What I Use To Write Books
I’ve tried paper methods, Word, Docs and more, but…
These two programs are really all I need to write my books and anything else I want to. Scrivener and Notion are two programs that are very near and dear to my writing heart and, though they pay me nothing, because of what they do for me and my processes I will never miss a chance to unapologetically simp for these two.
I’m not paid by anyone to say these things. Not even Medium. There are no affiliate links. I just love these programs that much and hope you find them useful like I do.
That said, first up is…
Scrivener
Before I started using Scrivener seriously, I was writing on pen and paper when I wasn’t using Microsoft Word. The problem with Word is that there is no clear organization of your documents and it’s very easy to get lost in the structure of your own book. The problems in writing with pen and paper are that and so much more.
As a writer, Scrivener gives me everything that I need for my books from start to finish. Not just templates as a jumping point for various types of writing, but I can generate tables of contents, front and back matter, manage cover arts and illustrations, and it prepares my writing in various print and digital formats.
The only things that I’ve seen as drawbacks have come come from user error. For example, getting my page numbers to go exactly where I want in my table of contents is proving more difficult than I care to admit. Similarly, things like footnotes haven’t rendered properly every single time, but I found a fix and putting my footnotes at the end which Scrivener formats very well with appropriate chapter labels, so it’s not just a sea of references.
Scrivener gives me everything that I need for my books from start to finish.
Scrivener does cost ~$60 full price, but it’s a one-time payment with lifetime support. They have a 30 non-consecutive days of use free trial, a student discount, and it’s available on PC, Mac, and iOS. However, drawbacks aside, thanks to Scrivener, I now have two complete works with my third and fourth in progress.
If you want to take yourself seriously in writing a book, I would say the first step is to start using Scrivener.
Scrivener for writing, and writing a book, like any other big task, is comprised of other smaller tasks all of which you need to manage prioritize and plan. And for all of that and so much more I use…
Notion
Many people use Notion from many different things. It’s a free program that can be used for project management, school organization, book lists, whatever you want on whatever device you want. You can structure your data and make your information appear however you want with as much detail as you deem necessary.
Not only do I use the task lists, Kanban boards, and Gantt charts for big projects like my books, I use it to store all of my good ideas, my journal, gift lists, wish lists, and other important things. I’ve seen people organize every area of their personal and professional lives with this from project management and student dashboards to business “operating systems”.
Take for example what I’m working on now. When I make a new item, I put it in the appropriate section, assign a reasonable time, organize it by type and anything else I want, and finally I can put any notes any translations any references or other key material in that item itself. This all gets organized and shuffled away in a neat and orderly manner that can be recalled from anywhere else in the program.
You can invite others into your databases, assign tasks and permissions, and if you’re really advanced, you can inject your own code into the program and get really good with automation and forcing functions.
It is a piece of software that takes some getting used to, however once you get used to it it is extraordinarily powerful and you can organize your life pretty quickly and never get lost in the things you want to achieve most.
Some videos that I found helpful in getting me better acquainted with Notion include Notion Databases by Thomas Frank, Podcast Management by Landmark Labs, and Ali Abdaal’s Creative Workflow to name a few.
Honorable mention to Focus Writer. It’s a free program that might serve as an alternative solution to Scrivener if you’re still undecided after 30 sessions of writing. It eliminates every distraction in the program with an default full screen to hide your desktop and taskbar providing a truly distraction free digital environment for writing.
I also use Canva for the most basic covers and concept art. I’m no artist and Canva has a free plan; I am frugal man everywhere I possibly can be. I try to be as self sufficient as possible and, so far, Canva has served it’s purpose.
I hope that you find my advice and preferences useful in your own writing. Whether you take it to heart or not, I wish you the best in your pursuits and hope you achieve your goals. Let me know what you’re writing in the comments!
One last thing! I meant it that nobody is paying me for this. So, if you found value in this article and believe in the power of independent creators, please consider supporting my work. Your support not only keeps the content coming but also inspires me to explore new topics and share even more with you.
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