Corkboard
The corkboard is a familiar outline and planning tool used by countless authors, myself included. It provides a digital representation of notecards that allow the author to layout their ideas chapters or sections of their manuscript. If the author wants to move a chapter to before a chapter, they’ve already written it no problem. Since it’s digital, the author can move the cards anywhere they want within their manuscript, and the document rearranges to match.
Outliner
The corkboard isn’t the only way to visualize the manuscript. The outliner gives the author an overview of their chapters or sections. It provides the author with more information than the corkboard at their fingertips. Things like status, and word count at a glance. Like the corkboard, if the author wants to move a section or chapter, it’s no problem, just drag and drop.
Metadata
Metadata is used to quickly find relevant information about a chapter or section in a color-coded label or to track the status of the project. I use metadata to label point of view (POV) since I switch POV throughout the story. As I complete a part of the manuscript, I mark it with the draft number, for example, “Second Draft.” This allows me to go back and see what chapters I need to revise yet for a draft with a quick look at the outliner.
Full-Screen Writing
Okay, this isn’t just a feature of Scrivener. Almost every word processor has a distraction-free mode. Some are so basic that they, by definition, are distraction-free. Scrivener is so features packed that it’s easy to get lost in all its features. With a simple click of a button or Option, Command, F keyboard shortcut will open a full screen “composition mode” which removes all distractions of tools and allows an author to focus on what matters, the content.
Targets And Project Tracking
Creating word or character count goals and tracking is easy with the built-in tools. Unlike other software options on the market, the targets can be set for the entire manuscript, a section, even the current writing session. I find this tool extremely helpful during NaNoWriMo, where an author needs to write 1667 words per day to meet the 50,000-word goal.
All-In-One Writing Platform
Scrivener stores everything from research, character development, scene layouts, brainstorming mind maps, and the manuscript all in one complete package. There is nothing better than being able to open different documents or parts of the same project open while writing to keep consistency. I can’t count the number of times I’ve had to open a character’s profile to remember precisely how I described a distinguishing feature. Scrivener’s editor can open up to four different documents open in the same project window at once.
Snapshots
When I am done with a draft of a chapter, I take a snapshot. Before an edit and after an edit, I take a snapshot. After I run a chapter through Grammarly, I take a snapshot. Snapshots save a version of the section, so writers will be able to return to the earlier version whenever they want. There is even a compare feature that will show the differences. Even tho I can count on one hand the number of times I tried to go back to a previous version, the ability to do that is a lifesaver when a writer needs it.
Auto-Save And Backups
Scrivener automatically saves in the background. This means an author never needs to remember to hit save again. I also recommend that writers turn on Scrivener’s ability to automatically backup the project whenever they are opened and closed. You can never have too many backup copies of your work, and Scrivener can take care of this task, which every writer should do, for them.
Print, Export, Publish
When the manuscript is finished, Scrivener has a writer covered no matter what publishing path they choose. Scrivener can prepare a version of the document using formatting tailored to a standard publisher’s submission guidelines. It can export into all the major file formats, including Microsoft Word, RTF, and OpenOffice. It can create PDF files ready for self-publishing, Epub and Kindle ebooks to sell on Apple Books or Amazon, or proofreading on an e-reader. Scrivener is designed with the ability to export and publish documents with ease.
Choose The Tools
Lastly, Scrivener lets a writer write how they need to write. It understands that not every writer will want or need to use the outliner or the corkboard. It is flexible and can just get out of the way allowing an author to focus not on the need of the software, but the software focused on the author’s needs.