Everyone has “sources” they depend on to write well. I rely heavily on the Mayo Clinic’s website (for useful health references) and Rhapsody of Fire blasted on MAX (for inspiration) to help me get started. For others, Tagcrowd or Textalyser helps keep their articles SEO-rich and focused. When I’m deep into my article, though, I’ll use Thesaurus.com and the sources listed below to flesh it out.

If you really want to improve your writing, these three sources are a must. It won’t make you a writing god, but it’ll make you a better writer.

3 Useful “Sources” for Online Writers

BrainyQuote.com: Buff up your introduction with a clever quote, quip or “life-ism” by browsing through their free database of collected quotes. You can browse by topic, author, profession or manually locate one by using their keyword search bar. (www.brainyquote.com)

On Writing Well by William Zinsser: Every writer needs this book, regardless of where you write. Zinsser will teach you how to cut out the fluff, how to write for different audiences and how to mend your style to get a reader’s attention. It’s a must read book for all writers. $14.95 at up at Borders, Amazon.com and other book retailers.

Writer’s Workbench: Having trouble with passive, fluffy writing? This program zaps through your work to find common writing dull-downs, including the “to be’s” and sentence fragments. The program self-installs into Microsoft Word, reducing the need to toggle between two programs. $100.00 at WritersWorkBench.com.

3 Useful Sources for Online Writers is a part of WJR’s series on Online Writing Tips. To see the full series of tips, click here.