What’s better than writing software that helps you outline your novels? How’s about writing software that also helps you write? That’s where the program Scrivener takes its whole game up a notch. Unlike other programs that are really only handy for one or the other, Scrivener offers amazing tools for both outlining and drafting–and does it all in one place, so the two are super-easy to integrate within your overall writing process.

Last week, I showed you how I use Scrivener to outline my novels. Today, I’m going to show you how I take all those important notes and turn them into an honest-to-gravy book. I’ll be using my historical superhero work-in-progress Wayfarer in all the example screenshots. Don’t forget you can click on any picture to enlarge it.

Once again, this isn’t a tutorial on how to use Scrivener. It’s just a example of my process within the program.

And now, here’s what my daily writing process looks like when using Scrivener during my first drafts.

My Writing Process, Step 1: Warm Up

I start my writing session with a series of warm-up steps. I used to do a much more thorough warm-up session, but over the years I’ve found it takes me less time to switch over into full-blown writing mode. These days I only do the following:

Research Notes

My first stop is my folder of research notes in the Research section of the Binder. I’ll select a topic pertinent to whatever scene I’ll be writing that day, and I’ll read a screen’s worth of info.

Character Sketches

Next up, I visit my character interviews. Over the course of writing the book, I’ll read these interviews over and over to keep my character details fresh in my mind. I start with the protagonist and read through his interview one “screen” a day.

My Writing Process, Step 2: Review and Edit

Once I’ve finished reviewing my overall story notes, I zoom in to focus on the story itself. I always review whatever I wrote the day before, proofreading it and tweaking it as needed. Not only does this quick edit make for a much cleaner first draft by the time I’m finished, it also helps me get back into the flow of the story, so I’m ready to pick right back up where I left off.

This step is pretty straightforward: just find where you began writing the day before and start reading. One thing I’ve found particularly helpful in Scrivener is the ability to change the icons for all my scene files, so I can easily find the document I’m working on. I like to use a different colored flag to mark each of the major structural points. I use a checkmark to indicate scenes I’ve finished and a star for the scene I’m working on.

You can also use the Status tool in the Inspector (right-hand column), which will show each scene’s status when in the Corkboard mode. But I prefer using the icons, since it’s more visually immediate (and more fun).

I keep a separate file, down in the Research folder, where I store my “deleted data.” I never permanently delete anything. You never know when it might come in handy! All deleted snippets go down in their special file, in case I decide I want them back at a later time.

My Writing Process, Step 3: Reference Outline Notes

This is where I review my outline notes. I have already typed up all the notes pertinent to each scene in the Document Notes section at the bottom of the Inspector (in the right column). When starting a new scene, I read through all the notes for that scene.

I then take the extra step of re-typing these notes into a bulleted list in the main Composition screen. Not only does this give me access to my notes when in full-screen mode (see next step, below), but it also helps me focus on the step-by-step play of the scene, so it’s as fresh as possible in my mind while writing.

My Writing Process, Step 4: Write!

There are two ways I like to format Scrivener for the actual writing, both of which I use to minimize the clutter and distraction of the organization tools–the Binder to the left and the Inspector to the right.

The first method is the awesome full-screen mode, which provides a customizable composition screen that eliminates all distractions, including your computer’s Start menu and taskbar. You can change the width of your screen, the opacity of the background (if you’re a Mac user, you can even add a photo background of your choice). When you move your cursor to the bottom of the screen, full-screen mode will give you a handful of tools, but otherwise it’s pretty streamlined.

The one drawback to the full screen is that it can end up causing more distractions than it eliminates if you’re needing to constantly reference your outline or research notes or just a desktop dictionary/thesaurus such as I prefer. In that instance, I forego the full screen and instead create a streamlined layout in the basic Composition mode by closing down the Binder and Inspector. This allows me a spacious full-screen editing mode. I can then use the split-screen feature to put my pertinent research notes or character/setting/costume images to the side of my actual writing, for easy reference. (Note that the taskbars are completely customizable, so your Inspector and Binder buttons might not be in exactly the same spot mine are.)

In order to keep the timing and pacing between major structural moments on point, I monitor my word count scene by scene. After I complete each chapter, I add its total word count into the folder title, so I can easily reference it. It’s also fun to use Scrivener’s Project Targets to see how far along I am in reaching my total target word count.

As you can see, Scrivener does a great job of flexing to fit just about every part of my writing process. When I’m ready to edit and (eventually) publish, it’s also an all-in-one tool for creating e-book formats such as epub and mobi.

I’m having a blast with Scrivener. Seems there’s always more goodies to discover. If you’ve yet to jump on the bandwagon, I encourage you to give Scrivener a try. You can get a thirty-day free trial from their website–which will give you plenty of time to play around with the program to decide whether or not it might revolutionize your writing process just like it did mine. And you can also play around with this free Scrivener template created by Stuart Norfolk and based on my books Outlining Your Novel and Structuring Your Novel. Have fun!

>>Click here to read about how use Scrivener when editing.

Tell me your opinion: What does your daily writing process look like?

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