This is my presentation for the 2015 Cedar Falls Christian Writers' Workshop in Cedar Falls, Iowa for June 18-20

1. The Basics of Writing in
the Digital Era: Habits &
Tools
CWW 2015
Cherie Dargan

2. Overview
● Technology has changed everything
we do as writers as we move towards
web-based tools, cloud storage, and
mobile devices.
● We will talk about 7 habits that will
help you work more efficiently and
confidently in our digital era
● We will also point out 7 tools for tech
savvy writers

3. First habit: Go Digital
● “If I don’t have it digitally, I don’t have
it!” Find a way to start doing your
brainstorming digitally.
● Take a picture with your phone
● Use the notepad app on your phone
● Find your stack of little scribbled
notes and transfer them to Evernote
or Google Keep or Google docs

4. Digital also means MOBILE!

5. Second habit: Get organized
● Learn how to save files (file names
matter! Where you store them matter!
● This file: The Basics of Writing in the
Digital Era Cdargan CWW15
● Folder: CWW15 Presentation
● Your name + what is it? (draft? Poem?
Column?)
● My pet peeve: vague file names.

6. My folders for summer projects
on PC & Google Drive

7. Label pictures as you scan them
in
● My Grandma Nellie
with her second
husband, Art, in
the 1940s.
● I used Picasa, a
free program from
Google, to scan
this in, edit it, & add
the caption.

8. Third habit: use what you
have!
● Don’t get hung up on PC or Mac or iPad?
What do you have now? Unless it’s ancient,
you are probably comfortable with it.
Changing platforms won’t make you a
better writer.
● However, are you taking care of your
machine? Deleting old email or pictures you
don’t need, updating software, & running
virus protection?
● Hopefully you’ve moved on beyond
Netscape navigator for a browser and have
web-based email!

9. Fourth habit: Back it up!
● Computers will FAIL you, sooner or later! I
lost a hard drive in the spring of 2014, only
a few weeks before finals. I had a deadline
for a column as well as papers to grade.
How did I survive?
● External hard drive backed up weekly
● Student work turned in online
● Personal work on Google Drive
● Installed new hard drive & copied data over
from the external hard drive and back in
business.

10. Fourth habit: Back it up, cont.
● Invest in an
external hard drive:
Staples has
several with 3
Terabytes storage
for under $100!
● Set it up to backup
your files on a
regular basis
(usually weekly)

11. Fifth: Make it Easy to Find your
Materials
● Creating a folder for each writing project makes
sense, and slowing down to create good file names
saves time and frustration later on (research. docx
versus August column apps for seniors
research.docx).
● If you have to collect photos, sources, compile
notes, etc. it is easier to put them together now and
not have to hunt for them later.
● You can create those folders in Google Drive, Drop
box, Evernote or many other web based tools.
● Google Drive is my personal favorite! I can move
from PC to iPad to laptop without a problem.

12. Fifth: Make it Easy to Find your
Materials, cont.
● As you do research, don’t rely on
bookmarks. If you see a source you
want to use, copy and paste the URL
& add a brief descriptor.
● http://www.inspiration.com/visual-
learning/mind-mapping
● Inspiration – there is a lite version is
free for the ipad. Can download for a
free 30 day trial. Hands down my
favorite mapping tool. Link explains a
mind map.

13. Sixth—AVOID making a list of
naked URLS & find credible
sources
● http://www.inspiration.com/visual-
learning/mind-mapping
● http://www.inspiration.com/visual-
learning/brainstorming-webs
● http://www.inspiration.com/visual-
learning/outlining
● One of those was really cool….wonder
which one? Always add a quick blurb
to help yourself remember content.

14. Sixth—AVOID making a list of naked
URLS & find credible sources, cont.
● Make friends with a librarian if you’re a
newbie!
● Go beyond Google to specialized
search engines.
● http://www.refdesk.com/newsrch.html
● List of search engines and tools
● Look for the date last updated,
sources cited & person or organization
behind website (Webmd or Facebook
post?)

15. Seventh -- Get Feedback, Revise
and Proofread One More Time!
What works for you? Read it out loud?
Most of us do not do well when proofreading
on the screen: we need to see it on paper,
mark it up and make changes.
When you’re done, look back at the
guidelines. Need a word count? Have you
saved the document in a format and with a
file name that fits the guidelines? Are there
other materials that need to be sent?

16. Sharing a document from Google
Docs for feedback

17. Part Two: Tools for the writing
process!
● Good writing doesn’t just happen:
most of us follow the writing process
(Plan, Compose, and Revise) to
brainstorm, generate and organize
information before we write, and then
edit, proofread and revise, sometimes
more than once.
● There are technology tools to help you
at each stage.

18. Plan (brainstorm to gather
ideas)
www.inspiration.com
Inspiration – the lite version is free for the ipad.
Download free 30 day trial on your PC. Can display
map as visual or outline. Hands down my favorite
mapping software or app to generate and organize
my ideas.
Notetaking--Google Keep—another tool from Google
to create notes & lists that you can check from all
devices and the web. https://keep.google.com

19. Research tools
http://www.411.com
4ll.com is a People Search tool
Don’t forget refdesk!
http://www.refdesk.com/
Great overall reference – like having your own
library. A very dense website, with three
columns full of search tools, reference
resources, daily information and inspiration.
Weather, news headlines, pictures, videos, &
lots of links.

20. Compose (draft your story,
poem, article, etc.)
Most people use Microsoft word, Libre
office, or Google Docs--word
processors
Scrivener -- specialized software for
writers. Free 30 day trial.
http://www.literatureandlatte.com/inde
x.php
Helps you outline, write, revise and
export. Can gather notes, visuals, drafts.

21. Proofread and edit
http://www.hemingwayapp.com/
(Web based tool--just copy and paste a
chunk of text for feedback that helps you
revise). The Hemingway App makes your
writing bold and clear. Using color coding,
“Hemingway highlights long, complex
sentences and common errors….”

22. Revise--get rid of tired language
like cliches
http://cliche.theinfo.org/
Afraid your writing is full of cliches? Copy
and paste a chunk here and it will pick out
the cliches!
(It was a dark & stormy night...she had a
heart of gold….he was looking a gift horse
in the mouth)

23. Get feedback!
● If using Google Docs, you can share your
document with someone by clicking on
share.
● If not, send it by email in a format that they
can open and if you want comments, do not
send it in PDF.
● Be sure that the file name makes sense
● (your name + what is it?) Which would you
prefer-- short story.docx or SusieSmith
short story June15.docx

24. Sharing a document from Google
Docs for feedback

25. Responding to comments from Google
Docs
I have used this feature with my
Education students and they love it--
especially when they answer my
questions, correct errors, and resolve the
situation, and then trash the comment!
Read through comments and respond,
clarify, and correct as needed. Send
back a quick thank you!

26. Send off your manuscript--and
keep track of it
● http://www.writersdb.com/
● Manage the business side of writing
with a free account here, at the
Writers Database. It lets you keep
track of the articles, stories or
manuscripts submitted to publishers,
with a place for the results.

27. More great stuff for writers
https://digitalwritingworkshop.wikispaces.co
m/Websites_And_Apps
Websites and Apps for Teaching Digital
Writing. Lots of great apps & web tools
for brainstorming, generating and
organizing ideas.

28. Cheat Sheet for Google Docs
http://www.shakeuplearning.com/blog/googl
e-docs-cheat-sheet
Kasey Bell has put together some terrific
guides to using Google Docs; check out her
site, Shakeuplearning.com.
http://www.shakeuplearning.com/google-
cheat-sheets.html
Here is a list of her various cheat sheets --
visual guides to using Google Apps

29. More Cheat Sheets from
Shakeuplearning
https://magic.piktochart.com/output/2621468-
google-apps-for-the-ipad
Google Apps for the iPad
http://www.shakeuplearning.com/blog/a-new-
google-drive-cheat-sheet
Google Drive Cheat Sheet (store docs & folders)
http://www.shakeuplearning.com/blog/google-forms-
cheat-sheet-for-teachers
Google Forms -- use to create surveys and the
results get dumped into a spreadsheet, with the
summary of the results just a click away.

30. My Personal Favorite iPad Apps for Writers
Google Docs/Drive, Gmail, Google Search
Audio Memo to record an interview
Camera to take pictures of key visual elements
Camera to use a Scanner app of old documents,
pictures, maps, etc. (Scanner Pro)
Notepad app to take notes when no wifi: can email
them to yourself later
Dictionary
Serenity (soothing music & photos) to recharge my
batteries

31. What are your favorite Web tools or Apps?

32. Any Questions?
Cherie Dargan
cheriedargan@gmail.com
Professor of Communications, Hawkeye
Community College
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