I’ve Written *1 MILLION* Words in Scrivener - Here’s My Review
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- Опубліковано 5 сер 2024
- There’s quite a few word processors, with Microsoft Word a titan among them, but Scrivener beats Microsoft’s offering for long form writing. It’s not even close. Scrivener has helped me write almost seven novels, and in this review, I discuss some pros and cons that you might want to consider when deciding whether to purchase Scrivener.
My website: AJWriting.com
0:00 - Introduction
0:35 - Word processing and Scrivener history
2:48 - Why I use Scrivener
5:31 - Portability across Mac, Windows, and iOS
7:29 - Why Scrivener is good for focus
8:28 - Other useful Scrivener features
9:50 - Downsides of using Scrivener
11:26 - Conclusion - Наука та технологія
A lot of people think Scrivener is all you need when writing books. It is a tool which focuses on First Drafts and giving you the resources (and lack of distractions) that'll get you writing your book. Because of this, it doesn't have a good editing system. It has a very basic spell and grammar checker (not sure about grammar) and as mentioned in the video, not fully compatible with 3rd party software. Plan and write your book but then export it to a platform which can edit/improve/integrate/polish.
Scrivener's file format is proprietary, but not locked away from the user. It's easy to reverse engineer, and if you ask nicely, Literature and Latte will send complete project internals. It's so wonderfully simple it's not that hard to create a project file that Scrivener will open without using Scrivener. An RTF editor and a plain text editor are all the tools needed.
That's one of the reasons I always had confidence in the safety of Scrivener.
Thank you for this review Mann! Appreciated! 🤙🏼
My main problem with Scrivener, besides the slow development, is that the formatting/exporting function is terrible. I bought Atticus so I could take the mess Scrivener outputs and format it the way I want, with nice chapter headings and section breaks and so on. Atticus has a couple of weird, hard coded limitations but it's overall the best I've seen for getting a manuscript publication ready. Atticus can be used for writing as well, but Scrivener beat it for flexibility and range of tools. Atticus has a more rapid development cycle so it's possible that I might switch at some point to using only Atticus, but for now the two programs used together are the dream team for novel writing in my opinion.
Thanks for your comment. I’m going to try your approach.
I’m just getting started with Scrivener and found your overview really helpful. Thank you.
Great video AJ - I'm looking to write my first book on marketing. This is ace, keep em coming. Subbed!
I absolutely love Scrivener. Can’t imagine using anything else. It brings organization to my writing.
I love Scrivener and have used it for years. Can’t imagine using any other writing app. Great review.
Very good and helpful video. Thank you :)
A fair and balanced review. Thanks. I also agree with your love of the software. I must admit I had it for years before using it. Tried it - found it too complex. Ended up doing my first major piece in Pages. Came back to Scrivener and after some experimentation haven't looked back. Do all my major writing in it- working between the desktop and ipad versions. A great piece of software. A credit to the developing team.
It's not the easiest when you just start, but I found that it scales with how complex you want it to be. It can behave much like an rtx file or it can scale to handle complex multipart novels + research.
I’m looking into either Scrivner and Ulysses. I’m an Apple User, and after being a Windows user for over 20 years, I’m happy and comfortable with switching back to Mac and mostly like will not switch back to Windows. So I could use a comparison, but for now this is review gives me plenty to ponder. Thanks!
Nice overview!
You should totally do a comparison, and definitely include Ulysses; it's what I started with WAY back when it was first released (I'm pretty sure Scrivener took the whole composition mode idea from it). I eventually switched to Scrivener when Ulysses seemed to stall for a bit, but I always keep tabs on it, especially since it didn't get stuck in that lull a few years back. Not a fan of subscription pricing though.
amazing video!
I love this video but I have an off-topic question. What is the brand of pen you used at the beginning of the video?
you may use obsidian -> vault for book with whatever structure you like
Have you used Atticus? I’m currently trying to draft my first novel, and Google Docs gets more and more annoying to use the further I get in my writing. I won’t have access to a PC for a couple weeks, so I’m using my iPad right now.
Scrivener for iOS is much cheaper, but Atticus seems so much more fleshed out, and I’m wondering if the higher price is worth it.
This is very helpful, thanks. Do you have any specific recommendations for how to accomplish the workaround with Grammarly? (I.e. how to use Grammarly with Scrivener)
Is there a review function on the ios app to trace changes in subsequent drafts of a text?
thank you!
when can I use Scrivener to DIRECTLY convert pdf documents into ebook?
Have you tried Campfire, which I believe started as a Kickstarter in the last decade?
Some of my classmates absolutely love Novelpad - I haven't used it extensively myself but the outline views look sleeker and snappier than Scrivener. Would love to see a comparison of Scrivener vs Novelpad!
NovelPads okay. It still lacks features many other writing SaaS online have. Though it is one of the cheaper ones.
What Scrivener is to you Obsidian is to me. I work through interconnections and shape my thoughts there, then assemble chapters and bibs in Word, which I quite like. I don't trust Scrivener and prefer text (markdown).
When i graduate and get a job am going to revisit my novels with obsidian.
Obsidian is very smooth, but it doesn’t compare to Obsidian. The feature set is just very different. Scrivener is like a full office suite, whereas Obsidian is an extremely powerful organizational tool. Really they complement each other perfectly for that reason. But for just organization, plotting, and writing both are sufficient. Obsidian does shine with plugins, but Scrivener has more features built in Natively. Obsidian can grow to a totally different beast with plugins, and that’s definitely something unique that Obsidian does well.
@ghost-user559 Well said.
@@gnostie Yeah I find that I wander to many different apps and get hyper involved with each one for a while. It’s always good to expand your toolbox. Even tried Doom Emacs and Vim. But ironically most writing happens on pen and paper, and Apple Notes on my mobile devices.
Obsidian and Scrivener are both very complex, sometimes intimidating and equally powerful. I feel that most ideas are better off starting simply in a notebook with no added tools. Getting Obsidian or Scrivener involved means serious business, and it can feel a bit like cutting bread with a chainsaw when I’m just trying to brainstorm a simple idea. Once you have a stack of notes, I think Obsidian and Scrivener suddenly become essential. But it’s definitely overwhelming for me initially to see an empty file in either program with the number of tools and functionality they offer.
@@ghost-user559 Same here. Different tools for different stages of the process. Body and first brain centred in the beginning, then software tools once the thinking gets beyond a certain point. Then back to the body and the notebook again for the next round.
I am writing a book about my dad's life using Scrivener. I will only need a few copies of the book when it is over. I have a few questions. Which company do you use to print your book? Would they print just a couple of books? When you upload your book from Scrivener to the printing company, would the format change? Would the pictures move around according to the new format? Thank you to anyone who can give me some tips.
Wow..Good theme..All the best!! And update once released!!
What’s the keyboard?
I do use Scrivener, but it's been frustrating being a PC user that they haven't yet figured out how to hire someone to build them a Windows version. I've used Windows PCs since 1987, know them inside and out, and just can never justify the high expense of Apple products. I have a brand new Samsung I got for free thanks to Google Fi and my latest PC after I moved homes last cost me $120 and it's 5"x5"x2". It's all I need. (My monitor is a 52" non-smart-tv that cost me $200.) I generally use Microsoft 365 since what I pay each year comes with all the storage I need for everything I do.
Literature and Latte absolutely have a Windows version of Scrivener. They had it for the last 5 years
@@mauriceloggins5313 I'm sorry I wasn't more clear in my comment. I started by sayi9ng I "do use Scrivener," and then say I've been using PCs since 1987. I meant I've been using PCs EXCLUSIVELY since 1987. So of course I know there is a Windows version that's been available for five years now. HOWEVER, did YOU know that I had to wait NINE YEARS for that version, and that that version came out two years after the Apple store had VERSION THREE, which took FOUR MORE YEARS to appear for Windows? THAT is what I was complaining about.
I've written more than a hundred novels (70+ under my own name) and dozens of nonfiction books in Scrivener, and I can honestly say I've never found a writing tool that was its equal.
That said... I probably only use 1% of the software, and there are definitely things that bug me about it. If I could pick out the bits that I use and cut the software down to just that, I'd do it.
Its very easy to get overwhelmed by all of its features. Theyre always there for you when youre ready which is why its so good. I think its definitely worth the 60 bucks.
I dont really have gripes with it besides custom background issues. It mirrors itself on both sides of the editor which is annoying
Oh it's on windows now? I'll have to see if my license will transfer
I could not have written my 6 books without Scrivener. All books are +500K words and with complex stories.... I love Scrivener.
Roses are also flowers!!! C'mon!
I want to have written like 6 books but dang, I cannot write…
WordPerfect compile export?
Its not fully portable...no android version. And the iOS version is far more limited than the Windows or Mac version.
That’s true in a way, but it is also not entirely accurate. The mobile version is definitely meant to be used with the desktop version, because you need to own the desktop version to create templates. And yes its mainly iOS. But that’s true for most Apps that cater to creative careers. Affinity has always had better support for Apple, and Scrivener is the same. Same with many creative apps. But it is portable, its just not complete without having the desktop version too.
@ghost-user559 Which means I'm still correct & you're just cherry-picking.
@@KevenPirritano No. Actually you said it was not fully portable? That’s ridiculous. Laptops have the full version and are “portable devices”. iOS and iPad *Also* have a mobile version. You can literally carry three versions with you at any point in time. Therefore it is “fully portable” and you are wrong.
@@ghost-user559 No again cherry picking. You're just twisting what I said to fit your narrative. The original comment was in regard to cells.
@@KevenPirritano How is it a software company’s problem that you don’t consider a laptop, which is a “portable computer” to be “portable”? How is that twisted when thats just reading what you said? Why do you want to talk down on a program just because you don’t consider a laptop “portable”, like I literally cannot comprehend what you are on about.
DI ver 3 chegou bem cedo então g r w y si for na escola 33 para sempre feliz aniversário das mães para sempre ser uma vez na semana passada mas estou indo
Eat a hamburger. Do some weight lifting.
Stop the soy.
latex
LaTeX is awesome for output. For input it's… fine. Ulysses + LaTeX output though is amazing. That said, I think Scrivener can be just as good and is a bit easier in terms of a learning curve, so it's more approachable to people.