Why I Love Scrivener - The Basics

I'm been asked multiple times about Scrivener and why it works for me, so I thought I'd put together a few posts. Hopefully, they're helpful!

I don't use the whole range of tools in Scrivener but I've found that MANY of the features really work for my brain. This program has saved my sanity and my stories on many occasions.

When I first tried out Scrivener, I had a completed first draft that needed a lot of work  (rewriting and reorganizing). I tried to copy and paste this story into the program and then rework it from there. This was a big mistake for me. I found the whole thing confusing. But so many people loved the program, I decided to try it for my next fresh story. And this is when I fell in love!

Scrivener is organized into folders and files. These are my organizing units.

Inside my First Draft Folder, I put in another folder for each chapter. Inside each chapter folder are two files. One for the scene from the female pov, the other for the male pov.

In the sidebar (called Binder), I can right-click and change the names of both the files
and folders. I use titles for my chapters (in this case hashtags), so I put these right in the binder. I don't use titles for scenes, so instead, I put brief reminders of what the scene contains (ditch, anderson, lesson...). This makes it incredibly easy to find the right scene when I want to double-check on something or when I want to revise/edit.

The screenshot shows a glimpse of the binder for Reaching For Normal. You can see that each scene also has a coloured dot. That dot tells me quickly whether the scene is from Myla's or Sawyer's pov. Yes, the colours are stereotypical but it's just a reference.

You can change the colours and the reasons for the dots. I like them for pov but you could use them to indicate whether a scene is an action scene or a contemplative scene, set the colours for locations or settings, or whatever you like. It's easy to change the labels and colours.

This screenshot shows the Info section. Well, it's actually called Inspector, but I think of it as Info. The blue button at the top shows/hides it. At the bottom where it shows Myla in pink is where you click to change colours/names for the dots in the above screenshot.

At the top of this screenshot, you can see the index card synopsis of the scene. You can put whatever you like here. I use it for notes on goals for each character, main conflict, stakes for each, and the Cymbal Crash. This is the way the end of the scene hooks the reader to keep reading (a tip from Libbie Hawker's Take Off Your Pants book).

I don't use the Notes section very often, but it's a good place to keep my Add/ Change/ Remove notes as I'm reading through the draft.

I tend to keep these in another file, but I'll get into that and the reasons for it in another post.

At the bottom, you can see No Status. This is for more organized and visual brains than mine.

The small screenshot shows the labels you can attach to your chapter or scene. The Edit button at the bottom allows you to change those labels to whatever you'd like. This can be colour-coded as well.

How about you? Do you use writing software or word documents? Can you think of any other uses for the colour coding? Any requests for topics within Scrivener for me to discuss?

IWSG & Villains & Heroes

The Insecure Writer's Support Group is the brainchild of Alex J. Cavanaugh. He, his clones, minions, friends, and fellow authors make it an amazing event every month.

Purpose: To share and encourage. Writers can express doubts and concerns without fear of appearing foolish or weak. Those who have been through the fire can offer assistance and guidance. It’s a safe haven for insecure writers of all kinds!

And we’re revving up IWSG Day to make it more fun and interactive! Every month, we'll announce a question that members can answer in their IWSG Day post. These questions may prompt you to share advice, insight, a personal experience or story. Include your answer to the question in your IWSG post or let it inspire your post if you are struggling with something to say.

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March 6 question - Whose perspective do you like to write from best, the hero (protagonist) or the villain (antagonist)? And why?

I have to admit that I adore writing from the villain's perspective.
It's so much fun - which may or may not say a lot about me!

With my focus on contemporary romance, I don't have a lot of opportunity to let the evil drip onto the page, but I've got multiple suspense stories lurking in my To Be Written pile where I plan to start off each chapter wth a scene from the villain's pov. Some of the flash fiction I've been writing has the villain as the central character as well.

For me, villains are fun because they're the heroes of their twisted stories - and they want the rest of the world to see it that way as well.

How about you? Anyone else like writing the villain's pov?

Until Release & Villains

Hi everyone!

I'm over at Tick Tock: A Stitch In Crime blog today - talking about Voldemort and Miss Congeniality.

I hope you'll pop on over to check it out!

Point of View Choices

The other day I had a fantastic conversation with my students about point of view. Specifically we were comparing first person and third person pov.

I'm currently reading aloud The Hobbit and one of the students commented on the story-telling voice. Another compared it to the voice in The Giver (which was our previous read aloud). One student is reading The Hunger Games and commented that it's all told directly from Katniss' pov.

Soon everyone was checking the novels they're reading and one commented that she was reading an older book (Tiger Eyes by Judy Blume) & she wondered if when the book was written had an impact on pov. Cue the checking of copyright dates and a discussion about why and how styles have changed.

After we'd delved into it for a bit, I asked them which pov they prefer to read. Very few students had a distinct favourite - the almost universal answer was "It depends on the story."

I LOVE MY JOB!!!

We proceeded to list the advantages of both povs. Here's a synopsis of their thoughts. Remember I'm dealing with 10 - 12 year olds.

Advantages for 1st:

• you get to really feel what the character is feeling
• you get to see everything that affects the main character
• you get to feel like the story is happening to you at the moment you're reading it
• the pace usually seems faster & it's harder to put down

Advantages for 3rd:

• you get to see & know more than the main character sees and knows
• you can get to know more characters really well (they like stories told from 2 alternating povs)
• it's cool to see the same events from different perspectives 
• you can get that cool story teller voice that works for some stories
• it's easier to have different styles of stories and voice

Once again, I think they hit the highlights!

So, how about you? Do you prefer 1st or 3rd, or do you think it depends on the story as well?

To Hop or Not To Hop?

I'm over at From the Write Angle today talking about head hopping and multiple points of view.

I love seeing/hearing a story from two different points of view. For me it adds another layer to the story.  I remember reading Jon Scieszka's The True Story of the Three Little Pigs and being blown away by the creativity. Awesome stuff.

I wrote one story that included the villain's pov as well as those of the lead characters. That was a lot of fun to write, but 3 povs seemed a bit much for today's market and that story is still in the figurative drawer.

How about you - do you like writing from the villain's pov? Multiple povs?
Hope to see you over at FTWA!