resources
this is, by no means, an exhaustive list. but i've used a lot of different resources since 2005 and i love making lists so. here we are!
daily drivers
The One That Everyone Talks About. and rightly so! i used scrivener for years and it was definitely made by a writer for writers. unfortunately it doesn't have a version for linux and it's also $60. but, if you have a windows, mac, or compatible mobile device you should check it out.
fuck microsoft word and use libreoffice instead. it's open source and forever free and works just as well as microsoft word ever did.
i've been using hemingway to catch my overuse of the word 'just' and my long ass windy sentences. there is an AI feature, but you don't have to use it and if you buy the desktop version for like $20, it doesn't exist.
faint! hold on! that's only three! yeah. for the last decade plus these are the only three things i've consistantly used to write. but that doesn't mean that this is all there is...
programs i've tested
manuskript is an open source alternative to scrivener and, the most important part, it works on linux! i just downloaded this like two days ago and it looks like a pretty close match for scrivener. i hear it also has a timeline feature that scrivener doesn't have.
this is a worldbuilding tool that seems geared towards people who are homebrewing their own ttrpgs, but it looks like a decent tool for prose writers too. this one is free and open source and works on linux! i haven't really tested this one out yet, so i'll get back to you, but it seems nice and thorough.
01/14/25 - i've used this one a little bit now and it's very much skewed towards people who are worldbuilding for DND. which is great if you're worldbuilding for DND, but if you're worldbuilding for a novel like i am it isn't as useful. there are a lot of mechanics and catagories that i just had no use for because i'm not using them because i'm not homebrewing a campaign.
lore forge is freemium aka they have a free version, but there's also a paid version where you get more features. it's subsctiption based *hisses* but most of the paid features are just for the web app and not the desktop app so... i don't want or need it. it does have a snappy interface and also looks nice and thorough. this is another one i'll have to check in after testing. i was also really excited to see this when i was checking out their reddit:
01/14/25 - i've decided to keep lore forge. it's free version is incredibly robust and you can add and delete catagories from the forms as needed. the catagories that you can write pages for are a little bare bones right now, but the program is still actively in development and i'm excited to see what comes next. also, it doesn't really matter that the page catagories are bare bones because i can take an existing page structure and alter it to my specific needs! i'm not a program subscription girlie, but if they ever moved to a one time payment model i'd certainly toss them my money.