I use these really often and I think you might enjoy using them too! As of writing, they’re all free and browser-accessible.
Cheers!
OneLook
FOR: Writing! Great at multi-word phrases. Great filter options.
Rhymezone
FOR: Songwriting! Sorts rhymes by syllables and bolds the closest rhymes. As functional as it is hideous.
Hemingway
FOR: Revising! Highlights common errors. Great for making sure complex writing is intentional. A style-check after you’re done your spell-check.
TVTropes
FOR: Craft! Concise explanations. Examples from movies, books, anime, etc. at each page’s bottom. Great for learning about conventions and theories on why some work.
ALSO: Ridiculously fun to go into rabbit holes for. Trope Talks! by Overly Sarcastic Productions and Lessons from the Screenplay are great YouTube channels filling the same itch.
itch.io
FOR: Ideas! Great for finding indie art. I recommend exploring zine-books, one-page physical games, and bitsy microgames. Moreso if you’re not sure what they are! The backbone of my shinies series. Blurs the line between essays, games, zines, and interactive fiction.
ALSO: If you like something, look at the top-right! You can explore its creator and related games. If it was submitted to a “game jam”1, I really recommend checking out other submissions.
Game jams are wonderful— a community has about a week to make art under a theme, often with constraints announced when the week begins. I’m a big fan of:
Sorting by “play-in-browser” and “Popular” is always a nice way to spend 5 minutes at lunch :)