peppertype.ai.
- SEO Tools: For keyword research, competitive analysis, and content grading. Like Yoast SEO, All in One SEO, Rank Math, Surfer SEO.
- Plagiarism Scanner: So you don’t plagiarize, create duplicate content, and get knocked down by Google. Like PlagScan.
Got some extra time? Continue reading for recommendations for the best writing apps and software and how these tools changed my career in just one week of using them…
How Writing Software Changed My Career
This stack of writing software I use shaves off ––– on the low end ––– 30-40% of the time it takes to complete a piece. That’s from doing research to hitting “publish.”
Most of the time, these tools save me 60-70% of the time to complete my work deliverables.
“Sure, but how long did it take to get there?”
One week.
These tools are so useful and intuitive that in the first week I started saving that kind of time, and I only pay $100-$200/month for them.
“How is that even possible?”
Trust me, I was in just as much disbelief as you probably are right now.
With writing assistance like Grammarly or Hemingway, you basically just have to flip the on-switch, and the software goes to work for you.
SEO/Keyword Research software and GPT-3 applications or writing AIs have a slight learning curve, but are easier to put together than an Ikea desk!
Full-Timers and Freelancers: Why you Need to use Writing Software
I’m almost ashamed to admit that I just started investing in writing, editing, and SEO software in 2020.
And they’re so incredible, I’ll never go back to smashing keys without them.
Archimedes said, “Give me a lever that’s long enough and a fulcrum, and I’ll move the World.”
If you are a freelance writer, writing side hustler, solo-agency, or full-time career writer ––– there’s no reason you shouldn’t be using at least 2-3 of these tools.
Plus, these work for all types of writers and writing. They do the heavy lifting for industry-specific articles, blogs, white papers, books, e-books, sales pages, landing pages, ad copy, sales copy, sales emails, drip campaigns, even creative writing and fiction!
First, let’s talk about minimizing mistakes with writing assistant software…
1) Best Writing Assistant Apps
What does writing assistance software do?
Writing assistance software like Grammarly helps writers with spelling, grammar, clarity, and engagement.
A writing assistant is like having a built-in proofreader and editor sitting over your shoulder. As a writer, you know what it’s like facing HOURS of time spent researching, writing, and editing. Even the most time-effective, exceptional writers get cross-eyed and lost if they spend enough hours in front of the screen.
When we’re exhausted and engulfed in work, we’ll miss simple mistakes. Mistakes can make us look unprofessional to our clients or bosses.
Don’t be hard on yourself. Making mistakes is part of the process and inevitable for every writer.
Luckily, writing assistant software catches what you miss.
My personal favorites are Grammarly Pro and Hemingway Editor. I’ve heard and seen good things from Pro Writing Aid as well.
Writing assistant that reviews spelling, grammar, punctuation, clarity, and more.
Top Writing Assistant Tools:
Want to 3-5x your writing skills in 3 weeks? Take our free 21 Day Writing Challenge.
2) Best Writing Apps for AI Writing
In my humble opinion, writing AIs are one of the best investments you can make in your writing business.
If you are a pure content or copywriter (No SEO work involved) I would get one of these, and Grammarly Pro, immediately. These two alone will take your work from 0-100 in a few clicks instead of thousands of keystrokes.
These tools can automate virtually every aspect of your writing:
- Blog titles and outlines
- Ad text
- Sales copy
- Emails and email campaigns
- Intro and conclusion paragraphs
- Social media photo captions.
- And my personal favorite: paragraphs and long-form copy.
Just tell the AI what you want to write about, and it will do the majority of the work for you.
“So, if they’re that amazing, why aren’t more writers using them?”
Why AI Writing Software Hasn’t Yet Caught Fire
The thing is, this is a fairly new and breaking industry. As such, a lot of writers are still unaware of their existence… for now.
If they are aware of them, there are a lot of writing purists who think using these tools is cheating. Others believe GPT-3 technology and writing AIs are a threat to their jobs and writers everywhere.
Regardless of whatever writer or freelance writer camp you’re in, here’s what you need to know…
- The move toward this tech is inevitable. The software is already too good not to become an eventual industry standard.
- GPT-3 and AI writing software is only going to get better.
- BUT, AI writing software isn’t good enough to totally replace human writers, yet.
Bottom Line: Pandora’s out of the box, and she ain’t going back.
My thoughts are to embrace them, leverage them, become an early adopter, and get them while monthly access and lifetime deals are CHEAP!
As they stand now, most GPT-3 and writing AI tools can’t do 100% of the work for you. However, they largely shift you from the pilot’s or writer’s seat to the co-pilot or editor’s seat.
Right now, a long-form piece that would normally take me 10-12 hours ––– from research and first-word to SEO-work, finding stock photos, and publishing ––– now only takes me 4-6 hours. *Depending on the niche or topic.
This is normally 30-60 minutes of AI writing, with the rest of that time reserved for editing, personalizing, stock photos, graphics, SEO work, etc.
Top tips for AI Writing Apps
Okay writers, you’re probably wondering “are these going to take my job?!”
Answer: They’re not that good, yet. But they will be eventually…
What can we do until then? Embrace them, invest in them, and capitalize. These tools aren’t perfect, but they’re getting better by the day. More and more companies are creating them.
They’re getting smarter by the day.
Here’s what I would recommend: If you can’t beat em, join em!
- Invest in a market leader like Jasper.ai.
- Look for one-time purchcase, life-time access to new AI writing software on AppSumo.
- Use them!
They decimate writer’s block, turbocharge writing speed,
Best AI Writing Apps
At the time I’m writing this, Jasper.AI is the AI writing app/GPT-3 that has generated the biggest buzz in the space. Personally, I’m a huge fan. I’m also exploring and investing in more of them, every time I see new software and lifetime AI writing deals on AppSumo.
Here are the other ones I’m experimenting with that show promise:
If you want a more expansive list of my favorite AI writing apps, be sure to check out Top 10 AI Writing Generator Software.
3) Best Writing Apps for SEO & Keyword Research
If you’re a brand new freelance writer and don’t have experience with SEO, it’s time to get started. In my opinion, if writing is a house or mansion that you’re building, SEO is the foundation.
Unless your clients are super chill and/or have no idea what you (or they) are doing, they’ll want to see how your writing performs. Goal-oriented writing should generate:
- Organic rankings.
- More traffic.
- Better conversions.
- More leads.
- More sales.
SEO and great writing are the gateways to all of those things. Good SEO work and SEO writing need to involve various marketing-related skills and tools. You may even be familiar with industry leaders like Ahrefs and SEMrush.
If you are or want to be an SEO writer you should be using these tools or tools like them to do your SEO due diligence ––– way before you ever type your first word.
I won’t take the time to get into the nuts and bolts of the value of SEO for freelance writers here, but I highly recommend diving into some free trials to see which ones you like and which work best for you. Here are some recent favorites I’ve been using for keywords, competition, and other aspects of SEO:
4) Best Writing Apps for Plagiarism
This one is pretty self-explanatory. Intentionally or unknowingly plagiarizing content not only makes a bad or unethical writer ––– it’s also a HUGE red flag to Google. Plagiarizing content and copy is a huge no-no, and will diminish or tank your SEO.
Plagiarism scanners comb the web to help you make sure that you aren’t knowingly or unknowingly plagiarizing content. I say “unknowingly” because there’s so much content on the web, that if you are writing in even a slightly well-known, breaking, or trending niche there’s a good chance you’ll use the same industry lingo, keywords, and phrases as other writers.
Plagiarism scanners help keep your content pure and unique while keeping you out of legal and SEO trouble.
If you need good references, check out: https://www.techradar.com/best/plagiarism-checkers
In Closing
These tools are a total gamechanger when it comes to elevating the quality and performance of your writing, helping you save time and multiply your earnings and profitability.
Using this stack will knock out the heavy lifting for you, but for now, you still have to know how to write and edit.
If you’re ready to start your journey toward becoming a well-paid freelance writer, Take our free 21 Day Writing Challenge.