“Time is an illusion. Lunchtime doubly so.”

Juggling deadlines, family, friends, a day job, laundry, grocery shopping, research, classes…and lunch? Few writers are as acutely aware of time’s relativity than SFF writers; however, that doesn’t necessarily mean we’re any better at organizing the time we’ve got or remembering everything we’ve committed ourselves to get accomplished in one rotation around the sun.

If your current scrap of paper/sticky note/repeating-to-self to-do list system isn’t hacking it, you may be interested in checking out one of these 5 free task management tools:

• TeuxDeux: Aside from being adorably named, TeuxDeux is a free, browser-based to-do app that allows you to divide your tasks into useful buckets, including one that places tasks into a “someday” bucket.
• Remember the Milk: This app is one of the most popular, probably because it has easy integration with email, SMS, and most IM clients, and allows you to search your lists in multiple ways (including tag clouds). It also pulls up Google maps to help you plan real-life errands.
• Now Do This: Hands down, the simplest app out there, NDT allows you to make a text based list (no bells, no whistles, no sorting) and check off items as you get them done. Period.
• Todoist: This app will appeal to your inner project manager. Not as intuitive as the others on this list, you can create projects and subprojects, with associated tasks.
• Tom’s Planner: Visual planners and Gantt chart enthusiasts rejoice in this free workflow planner, which allows you to try without even registering.