by Lynn Blackburn @LynnHBlackburn
Are you familiar with Scrivener? If not, you can check out this quick video. Scrivener, according to their website, is a writing software “tailor-made for long writing projects. Scrivener banishes page fright by allowing you to compose your text in any order, in sections as large or small as you like.” It was first made available to Mac users, then to PC users, and for the past seven or eight years, has been trucking along with a few updates here and there, but no major changes.
Until November 2017, when Scrivener 3.0 was released for Mac users (3.0 for PC users is coming!).
Unlike previous updates, Scrivener 3.0 is a major upGRADE—which means it isn’t a free automatic download. You have to purchase it to get the new features.
For writers on a budget (which is pretty much every writer I know) it’s important to think long and hard about your writing expenditures so I understand when writers ask me if they should upgrade.
Here’s my answer.
Do it.
Skip a few lattes and upgrade.
Here’s why:
1. Change can be good. Hear me on this—I hate change. I’m the biggest “if it ain’t broke don’t fix it” advocate you’ll find. But sometimes, it turns out that even when something isn’t broken, it can be made much, much better.
2. It’s $25.Not $250. The people who make Scrivener, Literature and Latte, are not part of a huge corporation with greedy fingers trying to pluck your hard-earned cash from your wallet. L&L is a small business with a passion for helping writers succeed. I’ve had Scrivener for my PC since 2010 and for my Mac since 2014 and this is the first time I’ve had to pay for anything to keep it going. I can’t say that about the $100 I drop EVERY SINGLE YEAR to keep my Microsoft products up-to-date. I can’t say that about my iPhone 6 which I’ve had since 2015 and is going to have to last FOREVER because have you seen how much the new ones cost?
Technology is always changing and a $25 fee for a massive upgrade is a drop in the bucket compared to what we are conditioned to paying in other areas of our lives.
And here’s the thing . . . this $25 is SO WORTH IT because . . .
3. This upgrade is no joke.If you aren’t familiar with Scrivener, then the next few lines may sound like Greek to you. But if you already use Scrivener, then you’re in for …
- an improved layout and appearance
- an improved search function that I didn’t even realize I needed until they gave it to me
- writing tools and linguistic focus that can show you every stinking adverb in your scene (and a whole bunch of other cool stuff)
- a writing history tracker that will once and for all answer the question, “How long, really, did it take you to write that book?”
- a true “style” function that now compares to styles in other word processing platforms
- a crazy cool timeline feature on the corkboard
- a vastly improved compile interface that once you get it set the way you want it you will never have to figure it out again. Y’all, the compile in 2.0 made me cry more than once so this is the biggest of big deals to me.
- tons more subtle and not so subtle features that demonstrate that the folks at Literature and Latte have been listening to writers and are trying to give the people what they want.
All for $25. It’s a steal.
Now, will there be a learning curve?
Yes.
I’ve spent about ten hours watching videos (all free) online (links below) as I’ve wrapped my mind around the new features in Scrivener 3.0. I think of that time the same way professionals in other fields treat continuing education.
It’s not time wasted. It’s time invested in my career.
I’ve been using 3.0 since December of this year and I love it. If Scrivener is part of your writing process, don’t hesitate.
Update!
By the way—if Scrivener isn’t part of your process and you want it to be, Scrivener can be downloaded for a completely free trial for 30 days of use so you can see what all the fuss is about.
And if you’ll be at the Blue Ridge Mountains Christian Writers Conferencein May, I’ll be teaching a continuing class on Scrivener. The Mac class is full, but there’s still room for those of you with a PC.
So, are you a Scrivener fan? Scared to try it? Can’t write without it? Let’s talk about it in the comments.
Recommended viewing:
This is a long video by Elaine Giles – worth every minute. Specifically goes over the new 3.0 features.
The videos available on the Literature and Latte site. They are short and excellent.
The videos available on the Literature and Latte site. They are short and excellent.
TWEETABLES
Scrivener can be a valuable tool for writers - @LynnHBlackburn on @EdieMelson (Click to Tweet)
Lynn H. Blackburn believes in the power of stories, especially those that remind us that true love exists, a gift from the Truest Love. She’s passionate about CrossFit, coffee, and chocolate (don’t make her choose) and experimenting with recipes that feed both body and soul. She lives in South Carolina with her true love, Brian, and their three children. Her first book, Covert Justice, won the 2016 Selah Award for Mystery and Suspense and the 2016 Carol Award for Short Novel. Her second book, Hidden Legacy, released in June 2017 and her new Dive Team Investigations series kicks off in March of 2018 with Beneath the Surface. The second book in the series, In Too Deep, releases in November of 2018. You can follow her real life happily ever after at www.LynnHBlackburn.com and on Facebook, Twitter, Pinterest, and Instagram.
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