Scrivener® Absolute Beginner’s Guide

Scrivener® Absolute Beginner’s Guide

by Jennifer Ackerman Kettell
Released June 2013
Publisher(s): Que
ISBN: 9780133432732

Read it now on the O’Reilly learning platform with a 10-day free trial.

O’Reilly members get unlimited access to books, live events, courses curated by job role, and more from O’Reilly and nearly 200 top publishers.

Start your free trial

Book description

Far more than a word processor, Scrivener helps you organize and brainstorm even the most complex writing project, bring together your research, and write more efficiently and successfully than ever before. Long available for Mac, there’s now a Windows version, too. Thousands of writers and aspiring writers are discovering this powerful, low-cost tool. Now, there’s an up-to-the-minute, easy guide to the latest versions of Scrivener for both Mac and Windows: Scrivener Absolute Beginner’s Guide.

Written by working novelist and experienced computer book author Jennifer Kettell, this guide doesn’t just present features and menus: it presents Scrivener in the context of your creative workflow, so you can make the most of this amazing software. Kettell draws on years of Scrivener experience and private tutoring to help you use Scrivener in both fiction and non-fiction projects, including screenwriting and academic writing.

This book is as authoritative as it gets. Kettell not only wrote it in Scrivener: screen captures show her work in progress, and identify powerful ways to use Scrivener to improve productivity. Her book has been tech edited by the Literature & Latte software team member who serves as main liaison for the Scrivener Windows product to ensure that the Windows version is covered as thoroughly as the Mac version.

You’ll learn how to:

·    Integrate Scrivener into your own personal workflow

·    Get to know Scrivener’s interface and customize it to your workstyle

·    Write, organize, storyboard, plot, and edit your document

·    Create custom templates to manage manuscripts, brainstorming, and research

·    Use keywords and metadata to keep track of complex projects

·    Track your progress and backing up your work

·    Generate a completed manuscript

·    Create an e-book from your manuscript

·    Discover new uses for Scrivener

Throughout, Kettell clearly identifies differences between the Mac and Windows versions of Scrivener, so you’re never frustrated by searching for a feature that isn’t there. Scrivener Absolute Beginner’s Guide is simple, clear, non-technical, and written from the viewpoint of a professional writer for other writers. It’s the Scrivener guide thousands of writers have been waiting for.

Table of contents

  1. About This eBook
  2. Title Page
  3. Copyright Page
  4. Contents at a Glance
  5. Table of Contents
  6. About the Author
  7. Dedication
  8. Acknowledgments
  9. We Want to Hear from You!
  10. Reader Services
  11. Introduction
    1. What Is Scrivener?
    2. Mac Versus Windows Versus Linux Versus iPad
    3. How This Book Is Organized
    4. Conventions Used in This Book
    5. Assumptions About Computer Knowledge
    6. Getting More Help
  12. Part I. Getting Started in Scrivener
    1. 1. Getting to Know the Scrivener Interface
      1. Understanding Projects
      2. Introducing the Main Scrivener Components
      3. Changing the Group View Mode
      4. Understanding Folders Versus Files
      5. Accessing Other Panels
    2. 2. Customizing Your Work Environment
      1. Setting General Preferences
      2. Customizing Scrivener’s Appearance
      3. Customizing the Corkboard Appearance
      4. Setting Full Screen Composition Mode Preferences
      5. Customizing the Editor
      6. Setting a Writing Font
      7. Saving and Sharing Your Preference Settings
      8. Using Workspace Layouts
      9. Customizing the Toolbar
    3. 3. Organizing the Binder
      1. Working with Files and Folders
      2. Adding Documents and Folders to the Binder
      3. Organizing Documents and Folders in the Binder
      4. Adding Icons to Documents and Folders (Mac Only)
      5. Importing an Existing Manuscript
      6. Focusing on the Chapter at Hand
    4. 4. Writing in the Editor
      1. Examining the Editor Window
      2. Using the Header Bar
      3. Splitting the Screen
      4. Formatting Text and Paragraphs
      5. Using Formatting Presets (Mac Only)
      6. Accessing the Ruler
      7. Using the Footer Bar
      8. Checking Spelling
      9. Adding Images to a Document
      10. Viewing Scrivenings
      11. Using QuickReference Panels (Mac Only)
      12. Taking Notes in the Scratch Pad
    5. 5. Writing in Full Screen
      1. Using Composition Mode
      2. Making Adjustments in the Control Strip
      3. Using Composition Mode with Multiple Displays
      4. Using the Mac’s Full Screen Mode
  13. Part II. Organizing Your Writing Process
    1. 6. Storyboarding with the Corkboard
      1. Opening the Corkboard
      2. Examining Index Cards
      3. Adding Index Card Options
      4. Setting Corkboard Options on the Footer Bar
      5. Using the Corkboard in Split Screen
      6. Locking the View Mode (Mac Only)
      7. Working with the Freeform Corkboard (Mac Only)
      8. Printing Index Cards
    2. 7. Plotting in the Outliner
      1. Exploring the Outliner
      2. Customizing the Outliner
      3. Printing an Outline on the Mac
      4. Exporting an Outline
      5. Importing an OPML or Freemind Outline
    3. 8. Organizing Your Research
      1. Importing Research Files
      2. Using PDFs
      3. Accessing Media Files
      4. Importing Web Pages
    4. 9. Brainstorming with Scrivener
      1. Using the Name Generator
      2. Creating a Sketchpad
      3. Using Aeon Timeline with Scrivener (Mac Only)
    5. 10. Editing Your Manuscript
      1. Using Inline Annotations
      2. Adding and Reviewing Comments
      3. Converting Annotations to Comments (and Vice Versa)
      4. Searching for Annotations and Comments
      5. Exporting Annotations and Comments
      6. Using Revision Mode (Mac Only)
      7. Taking Snapshots
  14. Part III. Digging Deeper into Scrivener
    1. 11. Digging into the Inspector
      1. Navigating the Inspector
      2. Adding a Synopsis in the Inspector
      3. Toggling the Created and Modified Date
      4. Selecting Compile Settings
      5. Adding Project and Document Notes
      6. Using Reference Links
      7. Locking the Inspector
    2. 12. Putting Keywords and Meta-Data to Work
      1. Setting Status and Labels
      2. Using Keywords
      3. Adding Custom Meta-Data (Mac Only)
    3. 13. Creating and Using Template Sheets
      1. Using Predesigned Template Sheets
      2. Creating Your Own Template Sheets
      3. Setting a Default Document Type
    4. 14. Creating and Using Project Templates
      1. Creating a Project to Build a Template
      2. Developing a Good Template
      3. Using Template Placeholder Tags (Mac Only)
      4. Saving a Project Template
      5. Importing and Exporting Project Templates
  15. Part IV. Managing Your Writing Projects
    1. 15. Tracking Your Progress
      1. Using Project Targets
      2. Using Document Targets
      3. Using Project Statistics
      4. Viewing Word Frequency
    2. 16. Searching Your Project
      1. Conducting Project Searches
      2. Using Document Find and Replace
      3. Using the Find Synopsis Tool (Mac Only)
      4. Searching by Format
      5. Creating and Using Collections
      6. Setting Bookmarks (Mac Only)
      7. Choosing Favorites (Mac Only)
    3. 17. Backing Up Your Work
      1. Setting Backup Preferences
      2. Backing Up to Dropbox
      3. Excluding a Project from Automatic Backups
      4. Performing Manual Backups
      5. Backing Up to Time Machine or Windows Backup
      6. Restoring from a Backup
    4. 18. Taking Scrivener Out and About
      1. Using Scrivener on Multiple Computers
      2. Using Dropbox to Access Your Scrivener Project
      3. Syncing Your Project (Mac Only)
      4. Using iPad Apps with Scrivener Files (Mac Only)
  16. Part V. Generating a Completed Manuscript
    1. 19. Compiling Your Completed Work
      1. Understanding the Compile Process
      2. Using the Compile Window
      3. Choosing the Contents to Compile
      4. Formatting Separators Between Documents
      5. Formatting the Compilation
      6. Making Adjustments to Your Compilation
      7. Formatting Footnotes and Comments
      8. Controlling Page Settings
      9. Saving Compile Settings
      10. Compiling Your Project
    2. 20. Creating E-Books
      1. Preparing Your Front Matter
      2. Compiling an E-Book
      3. Adding Front Matter to the Contents Tab (Mac Only)
      4. Adding a Cover
      5. Generating an E-Book Table of Contents
      6. Reviewing HTML Settings (Mac Only)
      7. Adding Document Properties to E-Books
      8. Using KindleGen for Kindle MOBI Files
      9. Compiling an E-Book for iBooks (Mac Only)
      10. Previewing Your E-Book File
  17. Part VI. Using Scrivener in Other Scenarios
    1. 21. Screenwriting in Scrivener
      1. Entering Scriptwriting Mode
      2. Formatting Your Script
      3. Modifying the Script Settings
      4. Compiling a Script
    2. 22. Using Scrivener for Nonfiction Writing
      1. Approaching a Nonfiction Project
      2. Adding and Formatting Footnotes
      3. Creating a Table of Contents (Mac Only)
      4. Creating a Bibliography
    3. 23. Discovering New Uses for Scrivener
      1. Writing a Complete Series in Scrivener
      2. Blogging with Scrivener
      3. Creating a Cookbook Database
  18. Index

Product information

  • Title: Scrivener® Absolute Beginner’s Guide
  • Author(s): Jennifer Ackerman Kettell
  • Release date: June 2013
  • Publisher(s): Que
  • ISBN: 9780133432732