On Writing : Tools for writing in general by Frank Van Der Meijden

Scrivener is great for books, Frank Van Der Meijden. I've used it for years and it works beautifully.

I've head pros and cons for years, Leonardo Ramirez, yet it seems to be the gold standard. What are some of the things that make it indispensable for you?

I'm very visual Richard "RB" Botto. Aside from the layout that makes it easier for vendors to generate a PDF that is compliant with their formatting, it allows me to see everything at a glance. Here's an example of what I mean. I can also go to the corkboard and see the scenes at a glance. Final Draft pretty much does the same thing with screenplays but with Scrivener, output is king.

Looks perfect in many aspects, Leonardo Ramirez. Wish I had known about it when I wrote my book. Sure it would have saved me months.

I remember the first book I ever wrote, Richard "RB" Botto. I couldn't afford a computer so I wrote it by hand in a notebook. I can now look back fondly at that. Good times.

Pretty amazing, Leonardo. Sure that has to be quite rewarding.

Sounds amazing!!

I've heard about it for years, but I've never used it myself. Knowing that it's helpful to you, Leonardo Ramirez, honestly makes me consider checking it out.

Thanks for the vote of confidence, Ashley Renee Smith! Means a lot!

I know lots of people I trust who love Scrivener even though I don't use it myself. It's got some great features, though. I use Google Docs a ton since many of my projects are collaborative efforts. If you're looking for a more lo-tech option, I've used the Storyclock Workbook before. It's pretty great and convenient when you want to outline but don't have a good connection or computer on hand.

Thanx for all the feedback!

i've never heard of this! excited to dig in! thanks!

Great informations Jonathan Jordan

I use Scrivener, it works exports to most formats. They have a screenwriting format as well — fantastic, affordable tool.

Allow me to make a comment about Scrivener. I have used this program for years. They continue to upgrade and I own the latest edition. It is a complex and quirky program. The creators are obviously brilliant individuals, but I truly believe they don't think like writers. They think like computer programmers. I attempted to download the manual for the new version and it's 750 pages. What's wrong with that picture"? I was working on my novel when it suddenly disappeared. I couldn't find it, so I emailed Literature and Latte. They told me some steps that didn't work, so I ended up giving them control of my computer. It required several days for them to find it. Since then I am afraid of it and use Word. I am the type of writer that when I want to write, I want to do it. Scrivener has become so cumbersome from my point of view that I spend too much time with the workings of the program rather than my writing. I purchased a new manual from Amazon, one of those supposedly easy use explanations. All it does is make me feel stupid.

John Roane

John Roane - I can certainly understand the frustration especially after losing a manuscript. Although I've used it for years, I wouldn't push anyone to work with something they're not 100% comfortable with. There are great formatting companies out there like Jera Publishing that you can use to format your book. These folks are fantastic to work with: https://www.self-pub.net/