![]() ![]() The Mac version of Scrivener has some additional features that Windows version lacks. My experience is with Word and Scrivener on a Windows PC. ![]() I don’t use any of those applications enough to give them a thorough inclusion here. You can’t beat Open Office and Google Docs for the price ($0). Google Docs and Novlr have the seamless Cloud integration, although now with Office 365 and OneDrive, Word has that as well. There are a number of other tools like Google Docs, Novlr, and Open Office. I’ve never had a single problem with Word and Dropbox. I’ve lost work from it, and, as a writer, a moment like that stays with you for a long, long time. In the past, I’ve had experiences where Scrivener and Dropbox didn’t get along well. To get them to work with Scrivener, you have to jump through some hoops like I detail in this post.ĭropbox is another common tool for writers. What this means for you is those tools work seamlessly with Word. You might want to do whole thing in Word.Ĭustom tools like ProWritingAid take advantage of Word’s built in extensibility. You’re going to wind up in a Word doc at the end. In Word, you hit “Accept Changes” and get onto the more important edits. You’re going to miss some which hurts the value of the edit you paid for. It’s a laborious process to update each little comma they fixed in your Scrivener project. Most line editors and proofreaders use Microsoft Word’s Track Change feature. This isn’t all that difficult when working with critique partners, but it can make a big difference when working with editors. Once you get it back, you’ll have to manually make those updates in Scrivener. You’re going to have to export your Scrivener document to a PDF or Word format to submit it to a publisher or a contest, or even to share it with a critique partner. Image courtesy of ddpavumba at Communication You mess those up and you could get rejected before they read your first word. Agents, publishers, and contests have specific and stringent formatting requirements. In conjunction with the learning curve, formatting is trickier in Scrivener than Word. Once mastered, Scrivener is a powerful tool, but getting there takes some time and effort, and maybe even a little training. Joe is a fantastic teacher, and I recommend you check out his classes. There’s a reason people like Joseph Michael can make a living selling courses to teach people how to use it. I’m talking free climbing El Capitan steep. Scrivener is a new program to learn and the learning curve is steep. Most people have used Word since high school or earlier. Maybe there’s a way to do it over the whole manuscript, but I don’t know how. Scrivener makes me do this scene by scene. If I change a character’s name halfway through a draft, this is a lifesaver. Find and Replace over an entire manuscript is easier for me in Word. The integrated tool for naming characters, including suggesting culturally appropriate names, is one of my favorites. Image courtesy of RK1979 at DraftingĪs a pure drafting tool, Scrivener’s focused mode provides a distraction free screen. If you name your scenes well, it’s simple and quick to get to the exact one you want to edit.Īs an organization tool, Word can’t come close to what Scrivener gives you. Moving scenes, or even chapters around is a breeze. It can serve as an outlining tool as well as a writing tool. The community has already developed a number of fantastic templates with all the folders already setup for you. I love the ability to store entire webpages in the Scrivener project. Its layout allows you to keep information on characters, and locations at your fingertips along with all your research. Scrivener’s strength lies in its in organizational capabilities. As is the case so often with these types of questions, the answer is a solid “it depends.” Organization Each tool has its advantages and disadvantages. Scrivener or Microsoft Word? It’s a question every writer asks not long after learning about Literature and Latte’s fantastic novel writing application.
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