Maybe my problem is that I try to do too much and burn out too easily. I work full-time and then I write seven days a week. I make an attempt to do a private version of Nanowrimo every month but the truth is that I'm usually too tired to type out the requisite 1667 words a day. Sure, some days I do it but most of the time, I don't. Then today I stumbled onto a 500 words a day writing challenge.
At first, I thought, "This is nothing. Why bother?" but then I pulled out my handy-dandy calculator (i.e. I minimized my Firefox and clicked on the calculator icon on my desktop) and, lo and behold, 500 words a day works out to a lovely 182,500 words in one year. Wow.
Now when I factor in that there will be days (heck, they'd better be days) when I write well more than 500 words, I may be able to get to 250K words this year. If I can, 2013 will be an awesome year for me as a writer.
Who wants to join me in the 500 words a day challenge?
Tuesday, January 1, 2013
Saturday, December 29, 2012
My voyage into short story writing
So I have three novels in progress which, according to my usually very honest writer's group, are actually pretty good and have some potential (or at least that's what they tell me). Those novels have been sitting at 16,600 words, 30,600 words, and 25,217 words respectively. Why aren't they done? Because I've selected to focus my effort on short story writing instead. The question is: why?
My writer's group asks me what happened to the novels. I say that they are in work but I wanted to get some shorter pieces done first. Okay, it's not the best idea to change gears mid-stream but I do it all the time. Partially because I think I'm obsessive compulsive (I do love lists and I count everything after all). I need completion and I fear failure. Well, what writer doesn't, right? But I think my competing need/fear compels me to gravitate towards the shorter works.
1A.) Writing a short story makes me feel complete. It's done. I can check it off the to-do list (I adore doing that!), then I can add it to my completed list (yay), and then I can submit it to my writer's group, make their suggested changes, and get it ready for submission. It's so packaged and perfect. Unlike the novel that needs more and more from me, the short story just wants to be born and then run off on its own little legs like a baby colt. My novel is much more of a baby human in need of feeding, care, and daily changes.;-)
1B.) I work long days and when I get home, I only have a truncated amount of time to write. I spend that hour or two on the novel (as I should be doing) and I have 100 paths down which to trod. I spend it on the short story and I've produced a finished work. This makes me feel like the missed TV shows and the shortened sleep hours are all worth it.
2.) The characters in my novels need development. The characters in my short stories need me to be briefer. They call out, "hurry up and finish me." There novel cousins just make more wheels turn, while whining, "that's only the surface of my mixed up emotions. Dig deeper. Fill another page." :-)
3.) My short story characters are so much fun. They don't have the background or stamina to be a novel character but they glow in their short life span in the pages of my short stories.
Now that I have relished the feeling of completion that my short stories give me, it's time I move back to the novels. They've been patient for a very long time. Wish me - and them - good luck.
My writer's group asks me what happened to the novels. I say that they are in work but I wanted to get some shorter pieces done first. Okay, it's not the best idea to change gears mid-stream but I do it all the time. Partially because I think I'm obsessive compulsive (I do love lists and I count everything after all). I need completion and I fear failure. Well, what writer doesn't, right? But I think my competing need/fear compels me to gravitate towards the shorter works.
1A.) Writing a short story makes me feel complete. It's done. I can check it off the to-do list (I adore doing that!), then I can add it to my completed list (yay), and then I can submit it to my writer's group, make their suggested changes, and get it ready for submission. It's so packaged and perfect. Unlike the novel that needs more and more from me, the short story just wants to be born and then run off on its own little legs like a baby colt. My novel is much more of a baby human in need of feeding, care, and daily changes.;-)
1B.) I work long days and when I get home, I only have a truncated amount of time to write. I spend that hour or two on the novel (as I should be doing) and I have 100 paths down which to trod. I spend it on the short story and I've produced a finished work. This makes me feel like the missed TV shows and the shortened sleep hours are all worth it.
2.) The characters in my novels need development. The characters in my short stories need me to be briefer. They call out, "hurry up and finish me." There novel cousins just make more wheels turn, while whining, "that's only the surface of my mixed up emotions. Dig deeper. Fill another page." :-)
3.) My short story characters are so much fun. They don't have the background or stamina to be a novel character but they glow in their short life span in the pages of my short stories.
Now that I have relished the feeling of completion that my short stories give me, it's time I move back to the novels. They've been patient for a very long time. Wish me - and them - good luck.
Thursday, December 27, 2012
What Inspires Us to Write
It's an active debate among people I know: "What inspires you to write?"
Every author has his or her own answer to that. When I think introspectively, I could up with several responses.
Firstly, I tend to get inspiration from other writers in my writing group when they say things like, "You know, you should write a story about X?" I think the idea of working from such inspiration is addictive. It's as if I'm writing for an already waiting audience and who is not inspired by a waiting reader-ship?
Secondly, I love to play with the "what if's" of the world. I like to turn the tables. Make the victim the killer. Make the child the evil genius. Make dark light. Make light dark. It's my love of debate. I just had a four email exchange with another manager at work over a company policy. I had to play devil's advocate because one side of an idea is never enough for me. Personally, I think the concept behind the upcoming movie, "Hansel and Gretel: Witch Hunters" is brilliant. It's that idea of bringing the 'what if' of an age-old story to life.
Thirdly, I find inspiration in my fantasy world. Since I was a child, I loved to imagine alternate realities and alter egos. I still love to imagine them and now I give them a new life on my pages.
Fourthly, I get energy for my writing from music. The sound of the swells, the beat of the bass, the lyrics that speak to me - all of these create characters in my mind. I hear a song and I imagine a character who would have that in his/her life's soundtrack and voila, a new story idea is born.
Fifthly, the world around me inspires. Sure, a lot of authors and artists say that but it's still true to me. I love to travel and everywhere I go, I try to capture a picture of a location or an event that can appear in a future story of mine. I also love to take pictures but I am not a photographer as much as I am a writer. I always loved the idea of both but writing is more a part of my soul. I love in Washington DC and I travel a lot. I have a series of places yet to be used. My characters don't know where they are going yet, but I do.
Lastly, I think the idea of creating a story that will hopefully be immortal, one that will live long past me. I want to birth an idea that inspires others for many years to come. As sappy as that is.
So what inspires you to write?
Every author has his or her own answer to that. When I think introspectively, I could up with several responses.
Firstly, I tend to get inspiration from other writers in my writing group when they say things like, "You know, you should write a story about X?" I think the idea of working from such inspiration is addictive. It's as if I'm writing for an already waiting audience and who is not inspired by a waiting reader-ship?
Secondly, I love to play with the "what if's" of the world. I like to turn the tables. Make the victim the killer. Make the child the evil genius. Make dark light. Make light dark. It's my love of debate. I just had a four email exchange with another manager at work over a company policy. I had to play devil's advocate because one side of an idea is never enough for me. Personally, I think the concept behind the upcoming movie, "Hansel and Gretel: Witch Hunters" is brilliant. It's that idea of bringing the 'what if' of an age-old story to life.
Thirdly, I find inspiration in my fantasy world. Since I was a child, I loved to imagine alternate realities and alter egos. I still love to imagine them and now I give them a new life on my pages.
Fourthly, I get energy for my writing from music. The sound of the swells, the beat of the bass, the lyrics that speak to me - all of these create characters in my mind. I hear a song and I imagine a character who would have that in his/her life's soundtrack and voila, a new story idea is born.
Fifthly, the world around me inspires. Sure, a lot of authors and artists say that but it's still true to me. I love to travel and everywhere I go, I try to capture a picture of a location or an event that can appear in a future story of mine. I also love to take pictures but I am not a photographer as much as I am a writer. I always loved the idea of both but writing is more a part of my soul. I love in Washington DC and I travel a lot. I have a series of places yet to be used. My characters don't know where they are going yet, but I do.
Lastly, I think the idea of creating a story that will hopefully be immortal, one that will live long past me. I want to birth an idea that inspires others for many years to come. As sappy as that is.
So what inspires you to write?
Wednesday, December 26, 2012
Why I Write Fantasy
In my writer's group, which I love by the way, we critique members' projects on a monthly basis (well 11 months out of the year, we take January off) and, in order to be fair and balanced, the submissions are read and critiqued anonymously. It isn't until after all comments have been made that the author reveals him or herself. So I showed up at my writer's group meeting back in November and unveiled my latest short story.
I got to the venue early and started laying out the cookies and setting up my iPad and chatting with one good friend and fellow member who arrived before me. "Didn't you write anything this time?" she asked.
I may not be the best but I try to be prolific. I submit between one and three projects a month to the group. "Yes," I said.
"I assume you wrote that fantasy piece," she answered.
"No," I responded, "I've been working on pure literary stuff lately. Nothing fantasy or paranormal-based for once."
My friend grimaced, "Now why would you want to go and do that?"
I finished setting the table and sat down, "Well, I don't know," I answered, "I just thought I'd do something a little different."
"But who wants to read about the real world? I live in the real world and it sucks. I read to get out of the real world."
Soon the other members arrived and the discussions began but, as I got home that night, I started to give our exchange some real thought. Why do I, like my friend, gravitate towards reading and writing fantasy over general literary fiction? Is it just that I like to make up my own worlds? Yeah, that could be it. Or is it because I get tired of going to work every day and playing by the rules of the real world? Definitely that too. All literature is an escape but fantasy is more so an escape and it just feels like a safer world to play in.
For example - I, for one, hate horror movies for the most part. I love old Dracula films and those awesomely-bad B-movies on the Sci Fi channel but I hate...despise....will not attend movies about real life murderers or serial killers or anything like that. The Fog? Yes. Halloween? No! Thinking about this, I realize it all plays into my fantasy is better than reality/literary world. Fantasy worlds are safe. If they are scary, it's okay because they aren't real. Fantasy worlds take me out of my real existence for a few minutes instead of reinforcing it.
So, in retrospect, I came to a conclusion on why I write fantasy / paranormal 99% of the time:
1. As stated above, fantasy worlds are safe. It's never going to really happen to the reader.
2. You - the reader - can never get that far ahead of me - the writer. It's my path. I'm laying the bricks as we go. I'm opening the door for you. I get the joy of surprising you. I get to make you say "wow" because you don't know what lies ahead until I light the way.
3. As the writer, I can create a suspension of disbelief anywhere along the way. Why yes, that character does fly. You can't say it's preposterous because it's fantasy.
4. There are definite endings in fantasy / paranormal. The evil will be defeated. The magic will work. There's always another trick. In the real world, evil will be back. It can't be banished forever. But in fantasy, it can. The writer can create a new world and take everyone into it with him/her.
5. I don't have to play by the rules. (Unless we go down the time travel road, but that's a whole other animal). I can barely suffer through some police shows on TV when they try to make the viewer believe that one person can do all that...as if the beat cop/detective/medical examiner/CSI specialist/attorney are all one person. I don't buy it because I live in the real world, I work in the real world, and that's not how it's done so don't lie to me. But in a fantasy if a character has multiple roles, well okay, it's a fantasy. I'll go with it. So I like to write by my own rules, not reality's.
6. Endings are so much better in fantasy. While talking on the phone the other night to another friend, we got on the topic of what makes for good writing. I said that when I was young, I decided that a great writer has a 'wow' ending, something unexpected and amazing. I said to her to think of Saki and O. Henry. I loved those type of endings when I was a child. I decided that to be a good writer, I needed strong endings like those. Till today, if my ending is weak, I feel the piece has failed. But I find I can achieve better endings in the fantasy world.... and that is why I prefer to play there.
I still experiment in literary fiction but fantasy / paranormal will always be my love and that's why I write fantasy.
I got to the venue early and started laying out the cookies and setting up my iPad and chatting with one good friend and fellow member who arrived before me. "Didn't you write anything this time?" she asked.
I may not be the best but I try to be prolific. I submit between one and three projects a month to the group. "Yes," I said.
"I assume you wrote that fantasy piece," she answered.
"No," I responded, "I've been working on pure literary stuff lately. Nothing fantasy or paranormal-based for once."
My friend grimaced, "Now why would you want to go and do that?"
I finished setting the table and sat down, "Well, I don't know," I answered, "I just thought I'd do something a little different."
"But who wants to read about the real world? I live in the real world and it sucks. I read to get out of the real world."
Soon the other members arrived and the discussions began but, as I got home that night, I started to give our exchange some real thought. Why do I, like my friend, gravitate towards reading and writing fantasy over general literary fiction? Is it just that I like to make up my own worlds? Yeah, that could be it. Or is it because I get tired of going to work every day and playing by the rules of the real world? Definitely that too. All literature is an escape but fantasy is more so an escape and it just feels like a safer world to play in.
For example - I, for one, hate horror movies for the most part. I love old Dracula films and those awesomely-bad B-movies on the Sci Fi channel but I hate...despise....will not attend movies about real life murderers or serial killers or anything like that. The Fog? Yes. Halloween? No! Thinking about this, I realize it all plays into my fantasy is better than reality/literary world. Fantasy worlds are safe. If they are scary, it's okay because they aren't real. Fantasy worlds take me out of my real existence for a few minutes instead of reinforcing it.
So, in retrospect, I came to a conclusion on why I write fantasy / paranormal 99% of the time:
1. As stated above, fantasy worlds are safe. It's never going to really happen to the reader.
2. You - the reader - can never get that far ahead of me - the writer. It's my path. I'm laying the bricks as we go. I'm opening the door for you. I get the joy of surprising you. I get to make you say "wow" because you don't know what lies ahead until I light the way.
3. As the writer, I can create a suspension of disbelief anywhere along the way. Why yes, that character does fly. You can't say it's preposterous because it's fantasy.
4. There are definite endings in fantasy / paranormal. The evil will be defeated. The magic will work. There's always another trick. In the real world, evil will be back. It can't be banished forever. But in fantasy, it can. The writer can create a new world and take everyone into it with him/her.
5. I don't have to play by the rules. (Unless we go down the time travel road, but that's a whole other animal). I can barely suffer through some police shows on TV when they try to make the viewer believe that one person can do all that...as if the beat cop/detective/medical examiner/CSI specialist/attorney are all one person. I don't buy it because I live in the real world, I work in the real world, and that's not how it's done so don't lie to me. But in a fantasy if a character has multiple roles, well okay, it's a fantasy. I'll go with it. So I like to write by my own rules, not reality's.
6. Endings are so much better in fantasy. While talking on the phone the other night to another friend, we got on the topic of what makes for good writing. I said that when I was young, I decided that a great writer has a 'wow' ending, something unexpected and amazing. I said to her to think of Saki and O. Henry. I loved those type of endings when I was a child. I decided that to be a good writer, I needed strong endings like those. Till today, if my ending is weak, I feel the piece has failed. But I find I can achieve better endings in the fantasy world.... and that is why I prefer to play there.
I still experiment in literary fiction but fantasy / paranormal will always be my love and that's why I write fantasy.
Monday, November 19, 2012
Nanowrimo - Day 19
Despite not documenting it on any type of social medium - because I was so busy writing! - October was an awesome writing month for me. I was averaging about 2100 words a night and one Sunday, I did 4800 without much more than bathroom and tea breaks. In fact, I managed to write three short stories in the span of four nights. So, of course, I was psyched for Nanowrimo. How could I not be? I completed story three on October 30 and decided to take a writing break on Halloween. I can't write if the TV is on and Halloween was on a Wednesday and Wednesdays are Supernatural night on the CW so a break was much deserved. :-) I figured one night of rest before Nanowrimo started was allowed. So I went to work on November 1 chomping at the bit. I couldn't wait to get home and start Nano. Flash forward twelve hours....I got home, I was hungry and exhausted. So, I thought it's only day one and I only have to do 1667 words a night to make 50K by the end of the month and I so clearly can pull off 2100, what's the problem? I'll just make this an early night and I will re-group on November 2.
Nov 2 - that didn't happen as planned. At all.
Nov 3 - off to my writer's group where we will all write together in a common environment of writing bliss, encouraging and motivating each other. That didn't happen as planned. At all. Sure, I went. Sure, I had a great time as always...but the topics were video games, how I need to shorten the endings on my three October stories to add more punch, and where can we get curly fries for lunch. Curly fries - one; writing - zero. But it's okay, right? It's only day three.
Nov 10 - had a great day accompanying friends to an anime convention. I don't even watch anime but it was fun. So what's my Nano total? An awesome nine words. I'm suddenly depressed.
Nov 11 - had a great day accompanying friends to see shirtless Daniel Craig, aka James Bond. Great movie, great food, great fun. So what's my Nano total? An even more awesome twelve words. What on earth?
Nov 19 - the worst part is that I have a idea and a plot and characters I love - that my critique group also loves. I'm going to really delve in tomorrow. What can go wrong? Right?
Nov 2 - that didn't happen as planned. At all.
Nov 3 - off to my writer's group where we will all write together in a common environment of writing bliss, encouraging and motivating each other. That didn't happen as planned. At all. Sure, I went. Sure, I had a great time as always...but the topics were video games, how I need to shorten the endings on my three October stories to add more punch, and where can we get curly fries for lunch. Curly fries - one; writing - zero. But it's okay, right? It's only day three.
Nov 10 - had a great day accompanying friends to an anime convention. I don't even watch anime but it was fun. So what's my Nano total? An awesome nine words. I'm suddenly depressed.
Nov 11 - had a great day accompanying friends to see shirtless Daniel Craig, aka James Bond. Great movie, great food, great fun. So what's my Nano total? An even more awesome twelve words. What on earth?
Nov 19 - the worst part is that I have a idea and a plot and characters I love - that my critique group also loves. I'm going to really delve in tomorrow. What can go wrong? Right?
Sunday, May 27, 2012
Hype and Confidence
I read the latest super-hyped book yesterday (lost a day of writing to do it) and when I put the book done (or more appropriately, put my ipad down and hit the little white button to get out of the Kindle app), I was left with a sense of, "huh?"
Years ago, when I was reading through the classics (something I started at 11 years old, knowing I wanted to be a writer and continuing through my BA and MA degrees in English), I would walk away stunned. Absolutely stunned. How on earth could I be a writer NOW?, I would moan. How could I ever match the level of amazing that I just soaked in? If this is what is required to be a writer, I will never match up. Afterwards, I would try to replicate some of that grandiose story, some of that amazing dialogue, some of that memorable flair. I would always, in my own opinion, find myself falling short and decide that maybe I should just write poetry instead or take up a career in journalism where it was all facts and no flair. Eventually, I would return to my own short stories (the first of which was told to a tape recorder when I was three, the next set typed up by my own little seven year old hands on my mom's old typewriter from high school). But, I would never feel confident that I was anything better than mediocre.
Fast forward the years and I find myself hearing about the latest "hot" book on TV. (Remember when we never heard about books on TV? Well, this IS a plus to hear so now.) Some co-workers of mine chimed in on the hype (they are mentally casting the movie as I write it), so I decided to download a copy and read this wonder for myself. I finished quickly as little thought was required - it wasn't a mystery or anything to mull over deeply. Then I sat back and thought, "why the hype? This is (no thyme intended) tripe." And no, I will not write the title or author here.
So I'm left to wonder, is this to which the literary world has descended? I mean, of course there are rare gems worthy of the hype (thank you, JK Rowling) but for the most part, is this how publishing has stayed alive and not shut its doors in the media age? By publishing to the lowest common denominator? I don't just mean that I didn't care for the plot (I didn't), the language (I didn't), but how one-dimensional the characters were, how much the author needed a thesaurus, the cliffhanger that went nowhere (unless you buy the sequel, I'm assuming), the vapid heroine and her poorly thought out decisions.
Therefore, as a writer as well as a reader, where does this leave me? Does a background in the classics make me the old fuddy-duddy on the block? Or do I have to strive lesser and lesser each year to write well as long as I find a way to shock? Are mainstream writers now destined to be the shock-jocks of the literary world just to sell a novel? If so, where do I go from here?
Years ago, when I was reading through the classics (something I started at 11 years old, knowing I wanted to be a writer and continuing through my BA and MA degrees in English), I would walk away stunned. Absolutely stunned. How on earth could I be a writer NOW?, I would moan. How could I ever match the level of amazing that I just soaked in? If this is what is required to be a writer, I will never match up. Afterwards, I would try to replicate some of that grandiose story, some of that amazing dialogue, some of that memorable flair. I would always, in my own opinion, find myself falling short and decide that maybe I should just write poetry instead or take up a career in journalism where it was all facts and no flair. Eventually, I would return to my own short stories (the first of which was told to a tape recorder when I was three, the next set typed up by my own little seven year old hands on my mom's old typewriter from high school). But, I would never feel confident that I was anything better than mediocre.
Fast forward the years and I find myself hearing about the latest "hot" book on TV. (Remember when we never heard about books on TV? Well, this IS a plus to hear so now.) Some co-workers of mine chimed in on the hype (they are mentally casting the movie as I write it), so I decided to download a copy and read this wonder for myself. I finished quickly as little thought was required - it wasn't a mystery or anything to mull over deeply. Then I sat back and thought, "why the hype? This is (no thyme intended) tripe." And no, I will not write the title or author here.
So I'm left to wonder, is this to which the literary world has descended? I mean, of course there are rare gems worthy of the hype (thank you, JK Rowling) but for the most part, is this how publishing has stayed alive and not shut its doors in the media age? By publishing to the lowest common denominator? I don't just mean that I didn't care for the plot (I didn't), the language (I didn't), but how one-dimensional the characters were, how much the author needed a thesaurus, the cliffhanger that went nowhere (unless you buy the sequel, I'm assuming), the vapid heroine and her poorly thought out decisions.
Therefore, as a writer as well as a reader, where does this leave me? Does a background in the classics make me the old fuddy-duddy on the block? Or do I have to strive lesser and lesser each year to write well as long as I find a way to shock? Are mainstream writers now destined to be the shock-jocks of the literary world just to sell a novel? If so, where do I go from here?
Monday, April 23, 2012
My Search for the Perfect Writer's Software
Writing is fun but there are times when it also gets a bit mechanical. Now I love new ways to write so I decided to look into using something other than Word (or its variable Mac equivalents, such as Apple Works) for my writing. I wanted something that would keep my outlines and character portrayals in the same place as my writing. That started my online search for writer's software. For some reason, the Fates were against me. Everytime I searched for writer's software on Google, my laptop froze up. Hmmm.
Finally, I found some online resources:
* http://creative-writing-software-review.toptenreviews.com/ -- gave a check-list of several programs
* http://writers-software.net/ -- narrows the software down by category
* http://writerssolutions.com/compare-top-novel-writing-software-newnovelist-the-marshall-plan-software-and-dramatica-pro-reviews/ -- evaluated several software types
After reading the reviews, I got excited to jump in and buy something. Then I remembered how much my laptop hates me. Really hates me. Case in point: while typing a novel chapter the other day, my space bar decided not to comply and no matter how much I hit it, spaces were still missed. So I explained to my HP laptop that a future of being replaced by an iMac was in the cards, and so it spit at me. Literally. The plus/minus key skidded off and onto my lap. Nice. In addition, my little laptop has some Core-something error going on and is not downloading software from disks anymore. At least not happily. So I changed my Google parameters to search for writer's software that can be downloaded online.
At that point, I found all roads led to Amazon.com. I was pleasantly surprised to find that Amazon allows for software to be purchased and downloaded right from the Amazon site. There are fewer options to download than there are to buy, but it was a nice option. I was also happy to see that Amazon offered as many options for Mac users as they did for PC users. The top two choices I found for me were: Scrivener and Final Draft.
Upon reading the reviews of both, it looked like Final Draft was more script focused while Scrivener was more for me - the novel and short story writer. There was also a big price difference: $40.00 for Scrivener and $178.11 for Final Draft. In order to see how this purchase of downloaded software would work, I opted for the cheaper, more novel writing version, so I purchased the Scrivener.
I found the download quick and easy. I registered it online and that took a little bit of time (about 2 hours before the registration took effect and the software would let me "in"). So far, only one day into using the software, I find it good, but not great.
Things I like:
* The note card options for characters and locations.
* The easy ability to change from note card view to normal page view.
Things I am not as impressed with:
* It's not much different or useful than using Word or AppleWorks.
* It appears that I have to convert the written product over to a Word document in order to submit it. I may be wrong about that as I've only had it for one day yet so I will update that if I find I can submit directly from Scrivener.
Going forward, I plan to continue to write with, and updating here, about my use of Scrivener for novel writing. I then plan to bite the bullet and buy Final Draft as well in order to find the perfect writing software. Now if I can just write another 5000 words to make up for the time lost in searching for writing software, I'd be really good to go. :-)
Finally, I found some online resources:
* http://creative-writing-software-review.toptenreviews.com/ -- gave a check-list of several programs
* http://writers-software.net/ -- narrows the software down by category
* http://writerssolutions.com/compare-top-novel-writing-software-newnovelist-the-marshall-plan-software-and-dramatica-pro-reviews/ -- evaluated several software types
After reading the reviews, I got excited to jump in and buy something. Then I remembered how much my laptop hates me. Really hates me. Case in point: while typing a novel chapter the other day, my space bar decided not to comply and no matter how much I hit it, spaces were still missed. So I explained to my HP laptop that a future of being replaced by an iMac was in the cards, and so it spit at me. Literally. The plus/minus key skidded off and onto my lap. Nice. In addition, my little laptop has some Core-something error going on and is not downloading software from disks anymore. At least not happily. So I changed my Google parameters to search for writer's software that can be downloaded online.
At that point, I found all roads led to Amazon.com. I was pleasantly surprised to find that Amazon allows for software to be purchased and downloaded right from the Amazon site. There are fewer options to download than there are to buy, but it was a nice option. I was also happy to see that Amazon offered as many options for Mac users as they did for PC users. The top two choices I found for me were: Scrivener and Final Draft.
Upon reading the reviews of both, it looked like Final Draft was more script focused while Scrivener was more for me - the novel and short story writer. There was also a big price difference: $40.00 for Scrivener and $178.11 for Final Draft. In order to see how this purchase of downloaded software would work, I opted for the cheaper, more novel writing version, so I purchased the Scrivener.
I found the download quick and easy. I registered it online and that took a little bit of time (about 2 hours before the registration took effect and the software would let me "in"). So far, only one day into using the software, I find it good, but not great.
Things I like:
* The note card options for characters and locations.
* The easy ability to change from note card view to normal page view.
Things I am not as impressed with:
* It's not much different or useful than using Word or AppleWorks.
* It appears that I have to convert the written product over to a Word document in order to submit it. I may be wrong about that as I've only had it for one day yet so I will update that if I find I can submit directly from Scrivener.
Going forward, I plan to continue to write with, and updating here, about my use of Scrivener for novel writing. I then plan to bite the bullet and buy Final Draft as well in order to find the perfect writing software. Now if I can just write another 5000 words to make up for the time lost in searching for writing software, I'd be really good to go. :-)
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