Having changed from MS Word to Scrivener some time ago I decided to buy this book ‘Scrivener for Dummies’ by Gwen Hernandez.

The Scrivener software by the way is excellent and can be used just as a type interface similar to MS Word, but the opportunities and features within Scrivener differ enormous and i understand has been written by writers for writers. For example when writing in MS Word I used to have all my research, photos, web links and notes all over the computer. In Scrivener everything is linked in one place, within the Scrivener project.

What I also like about Scrivener is it’s packed with features and opportunities and you can use as much or as little of them as you want or need. Great for when you’re are starting in Scrivener and you want to get banging away with you novel, script or other writing works. As time goes on you can pick up the more advanced features, although I have found it’s all very simple to use. You just need to know how.

After you have bought the software from www.literatureandlatte.com you get to play with a hands on Tutorial, taking you through the features of Scrivener. When I did the Tutorial I picked up quite a bit and was able to start working it straight way.

If you aren’t sure that Scrivener is for you, you can download a free 30 day trial to try it out for yourself. I never even did the trial after reading so much good about it I just bought it. I keep reading and reading about people trying Scrivener and buying it within days and I can see why and once purchased it’s yours for life.

There is so much in the Scrivener Interface and I find it simple to use

• Templates for either a novel, script, short story, blog post, Poetry and Lyrics etc.
• Cork board for Listing all you characters or chapters in post it notes mode. I’ve got to admit cork board is my favourite part of Scrivener, keeping track of the characters in this way makes life so easy for me.
• The Editor much like MS Word but with so much more. Includes setting word count targets goals, splitting the screen to view two chapters or the same chapter.
• Different search options
• Saving versions of your writings
• The Inspector, located on the right of the screen allows you to type in notes, photos, links, metadata etc, I like this too!

Trust me, it’s really quite simple

I’m now going to enjoy reading my new book ‘Scrivener for Dummies’ by Gwen Hernandez to unlock and learn about more features within Scrivener and help me plot and write my novel.