In the middle section is a corkboard representation of those same parts. On the left side (the binder) is the folder structure showing the parts of my book.
Here’s what my part structure looks like for Secrets to Ruling School: Class Election:Īs you can see, each part of my book takes place on a different day. For my books-which also have parts-I set up folders for both the parts and the chapters. Typically, folders represent chapters and the files inside of them represent the text in each chapter. So, now that you know what Scrivener is, let’s get into the details: SetupĪs I mentioned, Scrivener works with a folder and file-based structure. That being said, I was able to work with the program fairly effortlessly once I got the hang of it. I’d compare it to Photoshop in that way-easy to get a basic handle on, but requires some serious commitment to become a wizard at it. The downside to Scrivener is that it’s such a robust program it can be intimidating to learn and takes a while to master. Additionally, because Scrivener is so customizable, different formats can be set up and adjusted to the author’s specifications so picture and text indicators, speech balloons, and other elements can be input and styled with minimal effort. What makes Scrivener particularly useful for writing an illustrated middle grade novel is that its folder and file-based structure allows authors to break down manuscripts into manageable chunks that can be worked on independently yet also viewed and tweaked as a whole. It’s an awesome piece of software for both Mac and Windows-based machines.
SCRIVENER BOOK GENERATOR
It also has a ton of nifty features like a corkboard outliner, document versioning, and a name generator to come up with character names.
SCRIVENER BOOK MOVIE
Unlike Microsoft Word, which handles text as one long document, Scrivener is a writing program that works by using a folder and file-based system that exports to various industry-standard formats when the work is completed-from publisher-ready manuscripts to movie scripts.
Here’s how I was able to make that process manageable: About Scrivenerįirst off, let’s talk about what Scrivener is in case you’re not aware of it. To simplify the process of writing my own illustrated middle grade books The Secrets to Ruling School (Without Even Trying) and The Secrets to Ruling School: Class Election, I used a program called Scrivener. Writing an illustrated middle grade novel is particularly challenging because both the text and illustrations need to be accounted for and work harmoniously within the manuscript.