Scrivener Absolute Beginner's Guide

Description

• Copyright 2013
• Edition: 1st

• Book
• ISBN-10: 0-7897-5145-3
• ISBN-13: 978-0-7897-5145-4

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.

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Sample Content

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Storyboarding with the Scrivener Corkboard

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Table of Contents

Introduction ..............................1

 

What Is Scrivener? ...............................................................2

Mac Versus Windows Versus Linux Versus iPad ................2

How This Book Is Organized ........................................................3

Conventions Used in This Book ..............................................4

Assumptions About Computer Knowledge ....................................7

Getting More Help .............................................................7

I Getting Started in Scrivener

1 Getting to Know the Scrivener Interface ...............9

Understanding Projects ...............................................................10

    Creating a New Project ...............................................10

    Selecting a Project Template ...............................14

    Saving Projects ..........................................................15

Introducing the Main Scrivener Components ......................15

    Examining the Editor ........................................16

    Using the Binder................................................17

    Opening the Inspector .............................................19

Changing the Group View Mode ................................20

Understanding Folders Versus Files ...............................23

Accessing Other Panels.....................................................23

2 Customizing Your Work Environment .................27

Setting General Preferences ............................28

    Startup Options ..........................................29

    Saving .............................................................29

    Services (Mac Only) .............................................30

    Separators (Mac Only) ................................................30

    Scratch Pad .............................................................31

    Bibliography Manager .....................................31

Customizing Scrivener’s Appearance ............................32

    Binder ........................................................33

    Outliner .......................................34

    Notepad Lines ......................................34

    General .......................................35

    Full Screen ......................................35

    Fonts .............................................36

    Modifying the Color Scheme .................................36

Customizing the Corkboard Appearance ....................40

    Appearance ..............................................41

    Fonts .............................................................43

    Dragging and Double-Clicking ....................................43

Setting Full Screen Composition Mode Preferences ..........44

    Composition Mode Setup .................................45

    Editing Options .................................46

    Composition Mode Appearance ...............................47

    Composition Mode Customizable Colors .........................47

    Default View Settings ................................................48

Customizing the Editor..............................................48

    Editing Options ...................................................49

    Wrap to Editor Mode ............................................50

    Wrap to Page Mode ............................................51

Setting a Writing Font ...............................................53

Saving and Sharing Your Preference Settings .............55

    Saving Preference Presets ..............................................57

    Saving Theme Preferences .........................................58

Using Workspace Layouts ..........................................59

    Creating Layouts ..........................................................61

    Accessing Layouts ..........................................62

    Modifying Layouts ..............................................63

    Renaming Layouts ..................................................63

    Deleting Layouts ...........................................................64

    Exporting and Importing Layouts .....................................64

Customizing the Toolbar ...................................................65

3 Organizing the Binder ...................................69

Working with Files and Folders ......................................70

Adding Documents and Folders to the Binder .......................73

    Adding Text Documents .........................................74

    Adding Folders .........................................75

    Adding a Folder at the Root Level.................................76

    Adding a File at the Root Level...................................77

    Grouping Documents and Folders ........................77

Organizing Documents and Folders in the Binder .............78

    Moving Items ................................................79

    Duplicating Items .......................................80

    Renaming Items ..............................................81

    Deleting Items .............................................81

Adding Icons to Documents and Folders (Mac Only) ..............82

    Installing Additional Icons ........................................83

    Restoring Original Icons .....................................85

Importing an Existing Manuscript ............................85

    Setting Import Preferences .......................................87

    Importing Documents .............................................88

    Splitting and Merging Files ...........................88

    Using Import and Split .......................................89

Focusing on the Chapter at Hand ...........................90

    Revealing and Hiding Items .................................90

    Hoisting the Binder (Mac Only) ...........................91

4 Writing in the Editor ..............................93

Examining the Editor Window ..........................94

Using the Header Bar .....................................95

    Navigation History Buttons .............................95

    The Item Icon Menu.......................................96

    Sidebar Navigation Buttons ...............................98

Splitting the Screen ...........................................98

    Splitting the Editor ...........................................99

    Selecting an Item in Split Screen ................. 101

    Binder Affects Menu ................................ 101

    Closing a Split ...................................... 103

    Saving Your Layout ................................... 103

Formatting Text and Paragraphs ........................ 104

    Preserving Formatting ...................................... 107

Using Formatting Presets (Mac Only) ................... 107

    Creating a Formatting Preset ..................... 108

    Deleting a Formatting Preset ........................ 110

Accessing the Ruler ................................. 110

    Setting Tabs ......................................... 111

    Adjusting Indents ............................................ 112

Using the Footer Bar .......................................... 112

Checking Spelling ...................................................... 113

    Automatic Spell Checking ...................................... 113

    Manually Checking Your Spelling............................. 115

    Automating Corrections as You Type ........................ 116

Adding Images to a Document ................................ 118

    Inserting Linked Images (Mac Only) .................... 119

    Embedding PDF Images (Mac Only) .......................... 120

Viewing Scrivenings ............................................ 120

Using QuickReference Panels (Mac Only) ........................... 121

Taking Notes in the Scratch Pad ......................................... 123

    Adding and Deleting Notes.............................. 125

    Sending a Note to a Project ...................... 125

5 Writing in Full Screen ......................... 127

Using Composition Mode ....................................... 128

Making Adjustments in the Control Strip ..................... 130

Using Composition Mode with Multiple Displays .................. 134

Using the Mac’s Full Screen Mode ........................ 134

II Organizing Your Writing Process

6 Storyboarding with the Corkboard .............. 137

Opening the Corkboard ............................ 138

    Viewing Multiple Containers in a Stacked Corkboard ......... 139

    Adding Documents to the Corkboard .................... 141

Examining Index Cards .................................. 142

Adding Index Card Options ............................ 143

Setting Corkboard Options on the Footer Bar .................. 145

Using the Corkboard in Split Screen ............................ 146

    Putting Split Screen to Work ................................ 148

    Using Images to Your Advantage ............................ 150

Locking the View Mode (Mac Only) ..................................... 152

Working with the Freeform Corkboard (Mac Only)...................... 152

Printing Index Cards ........................................... 155

7 Plotting in the Outliner ................... 161

Exploring the Outliner ................................... 162

Customizing the Outliner .............................. 163

    Expanding and Collapsing Containers ...................... 163

    Adding and Removing Columns ........................... 164

    Arranging Columns and Items ...................... 167

    Hiding the Synopsis ........................................... 168

    Sorting by Outliner Columns (Mac Only) ................. 168

Printing an Outline on the Mac ............................ 170

Exporting an Outline ........................................... 173

    Exporting to a Spreadsheet (CSV Format) ..................... 173

    Exporting to OPML Format................................... 174

Importing an OPML or Freemind Outline ..................... 177

8 Organizing Your Research ............ 181

Importing Research Files .......................... 182

    Using File Import .................................. 182

    Opening Files in an External Editor ................... 183

    Linking to an Alias .............................. 185

Using PDFs ......................................... 188

Accessing Media Files ................................. 189

Importing Web Pages ............................... 190

9 Brainstorming with Scrivener ......................... 193

Using the Name Generator ............................... 194

    Searching for Names on the Mac................................... 194

    Adding Names to the Mac Name Generator ................... 196

    Searching for Names in Windows .................................. 198

    Adding Names to the Windows Name Generator .................. 201

Creating a Sketchpad ...................................... 202

Using Aeon Timeline with Scrivener (Mac Only) ...................... 205

10 Editing Your Manuscript .......................... 211

Using Inline Annotations ....................................... 212

    Adding Annotations ......................................... 212

    Editing Annotations ................................................. 213

    Changing the Appearance of Annotations ........................... 214

Adding and Reviewing Comments ............................ 217

    Adding Comments ........................................ 217

    Editing Comments .................................... 218

    Changing the Appearance of Comments ........................... 219

    Moving Comments ......................................... 219

    Removing All Document Notations ........................... 220

Converting Annotations to Comments (and Vice Versa) ................ 221

Searching for Annotations and Comments ................... 222

Exporting Annotations and Comments ................... 223

Using Revision Mode (Mac Only) ..................... 223

    Marking Text .......................................... 224

    Marking Text for Deletion ................................... 226

    Customizing Revision Mode ............................... 226

    Finding Revisions .......................................... 227

    Removing Revisions ................................ 228

Taking Snapshots ......................................... 229

    Creating Snapshots ..................................... 229

    Viewing Snapshots .................................... 230

    Comparing Snapshot Versions (Mac Only) .................. 232

    Reverting to a Prior Snapshot ......................... 233

III Digging Deeper into Scrivener

11 Digging into the Inspector ...................... 237

Navigating the Inspector ..................................... 238

Adding a Synopsis in the Inspector ........................... 239

    Automatically Generating a Synopsis ................................ 240

    Adding an Image to the Synopsis ................................ 241

Toggling the Created and Modified Date .......................... 242

Selecting Compile Settings ...................................... 242

Adding Project and Document Notes ................................ 243

    Adding Images to Notes ........................................... 244

    Managing Project Notes (Mac Only) ........................... 246

Using Reference Links ................................................ 247

    Adding Internal References ................................ 248

    Adding Internal References to the Item Icon Menu (Mac Only) ......... 249

    Adding External References ................................. 250

    Viewing References ............................................... 251

    Editing and Deleting References ............................... 252

Locking the Inspector ....................................... 253

12 Putting Keywords and Meta-Data to Work ............... 255

Setting Status and Labels ...................................... 256

    Changing the Label and Status Titles ........................... 256

    Removing Status and Label Values .......................... 259

    Adding Status and Label Values ............................... 260

    Setting a Default Status or Label ......................... 262

    Associating Color with Labels ................................... 262

    Applying Label Color to Interface Elements .................... 264

    Applying a Status Stamp to Index Cards ............................. 266

    Using Glyphs as a Status Stamp on the Mac ......................... 266

    Adding Glyphs as a Status Stamp in Windows...................... 268

Using Keywords........................................................ 270

    Viewing the Keywords Inspector Pane ........................ 271

    Adding Keywords to Documents ..................................... 271

    Removing Keywords from a Document ................................. 272

    Using the Keywords Panel .................................. 272

    Organizing Project Keywords ............................. 274

    Searching by Keyword .......................................... 274

    Deleting Keywords from a Project ................................... 276

Adding Custom Meta-Data (Mac Only) ................................... 276

    Adding Fields ................................................... 277

    Adding Values ..................................................... 279

    Deleting Custom Meta-Data Fields .................................. 280

13 Creating and Using Template Sheets ............................ 283

Using Predesigned Template Sheets ................................ 284

    Changing the Template Folder ............................... 285

    Modifying Template Sheets ................................... 285

    Creating a Document from a Template ......................... 287

Creating Your Own Template Sheets ...................................... 288

Setting a Default Document Type ............................................ 290

14 Creating and Using Project Templates ........................ 293

Creating a Project to Build a Template ................................... 294

Developing a Good Template .......................................... 295

    Create a Workspace Layout .......................................... 296

    Set Up the Draft Folder .................................................... 296

    Add or Modify the Information File ........................................ 297

    Create Non-Draft Folders and Files .................................... 297

    Set Default Meta-Data ............................................. 300

    Set Project Targets ................................................... 301

    Create Template Sheets ................................................ 301

    Create Initial Collections ............................................... 302

    Designate Compile Settings .......................................................... 303

Using Template Placeholder Tags (Mac Only) ................................. 303

Saving a Project Template ............................................................ 306

    Modifying a Project Template ............................................. 307

    Setting a Default Project Template .................................... 308

    Deleting a Project Template ........................................................ 308

Importing and Exporting Project Templates ................................ 309

    Importing a Project Template ........................................ 310

    Exporting a Project Template ...................................... 311

IV Managing Your Writing Projects

15 Tracking Your Progress ........................................ 313

Using Project Targets .......................................................... 314

    Setting Target Options (Mac Only) ............................... 315

    Setting Draft Targets ................................................. 319

    Setting Session Targets ................................... 320

    Resetting Target Sessions ......................................... 320

Using Document Targets .............................................. 321

Using Project Statistics ...................................................... 323

Viewing Word Frequency .......................................... 325

16 Searching Your Project ....................................... 329

Conducting Project Searches ............................................... 330

    Narrowing Project Search Results by Element ........................... 331

    Limiting Project Searches with Operators ........................... 332

    Narrowing Search Options ................................ 333

    Using Project Replace .................................. 334

Using Document Find and Replace ..................................... 336

    Performing a Document Find ........................................ 336

    Using Document Replace with Document Find.................... 338

Using the Find Synopsis Tool (Mac Only) .......................... 338

Searching by Format ................................... 340

Creating and Using Collections.................................. 342

    Creating a Standard Collection ...................................... 343

    Adding and Removing Files from Standard Collections .............. 346

    Moving Files in a Standard Collection ...................... 347

    Creating a Search Collection ............................... 348

    Converting a Search Collection to a Standard Collection......... 349

    Renaming Collections ..................................... 349

    Removing Collections ..................................... 349

    Toggling the Collection View ............................... 349

Setting Bookmarks (Mac Only) .................................... 350

    Adding Bookmarks ........................................................ 350

    Using Bookmark Headers for Navigation ............................. 351

Choosing Favorites (Mac Only) .................................... 352

17 Backing Up Your Work....................... 355

Setting Backup Preferences ............................... 356

Backing Up to Dropbox ................................. 359

Excluding a Project from Automatic Backups ...................... 361

Performing Manual Backups ...................................... 361

Backing Up to Time Machine or Windows Backup ....................... 364

Restoring from a Backup ................................ 364

18 Taking Scrivener Out and About ..................... 367

Using Scrivener on Multiple Computers ...................... 368

Using Dropbox to Access Your Scrivener Project ........................... 369

Syncing Your Project (Mac Only) ................................................ 371

    Using Files in the External Folder ..................................... 375

    Working Wisely with Synced Folders ........................... 376

Using iPad Apps with Scrivener Files (Mac Only) .............................. 376

    Using iA Writer with Scrivener Files (Mac Only) ........................... 377

    Using Index Card for iOS (Mac Only) ........................................... 380

V Generating a Completed Manuscript

19 Compiling Your Completed Work .................... 387

Understanding the Compile Process ............................................ 388

    Choosing a Compile Format................................................ 389

    Selecting an Output Format ................................................. 391

    Compiling the Project Using Compile Presets ............................ 394

Using the Compile Window ....................................................... 396

Choosing the Contents to Compile ................................................. 397

    Selecting Items in the Compile Group ....................................... 399

    Filtering the Contents of a Compile Group (Mac Only) ...................... 400

    Adding Front Matter (Mac Only) ....................................... 402

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