From research to conceptualisation, computers have aided the field of writing immensely. Computer-aided writing has helped writers formulate their thoughts better, and in applications like Microsoft Word, writers have found their go-to editor. Word is an excellent app that comes with a plethora of features that helps writers with the writing process—be it novel writing or feature stories. But with long form articles on the rise, writing longer pieces can be taxing on the writer’s ability to follow through on a story.

Unfortunately, Microsoft Word is quite limited in features that help writers plan their writing. However, writers are not limited to Word as there are a lot of third-party alternatives that can help you plan your writing and the initial mental maps. There are applications that help you weed out all the distractions you might face while working on a multi-tasking computer or even apps that guide you through the script-writing process if you’re working on a film script. Although most of these applications are not free, they don’t cost as much as Microsoft’s Office Suite.

1 FocusWriter: This application is for those who tend to gravitate towards Facebook and Twitter feeds during the writing process. It is no surprise that writers get distracted, especially when they have access to social networks. To help writers focus, FocusWriter removes all the functionality and complexity that Word is known for and just provides you with a clean blank canvas to write on. There is little in terms of formatting options or even word-processing options on FocusWriter but it does offer some rudimentary features and some writing specific ones that can help you focus more on your writing. It comes with features like timer, alarm, goal setting, themes and typewriting sound-effects. In the end, your documents get saved as a simple text document that you can easily transport to more complex word-processing software like Word. FocusWriter is a free tool available for Windows, Mac and Linux operating systems.

2 Scrivener: Scrivener is similar to Microsoft Word but offers better planning features for writers. This application is geared towards writers working on long form features that require a considerable bit of research and planning. Basically, Scrivener is an app that helps you dump all of your ideas on to a working space and structure it as you see fit. It has tools that help you keep track of your notes, collect research, outline your ideas and organise your ideas in tandem to your outline. Scrivener also features one of the best search options that will help you jump to any portion of your writing in seconds. The application also has a feature that syncs your content with Simplenote’s, just in case you want to write on the go. Scrivener is available for both Windows and Mac but comes with a hefty price-tag of $45.

3 Trelby and Final Draft: Final Draft is the go-to software for any script-writing you might want to undertake. It has excellent features that help you keep track of characters: flashcards that keep track of your plot and a special scene view that will provide a birds-eye view of your progress so far. Final Draft is available for Windows and Mac but is very expensive at $250. For those of you who can’t afford to invest in this expensive piece of software, Trelby is a free alternative. Although you won’t get the advanced features that come with Final Draft, you will be greeted with rudimentary screenwriting formatting tools. Don’t expect much from Trelby, as it’s just a text-editor with built-in script writing tools; there’s not much in terms of features in the free application. Trelby is available for free on all Windows, Mac and Linux systems.

4 Hemingway: Hemingway is a free online web-tool that will help you through your editing process. The app will identify all the problems with your writing, from grammatically incorrect sentences to complex sentence constructions that might be difficult for the reader to understand. Hemingway highlights complex sentences, inappropriate adverbs, complex phrases and even extensive use of the passive voice. If you’re writing a piece that demands the clarity of journalistic pieces or even research papers, this web application will help you weed out many of the mistakes that writers usually make while constructing a primary draft. Although Hemingway is not always accurate, it will help you identify problems that are blatantly obvious to the reader.

5 Freemind: Freemind is not a word-processing tool since you can’t use it to write your article. It helps writers in the pre-planning phases of writing and allows writers to construct a rudimentary initial plan through the use of mind-mapping. The application will help you in the ideation phase by helping you construct spider-diagrams and flow-charts. This tool is not for everyone but if you’re working on a long form piece that relies on a lot of information and complex ideas, mapping them before writing is always a good idea; this is where Freemind shines. Freemind is a free software written on Java and will run on any environment that supports Java Runtime Scripts including Windows, Mac and Linux.

Although as writers, we tend not to depend on digital applications apart from Word, the digital sphere has managed to develop quite a number of applications that will help us. The traditional pen and paper still wins against any kind of computerised applications, but having software aid even in the conceptualisation phase could be a boon as much as word-processing tools like Microsoft Word has been for writers. There are plenty of tools that could aid your writing on the Internet, it’s just a matter of finding the best tool that works for your writing style.