By the job

Shelves

A tool can sit on more than one shelf. The first category on its page is the one it leads with. Subcategories are sections on the shelf, not separate pages.

• The novel itself

  Write fiction

  Studios and generators where the novel itself gets written: a manuscript editor with a story bible, a model you prompt, a premise that comes back as a short book, or a microphone. None of them owe you a finished novel.

  28 tools on the shelf · 24 lead here

  • Novel studios · 17 tools. A manuscript editor, a story bible, and AI drafting in one place.
  • Story and roleplay generators · 3 tools. Model-first: a prompt, a scenario, or a lorebook, then generate.
  • Book generators · 3 tools. A premise goes in. A short book comes out.
  • Dictation · 1 tool. Speak the draft.

• Before or beside the draft

  Plot and build worlds

  Outlines, story plans, characters, and canon. Some of these write. Some only read the manuscript and hand back a map. Plottr itself is not here: that app deliberately ships without AI. Storysnap, from the same team, is.

  29 tools on the shelf · 4 lead here

  Novel studios that keep a story bible are on this shelf too, in their own strip below the planning tools.

  • Outlining and story plans · 3 tools. Turn an idea or an outline into a plan, or critique one.
  • Characters and fandom · 1 tool. Character sparks, headcanons, and fanfic.

• After the draft exists

  Edit and get feedback

  Developmental reads of the whole book, and sentence-level checking and rephrasing. These earn their place once there is a manuscript to argue with. A checker that flattens voice is still a checker.

  17 tools on the shelf · 13 lead here

  • Manuscript feedback · 6 tools. A developmental read of the whole book.
  • Grammar, style and rewrites · 7 tools. Sentence-level checking and rephrasing.

• One chat, many jobs

  General AI assistants

  Chatbots and all-purpose editors writers draft, brainstorm, and revise in. They do not hold a novel together unless you build that memory yourself.

  6 tools on the shelf · 5 lead here

  • Assistants · 5 tools. Chatbots and all-purpose editors for a draft, a brainstorm, or a revision.

• Sources, not vibes

  Research and nonfiction

  Paper finders, citation checkers, and answers that stay inside the web or the documents you upload. For nonfiction, and for novelists who refuse to invent a fact and hope.

  11 tools on the shelf · 7 lead here

  • Academic papers · 5 tools. Find, check, and cite papers.
  • Source-grounded answers · 2 tools. Answers from the web or your uploads, with links.

• Jacket and promo

  Covers and art

  Cover, illustration, and promo images. Treat the picture as a draft, and read the commercial terms before you publish it.

  4 tools on the shelf

  • Covers and art · 4 tools. Cover, illustration, and promo images.

• Voice and other formats

  Audio and adaptation

  Narration, voiceover, and turning a story into a script or another format. Treat the output as a draft for the ears, and read the commercial terms before you publish it.

  4 tools on the shelf

  • Narration and voice · 3 tools. Narration and voiceover.
  • Script and screen adaptation · 1 tool. Turn a story into a script or a shot list.

• The sentences around the book

  Marketing and blurbs

  Blurbs, ads, newsletters, and SEO. Useful for the words that sell the book. A poor place to write the book.

  7 tools on the shelf · 5 lead here

  • Copy and blurbs · 4 tools. Blurbs, ads, and newsletters.
  • SEO and web content · 1 tool. Search and web content.

• Picture books

  Children's books

  Illustrated storybooks for children. These tools write the text and draw the pages. An adult edits, narrates, shares, and exports the book. They are for the adult making it, not for a child to use alone.

  1 tool on the shelf

  • Picture books · 1 tool. Illustrated picture books from an idea or a photo.