Comments on: JWAM reader request no. 26: Bringing it altogether

By: Mitch Wagner

Mitch Wagner — Mon, 02 Feb 2009 17:21:51 +0000

*patiently awaiting write-up on Scrivener*

By: Stephanie Leary

Stephanie Leary — Sun, 01 Feb 2009 04:20:23 +0000

Another plug for Scrivener! I adore it. Each project you create starts out with Draft and Research folders, and you can create more (I like outlines and notes). Only the stuff in Draft gets included in word counts and exports. Scrivener autosaves AND keeps copies of your revisions. It's so stinking great I know at least two people who've switched to Macs just to use it. Steven Johnson wrote up a great how-to with Devonthink on BoingBoing last week.

By: London

London — Sat, 31 Jan 2009 16:59:32 +0000

Hmm… What about printing it all out and putting it in a tabbed three-ring binder? (A very big one.) Yasmine Galenorn wrote a great post about this method on either her blog or on Fangs, Fur, & Fey, although for the life of me I can’t find it now. :/ You can divide up the document in your binder, by scene/snippets, character, plot, world, etc.

We lawyer types often make “trial notebooks” which include loads of evidence on different aspects of the case, print-outs of the law and precedent, our own notes, our ideas for speeches, and so on, all tabbed and whatnot, much like that. I have been meaning to create a trial notebook for my novel as well, because I am much like you, Kim, in this respect. Although I’m not even smart enough to put it all in the same word document. I have zillions of different .docs and handwritten scraps of paper and doodles and other such things, usually mixed in with my homework or my old bills… sigh.

Anyway, just a thought.

By: Maria Lima

Maria Lima — Sat, 31 Jan 2009 13:41:23 +0000

Putting in my .02 on Scrivener – it’s a godsend! I wrote my last 2 books on it.

I keep tons of reference files, snippets, notes, etc. SO easy to keep track of in Scrivener.

Justine, I’ve been enjoying the posts!