Scrivener Writetip: Using the Cork Board

by Mary Sutton / @mary_sutton73

Note: I am using Scrivener for Mac. If you are using Windows, please allow for differences.

Okay, okay. So writers are not supposed to write about, um, writing. Or writing tips at least. But my earlier posts on Scrivener continue to get hits and I continue to get asked questions, so perhaps it's time for a little "Scrivener writing tip" post.

At a retreat last fall, the presenter talked about a storyboard as a great tool for plotting a story. And I could see that. A storyboard allows you to visually lay out scenes in each chapter/section, move things around, make lists of possibilities, etc. You might get the same results from an outline, but a storyboard strikes me as slightly easier to use regarding lists of possibilities (e.g., "in this scene, I might...). A storyboard is also slightly more visual, if you use something like note cards - and it's easier to move a note card than constantly copy/paste in an outline (and fight Word's "helpful" outline reformatting - but I digress).

But what if the thought of transcribing scene synopses to index cards gives your fingers cramps? And the thought of changing those synopses as the plot evolves makes you think you might need to take stock in an company that makes 3x5 cards? Well, enter Scrivener.

The Scrivener cork board view

The cork board is one of those features that, when I did the tutorial, I didn't see a use for. However, as I explored the concept of a storyboard, I realized that by doing just a few things, I could build a virtual storyboard relatively quickly.

The first step, is to create your chapters and scenes. It will be particularly helpful if you can put a brief description of the chapter/scene in the Synopsis field. For example: Chapter 1 - upon coming home, Jenny Smith discovers the dead body of a stranger in her bedroom. You would then write similar scene descriptions. The idea here is not to jam in all of the information that is in the chapter/scene. You just want something descriptive enough to jog your memory ("oh, that's the scene where I introduce the love interest").

By the way, at this point, it is also helpful to use labels so you know if something on the cork board is a chapter or a scene.

Once all of those chapter/scene cards are laid out, select the Manuscript node in the tree view (this will be the top-most node in the tree). Choose View - Cork board or press CMD+2 (CTRL+2 in Windows, I believe). Voila! You'll see a picture of a cork board with all of your cards.

The cork board for a single chapter

You can drill down the cork board to see the storyboard for individual chapters, too. Just select that chapter in the tree view.

Now, from here you can do all sorts of things. Realize that the third scene in chapter 3 needs to be the second scene in Chapter 1? No problem. Just drag and drop that scene - either on the cork board or in the tree view (or in outline view - whichever works best for you, but I like working on the cork board).

You'll have to fix transitions, of course (rarely is it true that you can move scenes around without adjusting the transition in and/or out of the scene), but this drag-and-drop is so much easier, for me at least, than "find selection in Word, cut, find new insertion point, paste, rewrite."

Decide that the contents of a scene need to change? Instead of writing out a new note card, you can edit the synopsis of the virtual card - either by viewing the scene or right there from the cork board.

You can also use the cork board to measure progress. For example, can't remember how many scenes still require editing in Chapter 5? Use the cork board. First, make sure you are using Status labels for all of your scenes. Next, choose View - Cork board Options - Show Stamps. Each "card" on your cork board will display the appropriate status label. This allows you to view the storyboard for a chapter and instantly see which scenes are finalized, which have been edited, and which are still in first draft stage.

Okay, now, I'll admit - if you like big pieces of poster board with note cards, translating what you see in Scrivener to physical cards is going to be a bit of work. I haven't yet tried to print the contents of the cork board, so I'm not sure how it can be done, or even if it's possible. However, I'm not that big on having pieces of paper lying around. Too easy to get ripped, have something spilled on it (by me or one of my kids), and my house simply isn't big enough to keep lots of big posters. Plus, the adhesive on Post-it notes wears off after a while, and it's not always possible to cleanly move index cards adhered with tape.

Of course, not everybody works this way. Some people may not care about storyboards. Some people may really, really be attached to the physical paper. But at least using Scrivener, you can complete (or mostly complete) all the initial writing/rewriting/arranging/rearranging without waste of cards before committing your story to paper.

Have you tried using the cork board? What do you think?

Bits and Bobs

by Mary Sutton / @mary_sutton73

So, I'm looking at the date of my last post, and it was 30 August. That's a few weeks ago. My only excuse is that I've started a new day job and that leaves me with less time for writing and it's associated tasks. Mea culpa. I'll try to be better, but no promises.

Blog Stats

I had a spike in viewers today. I have no idea why. But I am grateful. Especially since I'm still trying to figure out this stuff.

It seems like my most popular posts have been the ones I've done on Scrivener. I'm not really surprised on that. In fact, it seems like one of my posts (Scrivener Two Months Later) was linked to another blog on Scrivener. So way cool, so...

Scrivener Tip

In one of my very first posts on Scrivener, I talked about character and location sheets, and how cool they are. And I still think that. But what if you're writing a series of works (novels, short stories, whatever) using the same characters and settings. Do you have to write the sheet each time? Nope. Simply open both projects and drag the character/setting sheet from Project A to Project B. You might have to fuss with the window sizes to be able to do this and you might have to relocate the sheet once it's been dropped if you can't get it right to the correct location. But voila! you can reused sheets over and over (and if something changes in Project B, you can propagate that change by coping from Project B to future projects).

Cool News

I inch ever closer to publication. I think my first public work is going to be the first in my middle-grade fantasy e-book series. I got a cover candidate earlier this week that really knocked my socks off. So beautiful and I think it's really going to resonate with the target market. I cannot wait until I can share it with you - and when I can announce publication!

In the meantime, I have the first in my Laurel Highlands Mysteries series of novelettes out for submission. Unfortunately, I won't hear until October at the earliest - and I may even have to wait until December. It's my first real experience with how slowly the wheels of traditional publishing can turn. I knew it philosophically, but encountering it in real life is, um, different. My first submission responded much more quickly. It kind of cramps my plans for the second story, and perhaps the series in general, but so it goes.

However, more exciting news: my local Sisters in Crime chapter is publishing a short story anthology - and I'm going to be in it! As The Girl would say, "squee!" Publication is a ways off, but the acceptance means I can focus on helping/encouraging others and even more writing. And, frankly, this acceptance meant a lot to me - perhaps even more than acceptance in a magazine would because these are my peers and friends. To not have been included would have sucked.

Speaking of More Writing

I'm mulling over another short story idea, which was going to be a backup if my first anthology story wasn't accepted. This is a story with completely new characters and would be a standalone.

I've finished the second book in the MG fantasy series. I'm editing/revising a romance novella I submitted to a contest back in June (wow, the POV shifts are slapping me in the face in that one - sheesh). I have a second romance novella awaiting revising.

If only I had...

Time to Write

As I mentioned, I've got a day job. It's a good one, tech writing (which is something I'm very comfortable with) in a pretty flexible company. But it does cut into my fiction time significantly. No longer can I just pound out 2,000 words in a day. So I'm coming up with creative options. A lot of writing is getting done on the weekends.

Which begs the question: If you have a day job/kids/school/etc., how to do manage those demands with your writing time?

Clock image used under Creative Commons via Dalo_Pix2

Scrivener, Two Months Later

by Mary Sutton / @mary_sutton73

Back in June, I published several posts on my experience with Scrivener (here, here, here, and here). At that time, I was still in my trial period phase with Scrivener and mostly I had imported a small project and done some tinkering.

Since then, I've purchased Scrivener and done several full-length projects, including some novellas, short stories, and novelettes. And I've come to a couple of conclusions.

1. Scrivener rocks.

2. How did I get along in Word for so long?

First, a clarification. I said in my Step 2 post that the trial goes by 30 days of actual use. That turned out to be incorrect. It uses actual calendar days. And you can't cheat it by simply leaving it open. It must check the system clock for the date.

I admit I got a little lazy. I was writing the second story using some of the same characters, and I thought "Oh, I know all about these folks." But somewhere along the way, I thought "Wait, does she have green eyes or blue?" Yep, I had forgotten the color of my own character's eyes. I thought I'd have to recreate all my character sheets, but figured I'd check to see if I can drag and drop. Turns out you can. Open both projects and drag from Project A to Project B. Sweet.

For me, the true beauty of Scrivener lies in the fact that it is designed to write scene by scene. In theory, you can do this in Word. But the problem for me in Word was always organization. If I wrote each scene in a separate file, how would I ever paginate and print the whole thing easily? Not to mention I'd end up with literally hundreds of files to store, organize, and name. Jumping between them? Forget it. It was only marginally better if I created a separate file for each chapter.

But writing scene by scene is exactly what Scrivener was designed to do. I create folders for each chapter. Then I can think, "What do I need to accomplish next?" and I write it. Since I recently took a course on scene writing, this is perfect. Instead of getting tempted to think way out in the future, I can concentrate on the scene in front of me. What kind of scene, what is the goal, how does it contribute to the story question?

Writing this way, scene by scene, also makes reorganizing so much easier. I got some edits back on a story that made me realize that not only was I going to have to write new scenes, I had to reorder some of the scenes I already had. In Word, this would have been a complete nightmare. Where did I put that scene? Find it (often by hit or miss method), cut, paste to new document, find the new location, paste.

With Scrivener, this is a snap. The scenes are named and if I've been smart (which I haven't always been), the synopsis tells me that yes, this is in fact the scene I was looking for. Then I just drag and drop it to it's new location. I don't have to worry about pagination. Scrivener does that in the compile process.

The first time I did it, I wanted to weep with tears of joy.

Speaking of the compile process, it rocks too. I submitted a manuscript to a magazine for publication. I hit compile and compared the output to the submission guidelines. I only had to make a few tweaks because the margins, font, and paragraph spacing, as well as the address block at the beginning, was already perfect (headers and footers were where I had to make most of my changes, but only on the second submission).

One small nitpick about compile and chapters: If you don't name your chapters (e.g., Chapter 1, Mary Goes to the Store), you'll have text you need to delete - either the placeholder text you used for your folders or "unnamed document." As I don't name my chapters (hell, I have a hard enough time coming up with a title for the entire story much less for every chapter) this is a little irritating, but minor. I would love it if Scrivener would be smart enough to drop that paragraph if the folder is not named.

Project targets are great if you have a target word count. For example, I recently wrote a short story that had to be 6,000 words or less. By setting the project target word count, I knew that if I'd reached the 5,000 word mark and was only 2/3 of the way through the story I was in trouble. Session targets are great if you are doing things like 1k1hr or have a target count for the day.

Some things I've learned:

1. Don't shortcut and skip the character or location sheets. They will really make you think about everything you introduce in the story, including such important things as character conflict. They will also keep you from forgetting that the house is supposed to be white with blue trim, not blue with white trim. Because you will forget. Trust me.
2. Don't import a Word document that is hundreds of pages and thousands of words. I tried. It was messy. Just don't.
3. Scrivenings are your friend. Using those, I can read an entire chapter (or any other selection) end-to-end. And I can make any changes right there, I don't have to jump back to the individual document.
4. Take the time to familiarize yourself with the Preference. Because it turns out yes, you can set the default font and spacing so you don't have to do it for every project. Every. Single. Document.

I know I have not completely used all the features. I've barely touched the cork board or made full use of individual scene statuses (although I have set them religiously). But I know one thing's for sure. Any other tool I may use is going to have a pretty high bar to meet. So worth the $45 USD.

And I don't think I'll ever use Word for authoring again.

Update: For more information on purchasing Scrivener, or downloading a trial version, go to the Literature and Latte web site. Scrivener is also available for purchase through the Mac App Store.

Updates on My Doings

by Mary Sutton / @mary_sutton73

So, it's been a busy week.

I received feedback on the ebook I sent out a couple weeks ago - the one I continue to call Young Adult fantasy because I think that's the most accurate genre (what else would you call a book targeted to the 8-10 age range about a girl who gets transported into a video game? Okay, maybe children's fantasay.). The publisher was very positive and is looking for cover art. Look for updates here soon.

I'm still slowly importing my novel into Scrivener scene by scene, which is giving me a great opportunity to examine the story in a new light. I just completed a "How to Make a Scene" workshop, so the work is very topical.

I've also had an unexpected non-fiction opportunity. On a whim I sent in my resume for a blogger position for The Motley Fool - and they accepted me! I put up my first post today. So if you've got an interest in investment/finance news, check it out. I will probably post weekly or bi-weekly, depending on if I've got a good blog post idea.

And I'm chugging away on a new romance story. By the way, did you see the news about how educated women read romance? I've discovered that it is an unexpected pleasure for me. Perhaps what was lacking all those years ago was an actual story and not just sex on the page.

Finally, I'm trying to work out this newsletter thing. If you read this blog, would you subscribe to a newsletter?

Scrivener Step 4: Importing & Compiling

by Mary Sutton / @mary_sutton73


Note: I am using Scrivener for Mac. If you are using Windows, please allow for differences.


So here we are, the end of my Scrivener musings. I want to talk briefly about two remaining features: importing documents and compiling output.

First, importing. It's a breeze, seriously. Create your project. Choose File > Import and select the thing you are importing. Normally, this will be a file. Scrivener can handle .doc, docx, .rtf, .txt and maybe some others. If you are importing things with images or footnotes, you'll get a warning about those things. That's okay.

After the import, you wind up with one single Scrivener Text document. Here's the hard part. Well, not hard, but tedious. You have to break this into individual scenes using Document > Split. Okay, you don't have to do that. But to really get the full power of Scrivener, you really should.

I did this twice with two shorter works: a novelette and a short story. Both times I used the short story project template. I had offset my scenes in Word, so I just scanned my import for the "#" symbol and split the file there. Along the way, I found a couple of other places I wanted to split, so it was a helpful exercise.

Once you have all the scenes split, you can multi-select and set labels and status if you want. And that's importing. Pretty simple.

Once you're done, you can compile your manuscript. Again, pretty easy. Click the big "Compile" button on the toolbar, or choose File > Compile. Set all your options or accept the defaults. Those defaults will result in a standard manuscript submission template. One note: If the "Compile For" field says "Print" it means print - as in sending to your printer and results in a hard copy. If you want a file (say a .doc file for submission), change the Compile For field value. Scrivener does support the .docx format. You might get a message about certain characters being stripped. If you want to change your output format, you can do so.

I compiled for a submission and got a .doc file that was, almost without tweaking, in standard manuscript format: 1 inch margins all around, Courier 12pt, first page with title and address block, and header. I did have to make a few tweaks, but they were minor. Of course, I then noticed that you can change the front matter template, so I won't have to do it again.

And that's it. I'm sure there's more to Scrivener, and if I stumble across something I think is really valuable, I'll let you know. But these four steps are all you really need to be productive. Someone asked about learning curve. I think someone who is reasonably proficient with computers or Microsoft Word can be using Scrivener comfortably in a week or less. So yeah, not a big learning curve.

I already like Scrivener a lot. I think I'm going to love it. So what about you? Ready to take the plunge?

Scrivener Step 3: Starting to Write

by Mary Sutton / @mary_sutton73


Note: I am using Scrivener for Mac. If you are using Windows, allow for differences.

I finished the tutorial. I created a project, and set up my character and location sheets. Now I'm ready to write.

At the heart of Scrivener, at least the fiction projects, are Chapters and Text documents. Chapter documents can contain text or just be a "holder" for Text documents, which are usually scenes. In this way, Scrivener forces you to write scene-by-scene.

At first I didn't think I was going to like this. After all, when I get in a groove, I don't want to stop. On second thought, and after using Scrivener to prepare sample scenes for a project, I like it.

The reason? Simple. The mantra in writing is that every scene needs to move the story forward. Every scene needs to contain some conflict, or tension. If you don't consciously write scene-by-scene, it's easy to lose sight of this. So now when I sit down, I can focus on one particular scene. For example, "here's the scene where she meets the man who is going to be her mentor." And all of my thoughts focus on that scene, instead of wandering off into something three chapters later.

This scene-by-scene structure will pay off later as well. I've often had to restructure works and had to hunt for the scenes. I'm sure you know the feeling. "I need to move that love scene in the hot tub. Now was that chapter 7 or chapter 9?" If you're writing by scene, you can zero in on that love scene and drag it to the new location.

This is probably why Scrivener recommends not using "Scene 1, Scene 2," etc. Give your scenes meaningful descriptions. I also used the Synopsis note functionality. That way I know "Love scene in the hot tub" is actually the scene I'm looking for - and that's pretty cool. The ability to drag a scene is also much easier than the old "cut big chunk of text, paste to second document, find new location, cut text again, paste to new location" work flow in Microsoft Word. I mean, that might not be bad for a 5,000 word short story, but for a 90,000 word novel it's exhausting.

The actual typing in Scrivener is rather like any word processing program, so there's not much to say. It's got a default font and single paragraph spacing. You can change that if you want because it'll all be standardized when you compile your project (that's the term Scrivener uses for creating the final manuscript).

Because people have asked about learning curve, I'll say that I think it's not very steep, especially if you are starting a new project (like I am). I'm sure there's more to learn if you import an existing project (written in Word or something else) and they'll be some to learn upon compilation. But I think anyone can get the basic content-creation work flow down in a few hours to a couple of days.

I'm going to get writing now. If I learn anything stupendous, I'll blog again, but expect my next Scrivener blog entry to be about compilation. That will take a few days.

Updated 6/16/12: I forgot about one really cool thing. You can assign a status to each scene: First Draft, To Do, Finished, etc. This way you can see how much needs to be done. Also, if you're further down the story, and you suddenly think, "Oh man, I need a love scene in the hot tub in Chapter 3," you can put the text document for the scene where you need it, leave it with a status of "To Do," and keep on motoring where you are, so you don't break the creative groove you're in. I like that - better than a post-it note. =)

Scrivener Step 2: Setting up a New Project

by Mary Sutton / @mary_sutton73


Note: I am using Scrivener for Mac. If you are using Windows, please allow for differences.

So having completed the tutorial, I set up a new project. I decided to use something completely new and not convert something existing (you can import Word documents into Scrivener, but I'll save that for later).

Note: Something really cool - the Scrivener trial goes by 30 days of actual use, so if you use it every day, it's 30 days. If you use it every other day, your trial will expire in 60 days. That's nice.


Creating a  new project is dead simple: File > New Project. Once you've done that, you get to pick the template you want to use. Here is where it gets really cool.

You can do a "blank" project where you have to create everything. However, say you're writing a novel. Under the "Fiction" category, there is a novel template. That template contains a predefined cover page and will automatically number your chapters when you compiled the project. So if you decide to move Chapter 20 to Chapter 13, you don't have to renumber everything.

The "Fiction" category also contains templates for Novel (with sections) and Short Story. Each contain a title page (which you need to fill in - the file is in the Front Matter folder in the Binder).

Also included in this template is predefined output for manuscript submission (1" margins all around and 12pt Courier/Times New Roman font). As I pointed out yesterday, this is cool because if you prefer to work online using a sans-serif font as I do (e.g, Arial - my eyes have trouble focusing on serif fonts on a screen for long periods of time), you don't have to worry about making sure you've replaced all your fonts correctly before you prepare your manuscript for submission. Scrivener will do that for you.

In the Front Matter folder for the Novel template, you'll also see Paperback Novel and eBook. Each of these have template pages to complete that are unique to that output. For example, Paperback Novel has a copyright page and a dedication. Yes, there is an output specifically for eBook output, should you need it.

There are many other categories of templates including, Non-fiction, Poetry,  and Scriptwriting. I didn't explore them because I'm not writing those things, but I would imagine they come with their own standard outputs and associate front matter.

So my main task yesterday was writing some book treatments. Scrivener is not really a free-form text writer, so I wrote in Word. But while I was doing so I used another feature of Scrivener that I can tell is going to be useful: Character Sheets and Location Sheets.

These things are not included in output. Think of them as crib notes for the places and people you create. As I was writing my treatment and creating characters, I created Character Sheets in Scrivener. This is where the characters back story lives. The sheets include name, role in the story, physical description, personality, unique habits - all the things that you may use in your story. The character sheets also include two extremely important areas: Internal Conflicts and External Conflicts. This is awesome. Because if you can't fill in these areas, your character has a problem and maybe you need to put more thought into him. Because if a character doesn't have some conflict, he's not going to be very interesting, is he?

You can get as detailed as you need to be with these sheets, but I recommend putting at least a couple of things in each area. If you think of something else, you can go back and edit it. I did not create character sheets for everyone (for example, the nameless stable boy, or the maid that only gets one scene), but I did for my primary and major secondary characters. And don't fret. This is not a one time deal, so if you create a character when you're halfway through the book, you can create a character sheet for him. But they really make you think about your characters, so I highly recommend their use.

The second thing I did was Location sheets. These describe the places in your story (duh). But again, it makes you think. What is this location's role in the story? What characters will use this location? Are there unique features? What I really like is there's a place to describe the sights, sounds, and smells of the location. These are the things that will help you really bring your setting alive. What does a middle school smell like? You can say "the walls were bright yellow" or you can say, "the lights reflected off of the industrial-painted walls and the smell of heavy antiseptic cleaner and stale gym clothes filled the air." I bet the second description makes the place more alive (or I hope it does).

Again, you can get really specific or general. I created Location sheets for my major settings. I'm sure my characters will do things like ride down a road, but I didn't create a Location sheet for the road. I could, but frankly I think that's overkill.

You do not have to use Character or Location sheets, but I liked them. They really made me focus on why I was going to use specific things and made the story coalesce in my brain.

So now that my project was complete and sheets filled out, I was ready to start writing.

Update: I forgot something. Some writers aren't a slave to word count and don't care. But some like to use a general word count target. For example, say you're writing a short story and you know the target word count for submission is 6,000 words. Go to Project > Show Project Targets and you can both set your targets and see your progress (that's for later).

Tomorrow: Day 3 - Writing My First Scene

Scrivener Step 1: The Tutorial

by Mary Sutton / @mary_sutton73


Note: I am using Scrivener for Mac. If you are using Windows, please allow for differences.

I downloaded the Scrivener trial from the web site, and installed it. I'm not going to say too much about that except it was pretty easy (I anticipate that will be the case for any OS).

Once I launched Scrivener, there was an option to do the tutorial or just start. I figured the tutorial would not be a bad idea. So here are my initial thoughts after doing the tutorial.

It didn't take me long to hit my first snag. In Step 2, they talk about opening files in the Binder by dragging and dropping to the Editor pane. But instead of opening Step 3, I just managed to drop the text into Step 2. So do yourself a favor - either click on files in the Binder or use the up/down navigation arrows (unless you're better at the whole "drag-n-drop" thing than I am).

I tried again and it worked - make sure you drag the Binder file to the header (it will turn dark gray) or all you are doing is dropping that text into another file. Don't think I'll be doing that often; a little clunky for me.


I like the custom meta data, especially as timelines are something I struggle to keep track of in my writing. So I can create a custom meta data field that allows me to specify "Day 1 - morning) so I make sure I keep my story timeline straight.

Composition mode is cool - especially if you've got flickering notifications or anything that distract you while you're typing (for Mac if I've got Twitter open the little blue icon that tells me I have new tweets is sometimes distracting).

Snapshots and Comparison are going to come in handy. That's something Word doesn't do: keep a copy of your original text so you can roll back if you don't like the changes, or compare version 1 with version 2 (unless you routinely save copies of your Word document before making edits and Word's compare feature is a little clunky).

Comments will be useful, you know the "need to research this" type thing that we authors often litter our manuscripts with. Unlike Word's comments, were you have to navigate the entire doc to find them, Scrivener's Comments appear right in their own Inspector - and you can see all of them in a single list. I don't envision using Footnotes too often, but I can see where they would be useful for academic writing.

The various Editor views is very interesting. I love the cork board view: see all your scene synopses so you can focus in on the scene you need. And if you use sub-documents (either folders or documents) you can easily read an entire chapter to make sure your scenes flow smoothly - and move those scenes around if necessary (or search and replace throughout a chapter).

This cork board is going to be cool. You can apply labels and status to each document. So, for example, if you are done writing a scene you can assign it a status of "finished." Then if you display the cork board and show stamps, you will quickly see which of your scenes need work and which ones are done. Very nice.

I'm not an outliner, but I know people who are, and Scrivener easily lets you see the outline for your entire project or just a sub-section - and you can reorder within the outline.

Collections would be nice to find all scenes related to a particular sub-plot or character, or maybe find all of your scenes that still "need work."

The Compile feature is cool. You can choose the Novel format and compile for print - and it spits out a product that is Courier 12pt double-space. This is awesome for writers who don't like working in Courier (me). You don't have to change your working font and still be sure your are exporting your final product according to a publisher's specs.

There are templates for character sheets, location sheets - you know, all those "who is the character again?" or "what street is the courthouse on?" questions that writers ask - and that trip me up every time (I once started my novel with a character named Konrad and halfway through he became Kurt - what a mess).

The tutorial took about two hours to complete - and I'm sure that was because I was at swim practice. I skipped a lot and I'm sure I won't use everything at once. But I can see that this is going to be a very powerful tool (and I'm really digging the whole "export as a standard novel/short story manuscript thing).

Tomorrow: Starting a new project

Expanding the Toolbox

by Mary Sutton / @mary_sutton73

There are many tools in a writer's toolbox, but none quite like the applications we use for our craft (unless you still write long-hand, in which case God bless you). Like many writers, I have always used just a word processing application to do my writing. I use Microsoft Word, some people may use Word Perfect, but same concept: open application and type. That means you have to find another way to keep track of all those pesky things that writers of fiction must have: character notes, plot synopses, scene descriptions, etc. I used Evernote. Some writers use Microsoft Excel, some just use a separate Word file.

This all works, but it's a bit clunky. After all, when your novel manuscript is 90,000 words and 47 chapters, finding one particular scene - the one you have to move - can be a little tricky.

For a couple years now, I've heard about this alternate application - Scrivener. Break your manuscript into scenes. Easily move them around. Keep your character notes right there. Pin things to your virtual cork board. I have friends who swear by this application.

I've always been intrigued by the web site description, but have been afraid to try it. What if I don't like it? How much time am I going to invest in learning a new tool (I've used Word for almost two decades, I'm pretty good with it)? But I saw Scrivener and got to touch it with my friend on our research field trip last weekend (more on that in another post). And I liked it. Or I was at least intrigued by it.

So I'm taking the plunge. I've downloaded and installed Scrivener. I'll be blogging about my initial experiences - say the first week or so - for anyone who is similarly interested and wants a first-hand account.

Here goes nothing.

Note: I'll be using the Mac version of Scrivener for this experiment. If you are using the Windows version, please allow for slight differences.