I love technology even though half the time I don’t know how to use it properly. Mostly I just push buttons so I can make pretty colors and neat sounds. Fortunately, I can use simple devices such as light switches and microwave ovens . . . although, some of the settings on the fancy microwaves still give me fits.

The latest technological wonder I’ve added to my robo-menagerie is the iPod Touch. It’s simple to use, and best of all it has those aforementioned lights and sounds I love so much. I’ve already wasted time on games and YouTube, so I thought I would check out some of the apps for writers. I found quite a few. I’m focusing on just the two that I thought I would use the most. These apps will also work for iPhone and iPad users.

My Writing Nook – The simple writing app has a word count feature, autosave, and a dictionary and thesaurus. You can write in portrait or landscape mode, and you can email documents to yourself. You might also want to use their free web app of the same name, which can sync with your iPod Touch. You can have your work in two places, and it will automatically update when you synchronize them with the touch of a button. The app costs $2.99

Screenplay – Black Mana Studios (an official technology partner of Final Draft) offers this screenwriting app. It works with Final Draft, naturally, but it can also import and export from Celtx, which is a free screenwriting program that many people are using. The app drag and drop scenes to rearrange them, write in landscape or portrait mode, and it features auto-complete for the character names so you don’t have to keep typing them throughout the script. The app costs $4.99. 

Since I’d never tried typing on the small screen of an iPod Touch before, I wasn’t sure how the apps were going to handle my clumsy fingers. I was surprised at how well it worked – very few typos . . . no more than I usually make.

I’ve only used these apps for a few weeks, so I may update this post with further thoughts if I find things that I love or hate about them. So far, I like them. While I probably won’t write an entire novel or screenplay on my iPod, it’s nice to know that I could if I wanted to!

What does this mean for me? It probably means I will find more ways to spend time writing when I should be doing important things like watching Warehouse 13 or old Lost episodes, or contemplating what to do when the zombies attack.

What about you? What cool apps have you found that you love?