Is your WIP all in a single document?

[Mistook]

I keep meaning to ask this question. I'm using MS Word to write my manuscript, but I'm not the most advanced user on the planet. For me, every chapter is a separate document, and I have them all sitting in one big folder.

Is this normal?

Is there a way to separate chapters in a single, huge document, and be able to flip between them without having to scroll up and down between hundreds of pages?

[pepperlandgirl]

If you put them in one giant document, you can just do a "find" when you're looking for a specific chapter.

[scribbler1382]

If you use a heading style for your chapter headings, you can use the document map to give you a list of the chapters in a sidebar. Click on an item in the list and you'll jump to that point in the document. You can get a lot fancier than that, but you have to play around with styles and such a lot more. Best thing is you don't have to have the list there all the time, distracting you. Just click the document map icon when you want it there and click it again to get rid of it so you can focus on the text.

[Ivonia]

You know, when I wrote my first draft, I kept it all in one huge file.

For the revision, I'm breaking each chapter into seperate files (basically by opening a new file, then copying and pasting the chapter onto the new document).

Once I've finished that, then I'll add them all back together and see how many pages it is. So far it's worked, but I've noticed that my prologue and chapter 1 has grown significantly larger (for instance, my chapter 1 in Word was originally about twenty-seven pages or so, it's now about forty eight page, almost double the size, mostly because I have to throw in a lot of description since it's a Sci-Fi/Fantasy story with a lot of new, made-up stuff).

I think that once I finish doing it, my novel will probably be a tad bit longer (I'm going to chop a lot of stuff away from the later chapters that I deem "kind of boring/useless" and fill in more description for things as needed, but hopefully it'll be more fun to read too.

[Jamesaritchie]

I keep meaning to ask this question. I'm using MS Word to write my manuscript, but I'm not the most advanced user on the planet. For me, every chapter is a separate document, and I have them all sitting in one big folder.

Is this normal?

Is there a way to separate chapters in a single, huge document, and be able to flip between them without having to scroll up and down between hundreds of pages?

I break my novel into chapters ebcause it's much more conveinient for many things. . .and some print publishers want an en elctronic version that's broken down chapter by chapter after they buy the novel. But I also keep the novel in a separate, single document becaus ethat easier for search and find.

It's no great effort to keep both versions of a novel, and doing so has many advantages.

[aruna]

While we're on the subject of MS Word, can someone tell me how to get a header on every page? I can't find an option for that under "insert".

[Supafly]

Its easier to just use one single document. MS Word is cool....I'm stuck with Works right now :(

[Birol]

While we're on the subject of MS Word, can someone tell me how to get a header on every page? I can't find an option for that under "insert".

Click on View in the Toolbar.
Click on Header and Footer.
This will place your cursor in the header on the current page of your document. It will also present you with a toolbar for selecting options, setting preferences, and switching between the header and footer.

I keep meaning to ask this question. I'm using MS Word to write my manuscript, but I'm not the most advanced user on the planet.

I started out with my WIP in one file. As I've been working on detangling -- I will never do a full organic writing again -- the story, I've been creating separate file for each POV. When I'm done detangling, I'll recombine them into one file.

[Steve 211]

I break my novel into chapters ebcause it's much more conveinient for many things. . . But I also keep the novel in a separate, single document becaus ethat easier for search and find.

It's no great effort to keep both versions of a novel, and doing so has many advantages.

Hey James, do you mean you break it up after the fact and keep two versions, or are you doing one of those technical things where you have the manuscript both in one document and in separate folders and have the changes in one affect the changes in the other? Thanks.

[jules]

I have my WIP broken up into parts, each of which contains about 8 chapters, and have one document per part.

You can set a bookmark at the start of each chapter, and label it with information about that chapter -- then when you're looking for something specific, you can look through the list of bookmarks and find what you're looking for quickly, without having to remember exactly which chapter it was in.

[Richard]

If you're using Word, you can do both - have one master document that loads in each of your chapters from different files.

[scribbler1382]

If you're using Word, you can do both - have one master document that loads in each of your chapters from different files.

Anybody thinking of using Word's Master Document feature should read this:

http://word.mvps.org/FAQs/General/WhyMasterDocsCorrupt.htm

Not that you shouldn't use it, but better the devil you know.

[Richard]

I'd avoid it, but that's because I don't trust Word. Just saying that the option is there if you need it.

[Ken Schneider]

I use word perfect 11, and it's one doc.

[Andrew Jameson]

I break my novel into chapters ebcause it's much more conveinient for many things. Honest question (asked of the general populace, not necessarily James in particular): what are the advantages and conveniences of keeping your chapters in seperate files?

I fairly often check back and forth for some bit of business or 'nother (was she wearing a blue dress, or green?) to maintain consistancy, and jot notes to myself, and so forth, and having the entire manuscript open works for me. I honestly can't think of any downside, unless you just don't like dealing with files that are ~1 meg or so.

[MadScientistMatt]

I keep all my chapters in separate documents. I'm not sure if I really have a reason for doing this, but it seemed logical. It also lets me open several chapters in different windows at once, although there's probably a way to do this with one file.

I use OpenOffice, BTW.

[Christine N.]

I have one document, and then a bunch of files with about three chapters each. I just copy and paste. Why? Because when I send stuff to readers, I can give them those bite sized chunks. But the working copy is one big file. It makes it easier to see if I've repeated something or if I need to find something quickly.

[pianoman5]

I file mine in chapters and periodically combine them into a single magnum opus in which it's easier to find things with a search.

My main reason for doing this is force of habit. Older versions of Word (e.g. Word 97) were not so good at handling large documents (anything more than about 200-300 pages) and could confound one's efforts with some imaginative formatting variations of its own volition. Also, PC's more than a few years old were not sufficiently nimble to allow you to do a quick CTRL S (save) on the fly and let you keep typing uninterrupted.

But with modern beefy processors and current versions of Word it's not really an issue any more.

[DragonHeart]

I'm keeping my current WIP in one file. It's not going to have chapters, but for the sake of convienence I label each scene with a 2-5 word description and make an index of them in a seperate document I can leave open alongside the story. This way I can check the name of a scene and Ctrl+F if I need to go back and look at details without scrolling constantly to the top.

It will also make revision a lot easier, since I can copy each scene into a new document, do my revisions, then stick it back in without getting 'lost'. When I'm ready to send it out I'll just remove all the scene markers from the master copy, but keep them in the working version, in case I need to go back and change anything.

Of course, I've never progressed beyond the rough draft of anything novel length, so I imagine I'll tweak the system I have in mind until it works for me. I'm not the most organized person around, unfortunately.

~DragonHeart~

[azbikergirl]

I start out chunking my book into files like CH1-9.doc, CH10-19.doc, etc. so that no file becomes overly huge (I do quite a bit of writing on my PDA, using Documents To Go, and I don't want to wait for a huge file to open/save). My more-or-less finished novel has 64 chapters, which I've merged into in a single file for touch-ups (as I read aloud and find nicks and smudges) and submission. The problem I had chunking a 64-chapter novel into multiple files was I couldn't remember which file to open when I wanted a particular scene ("was that in chapter 9 or 10?"), so I had to create another file which was a list of which files held which scenes. If I named my chapters rather than just numbered them, it might be easier to tell by the file name...

[azbikergirl]

Honest question (asked of the general populace, not necessarily James in particular): what are the advantages and conveniences of keeping your chapters in seperate files?
I've found that it's easier to look at two different documents at the same time. Sure, Word has a splitter feature, but I don't care for it much. It's easier for me to have all files open if I want, then jump from one to another at will. (I don't do individual chapter files; instead I do chunks of chapters per file.)

I can keep a file open at page 2 of chapter 13 while I search for a phrase or word in another file, without having to search again and again or bookmark places in the same document and then use Go To to find it again. As cool a concept as Go To Bookmark is, it takes too many mouse-clicks to make it worth the effort (unless there's a shortcut I'm not aware of).

[Roger J Carlson]

While we're on the subject of MS Word, can someone tell me how to get a header on every page? I can't find an option for that under "insert".There's a thread in the Tech Help board that discusses Headers and Footers:
http://absolutewrite.com/forums/showthread.php?t=14233

[Jamesaritchie]

Honest question (asked of the general populace, not necessarily James in particular): what are the advantages and conveniences of keeping your chapters in seperate files?

I fairly often check back and forth for some bit of business or 'nother (was she wearing a blue dress, or green?) to maintain consistancy, and jot notes to myself, and so forth, and having the entire manuscript open works for me. I honestly can't think of any downside, unless you just don't like dealing with files that are ~1 meg or so.

Having the entire manuscript open also works for me when actively writing, but there are times when I need separate chapter files.

One of the advantages of separate chapter files is, as I said, that publishers sometimes want them this way, and it saves work later on. A bigger advantage, however, is that separate chapter files makes it very easy to send someone, agent, editor, or reader, specific chapters with a quick click.

And having separate chapter files ready to go makes computer to computer editing much easier, especially when you're doing it in real time with a beta reader, agent, or editor.

But the main reason I keep chapter by chapter files is that I never know when an agent or editor will ask for the thing filed this way, or just for specific chapters. Since it's very easy to keep chapter by chapter files, and a complete document, I have both at all times.

Oh, and as azbikergirl says, there are times when being about to view two chapters at once is very handy, and chapter by chapter files makes this quicker and easier.

[Diviner]

My chapters are generally short. I give each one a title. When I am scrolling or finding, the titles help me to remember what happens in the chapter. Often I work on the chapters as a separate doc., but I keep all of them together in one large document, too, updating the main document as needed.

I use aa combination of programs, Rough Draft, which is freeware and very handy, as well as Word. Usually I work on scenes and chapters in Rough Draft before copying them to Word.

[Susan Gable]

I keep mine as one huge document. This way I know where I am in word count/page count. Just makes it easier for me. When I am trying to get to a certain point, I just scroll down on the side and watch the chapter headings pop up.

I think Harlequin used to ask for seperate chapters, but ever since I sold to them back in 2002, I've sent my file as one big file, and never had them tell me I needed to do it differently.

Susan G.

[Julie Worth]

I keep mine as one huge document. This way I know where I am in word count/page count. Just makes it easier for me. When I am trying to get to a certain point, I just scroll down on the side and watch the chapter headings pop up.
Susan G.

Well, a word document is not exactly huge, as files go, but I do the same. I work with a single file, in a 6x9 print ready format, and every couple of weeks I upload that to lulu for a paperback copy. Since I have anywhere between 50 and 70 chapters, it would be a nightmare to keep track of it all, and a bear to make global changes.

[Andrew Jameson]

I work with a single file, in a 6x9 print ready format, and every couple of weeks I upload that to lulu for a paperback copy. Really? Off topic here, but how much does that cost to make a single one-shot copy?

[Julie Worth]

Really? Off topic here, but how much does that cost to make a single one-shot copy?

Ten bucks for a 250-page trade paperback with 4-color cover. (I do this iterative thing also to perfect the cover. A professional looking cover is important because I use the books for submissions as well as for my beta readers.)

[Jamesaritchie]

Ten bucks for a 250-page trade paperback with 4-color cover. (I do this iterative thing also to perfect the cover. A professional looking cover is important because I use the books for submissions as well as for my beta readers.)

What's teh point of submitting in paperback format? How do you go thrugh the editing, revising, rewrting phase this way?

[Jamesaritchie]

I keep mine as one huge document. This way I know where I am in word count/page count. Just makes it easier for me. When I am trying to get to a certain point, I just scroll down on the side and watch the chapter headings pop up.

I think Harlequin used to ask for seperate chapters, but ever since I sold to them back in 2002, I've sent my file as one big file, and never had them tell me I needed to do it differently.

Susan G.

It all depends on the pubisher. Some want single files, some want separate chapters. Some just take it whichever way the writer sends it, then do the work to change it themselves.

[Mistook]

Wow! I didn't realize there would be so many answers to the question.

James, I like the idea of keeping both a master file, and separate chapters. How do you go about keeping both up to date? Is there much of a system, or is it "catch as catch can"?

I would like to keep a master document, but I think I'd prefer to do the "live" work in separate chapter documents. This is because, the way I write, I will sometimes play around with versions of a chapter from different POV's.

For example, I have three versions of Chapter 23 going right now. I'd rather wait until I commit to one before adding it to a master.

[AnneMarble]

I keep meaning to ask this question. I'm using MS Word to write my manuscript, but I'm not the most advanced user on the planet. For me, every chapter is a separate document, and I have them all sitting in one big folder.

Is this normal?
I don't know if it's normal, but I do it in a similar way sometimes. :D For my original novels, I used to keep only a few chapters in each file. That's because my word processing file also limited the file size. Also, I used a Tandy 1000SX, and all documents had to be on 5-1/4 floppies. It was a real pain.

Once I used a PC with a hard drive, I ended up keeping all of my chapters together in one document. Then, I ended up writing and editing on a Palm some of the time, so I found it easier to make each chapter a separate document because the longer documents could be a problem on the Palm. Now that I have a newer Palm with more memory and better processing speed, I'm back to working on one document.

Is there a way to separate chapters in a single, huge document, and be able to flip between them without having to scroll up and down between hundreds of pages?
I wish! Then again, sometimes I'd rather scroll up and down than have to go from this chapter back to this chapter to this chapter again...

To make it easier to find where I last work, I often type "xxx" at the place where I was last editing something. This makes it easier to find, although it can be a problem if I was revising something and haven't worked on it for a while, and then I come back and find "xxx's" in several places. "Let's see, what was I doing here? Was I looked for the word 'glared'? Was I looking for excess 'that's' or 'then's'? Aargh, I'm gonna play solitaire instead!"

[cwfgal]

I do mine in one large document. As others have said, it makes it much easier to make global changes or find a specific section. I also make very liberal use of the bookmark feature in Word, using bookmarks that are descriptive enough to tell me what section they note. If I need to find a specific section that isn't bookmarked, I use the find feature.

When I was with Harper they did ask for my first two books to be submitted as separate files for each chapter and once I had my ms complete, I would copy and paste each chapter into its own file. For my third book they requested the ms be sent both ways, as one big file and as separate chapters. For me it's just less confusing and easier to remain consistent during editing if my ms is in one large document so I keep it that way until I'm done with the ms. For instance, I changed a character's name in my latest WIP and it was simple to do a global search and replace of the document to find and change each instance where it appeared. If I'd had to open, search, and replace a bunch of separate chapter documents, it would have been much more time consuming and a bit of a headache.

If I want to send someone some sample chapters, it's easy enough to highlight, copy, and paste into a new document.

Beth

[Jamesaritchie]

Wow! I didn't realize there would be so many answers to the question.

James, I like the idea of keeping both a master file, and separate chapters. How do you go about keeping both up to date? Is there much of a system, or is it "catch as catch can"?

I would like to keep a master document, but I think I'd prefer to do the "live" work in separate chapter documents. This is because, the way I write, I will sometimes play around with versions of a chapter from different POV's.

For example, I have three versions of Chapter 23 going right now. I'd rather wait until I commit to one before adding it to a master.

For me, it's just a matter of cut and paste. When I finish a chapter in the main document, I copy and paste that chapter to the folder with the separate chapter files. When I work on an individual chapter, and get it the way I like it, I just cut and paste that back into the master document.

If you do this as soon as a chapter is finished, staying up to date isn't difficult.

[James D. Macdonald]

What I don't understand are the writers whose 357 page manuscripts are 357 individual files....

[Birol]

:ROFL:

[SeanDSchaffer]

I make each chapter a single file; then after I'm all done, I copy and paste them together to make one big file for electronic submissions.

Part of the reason for this hearkens back to the days when I had a word-processor machine, not a regular computer. The memory was extremely low on that machine, and wouldn't handle a long, single document. However, I still use this process because it makes it easy for me to find particular chapters in a hurry.

When I'm printing out submissions material, I print out from the individual chapter documents; my printer doesn't do massive documents well at all. It likes to reformat them for seemingly no reason in the middle of a print job.

For the record, I presently use the Microsoft Works 7.0 Word Processing Program. I know it's not the most efficient program, but I use it because I'm used to it and don't like changing programs too much.

[scribbler1382]

I write a sentence, print it out and then cut the sentence off the sheet. After I roll it up, I attach it to one of my Carrier Pidgeons and set all the sentences loose at 8:00pm on the third Wednesday of the month, unless LOST is on.

They fly to my contact in Area 51, who encodes the sentence into some junk DNA. When he has a whole chapter, he injects the junk DNA into a squirral ovum, which is put into an Elephant Uterus (he won't tell me why he has one lying around...I don't ask). When the embryo births, he mails it back to me by FedEx.

I'm on chapter 4 and these freaking long-eared squirrels with tusks are driving me crazy!

[Tirjasdyn]

Hello,

I use word for final formating...but for actual writing I use ywriter. It's freeware and breaks your novel into chapters and scenes (which you can then move around). The chapters are all separate files, but the program has them all open at once and lets you edit/add/write at will. It has some nice outlining and note features too.

Boy doesn't that sound like a plug. I love it though, I use it for short stories, novels and just about any writing project.

http://spacejock.com

[sassandgroove]

I will check out ywriter!

I have my chapters numbered and named in separate files. (n for novel) n1.1assination.doc, n2.1investigation.doc, etc. I do this because I work on my novel and home and work (shh...) and save the files both on my personal pc and a disk. When I make changes, I save the file with a new number, n1.2assination. This keeps my chapters in order in the folder, gives me a title to help remember a scene i am looking for, and a way to keep track of changes made in in two offices. Also, if I make a siginifcant change, but want to look at an old version, it is all still there. Then, when I print out pages, I have the file title on the header, and the date printed on the footer. That way, when I am editing it in the binder, I know which version I am working on.

I had never thought of having one big document. I couldn't on my old pc. But some of the suggestions and ideas make a lot of sense. I'm going to try that bookmark thing right now!

[JerseyGirl1962]

I use a program called Write It Now. It's all one big document, but there are tabs across the top that separate out the chapters, notes, ideas, submissions, timeline, etc., etc. I haven't even used everything it's capable of, lol.

Yeah, I guess that's a plug, too, but I like it, esp. as I don't like using Word at all. I used Word Perfect for many years, then had to switch to Word, which I still don't like (I'm not even going to go there).

Maybe that's why I use something different than a word processing program: it reminds me too much of work (and not the fictional kind)! ;)

[pianoman5]

ywriter is cool software for novelists. What makes it even cooler is that it's free. Cooler still is the fact that it was written by one of our own, AW member and about-to-be-published novelist spacejock2 (Simon Haynes), but he's too modest to put his hand up.

Good on ya, Simon!

http://www.spacejock.com.au/

[alaskamatt17]

I keep mine as one big file, but I make all the title headings bold until I get ready to print it out, because then I can just do a search for bold text in Word and skip between chapters that way. On my first book I kept every chapter in a separate file.

[spacejock2]

Thanks for the plug ;-)

I have two sites: http://www.spacejock.com.au is set up for my Hal Spacejock novels, articles on writing and so on. The other is http://www.spacejock.com which is where you'll find my software (mostly free, except for the pro version of my stock charting prog.)

The direct link for yWriter is http://www.spacejock.com/yWriter.html I have an update in the works, but have to satisfy my publisher first - by handing in the next book on time.

Cheers
Simon

[Julie Worth]

I keep mine as one big file, but I make all the title headings bold until I get ready to print it out, because then I can just do a search for bold text in Word and skip between chapters that way. On my first book I kept every chapter in a separate file.

Why not use a different style? Then you can have automatic page breaks if you want.

[Richard White]

I do it pretty much the same way James does it. I write each chapter in a seperate file, and then cut and paste the completed chapter into a Master File for the entire document.

I use the master document to search for things that I can't remember to add to the current document, but for some reason, I like to keep each chapter seperate until I'm done with the entire thing. Once I turn it in to the publisher, I get rid of the individual chapters and just keep the master document on the computer.

I find it's easier to keep the chapters seperate at first, especially for editing. I usually print them out and edit a chapter at a time in red pen, then I'll go back into the computer to make the actual typing corrections. There may be more "efficient" ways to do things, but I'm a creature of habit.

Now, if I'm doing a short story or a novella, I'll keep those together in one document, but we're talking 25k words or less.

[Coco82]

I have it in one document, make it a lot easier for me personally.

[Duncan J Macdonald]

I have it in one document, make it a lot easier for me personally.

My scribblings are kept in single files -- one for each story (including the Work That Wishes It Were A Novel).
The key question to ask, however, is how many copies of it do you keep, and do you maintain copies in off-site storage?
Computer systems are fairly robust these days, but Murphy Happens.
To answer the question for myself, there exist four electronic copies, two of which are off-site (at different sites), and one paper copy.

[sassandgroove]

Am I the only one who saves as a new file after I make changes? All of you one document people, how do you track changes? I have separate files for each chapter, as I explained earlier. I save as a new file after every change, that way old docs are accessible if I need them. Also, if I cut a scene or a paragraph, I paste it to a new doc and save it in a clippings folder. I also have a binder with cuts I made with scissors.

[Julie Worth]

Am I the only one who saves as a new file after I make changes? All of you one document people, how do you track changes? I have separate files for each chapter, as I explained earlier. I save as a new file after every change, that way old docs are accessible if I need them. Also, if I cut a scene or a paragraph, I paste it to a new doc and save it in a clippings folder. I also have a binder with cuts I made with scissors.

I do that. On my first novel I have a history of something like 40 files (of the complete MS to that point). But since I never go back anymore, I do it less and less. On my present novel, I'm up to only five, and I'm sixty percent finished. I don't use clippings though. If something comes out, it doesn't go back in. It's just a practical matter--it's easier to write something new that fits than to try to modify something old.

[Tirjasdyn]

Spacejock...seems to me you update Ywriter all the time.

This thread got me thinking about tools...I use a couple...Word for final formats(ywriter will combine all the files for you when you are ready)...keynote for notes, outlines exercises that can't be done in Ywriter.

Then...well I have templates that I use from various writing groups, books and classes. My world building materials are kept in a binder....My files are kept on a thumbdrive while they are live with a copy stored on my Dana so I can refer to them as I write...

Word will track your changes with out saving multiple copies, but I just keep a copy of what I cut in the final edits in my keynotes. Still this rare because most of the acutal revising and editing is done before I combine the chapters out of ywriter.

I know all writing methods differ and when writers discuss their methods it is mostly to feel not so alone in the world. (Writing is a lonely business after all). Still there are methods that work for me. I bought Final Draft in 30 days and found that I use the majority of what the author does but she does it faster, so I'll try it out (with some tweaks) for my next project. I've actually been formulating an article on this topic: What a writer does. New project: Open template file, resave as new project. Work through templates, write out story, revise, workshop, revise, edit send out.

Okay I'll stop with the rambling.

[scribbler1382]

I copy to my jumpdrive daily (I love that little thing!) and when a chapter/story's done, I print out a hardcopy, making sure it's dated so I know what printout was printed out when. (I don't edit so well on-screen.)

If I didn't think the minutia would swallow me alive, I'd do what I saw another writer does. They write in text files only and keep everything in a cvs repository on their website. That way, anywhere in the world they issue a single command to get the latest copy of whatever they're working on.

[sassandgroove]

This thread got me thinking about tools...I use a couple...Word for final formats(ywriter will combine all the files for you when you are ready)...keynote for notes, outlines exercises that can't be done in Ywriter.

Then...well I have templates that I use from various writing groups, books and classes. My world building materials are kept in a binder....My files are kept on a thumbdrive while they are live with a copy stored on my Dana so I can refer to them as I write...

Word will track your changes with out saving multiple copies, but I just keep a copy of what I cut in the final edits in my keynotes. Still this rare because most of the acutal revising and editing is done before I combine the chapters out of ywriter.



I copy to my jumpdrive daily (I love that little thing!)

Wow. This is all over my head. I use a legal pad (3 hole punched), pen, pencil, red pen,scissors, tape, microsoft word, and a disk.

What is all that stuff?

[Jamesaritchie]

Thanks for the plug ;-)

I have two sites: http://www.spacejock.com.au (http://www.spacejock.com.au/) is set up for my Hal Spacejock novels, articles on writing and so on. The other is http://www.spacejock.com (http://www.spacejock.com/) which is where you'll find my software (mostly free, except for the pro version of my stock charting prog.)

The direct link for yWriter is http://www.spacejock.com/yWriter.html I have an update in the works, but have to satisfy my publisher first - by handing in the next book on time.

Cheers
Simon

I haven't tried ywriter, but I'm a huge fan of yBook. I read a bunch of novels and short stories oncreen, and I run every last one of them I can through yBook. If you have to read onscreen, this is the way to do so. I even run some of my own manuscripts through the thing.

[Jamesaritchie]

Since I write most of first drafts in longhand, the issue of separate chapters or single document usually only applies to me after the first draft is finished.

Keeping it both ways does help, but as much as I love Word 2003, I wish it handled merging documents in a better way. I just installed WordPerfect 12 on my work computer, and I may change my mind about how I keep novel files after I've fiddled with it for a time.

[scribbler1382]

Thanks for the plug ;-)

The direct link for yWriter is http://www.spacejock.com/yWriter.html I have an update in the works, but have to satisfy my publisher first - by handing in the next book on time.

Wow. Just took a visit to your site. It's been a couple years since I checked out yWriter last. This thing looks amazing. Have to play with it, me thinks.

[Duncan J Macdonald]

Quote:
Originally Posted by Tirjasdyn


This thread got me thinking about tools...I use a couple...Word for final formats(ywriter will combine all the files for you when you are ready)...keynote for notes, outlines exercises that can't be done in Ywriter.

Then...well I have templates that I use from various writing groups, books and classes. My world building materials are kept in a binder....My files are kept on a thumbdrive while they are live with a copy stored on my Dana so I can refer to them as I write...

Word will track your changes with out saving multiple copies, but I just keep a copy of what I cut in the final edits in my keynotes. Still this rare because most of the acutal revising and editing is done before I combine the chapters out of ywriter.






Quote:
Originally Posted by Julie Worth
I copy to my jumpdrive daily (I love that little thing!)

Wow. This is all over my head. I use a legal pad (3 hole punched), pen, pencil, red pen,scissors, tape, microsoft word, and a disk.

What is all that stuff?

Keynote sounds like a software program designed for taking notes and making outlines.
A 'Thumbdrive', a.k.a. 'Jumpdrive', a.k.a. 'a Stick' is generally a solid-state non-volitale memory chip with a built-in USB connection. It's about the size of your thumb (hence one of its names), and does not require a power source to keep data (hence the non-volitale label) Your floppy disk is also non-volitale. The benefit is that such devices hold a lot more than a floppy ever dreamed of -- I've seen them as large as 2 GigaBytes (I've got a One GigaByte stick that cost me around $60.00 U.S.). To give you an idea on their ruggedness, the USMC issued them in Iraq in place of floppy disks. No moving parts for the sand to get into.

A Dana is a portable word processor that runs off of 3 AA batteries and is 2x12x9 inches. See the link (http://www2.alphasmart.com/products/dana.html) for more info.

[Birol]

You guys know we have an entire forum dedicated to the techno-geek stuff and answers for the non-techno geek, dontcha? It's down a ways. Has the imaginative title "Tech Board" or some such.

[sassandgroove]

Thanks for all the answers. Even though there is a tech board, I am not likely to wander over there, (though now I might). This thread has really opened my eyes to so many options that had never ocurred to me. I downloaded yWriter as soon as I got home. (Thanks Spacejock!) I have a renewed sense of possibility!

[Mistook]

I'm downloading ywriter right now. I'll try it out over the weekend. :)

[icerose]

I write my books all in one file. My Word Perfect has bookmarks and I just bookmark where I stop and if I have places I get stuck I skip ahead and leave a bookmark there so I don't lose them. Also I keep notes either at the end of the document (in the spaces if they are specific) or in a seperate document so I don't forget facts such as main character's names or descriptions. I hate it when I do that! That is what works best for me. Breaking it up for me takes longer and drags down my creativity because I don't do well with outlines or boxes, or confined spaces. I never have. Always hated doing bubble charts and outlines and such. But that is just me. Each person needs to find a formula that works for them and go with it, I don't think it makes all that much of a difference in a long run as long as it works for you.

spacejock 2: Your site is very useful and is filled with information. I nearly laughed myself out of my chair when I read that one link about rejection letters and authors real reactions to them. I couldn't believe it. It doesn't sound or look like any of them we really ready to submit to publishers. Especially that one that got such a wonderful reply. I would have been disappointed I wasn't accepted, but thrilled to recieve such a high opinion and well wishes from an editor. Again, thanks for the site, there is much to be gained from reading it.

Sara

[Dewayne]

I use Microsoft Word (Office XP), and have it both ways. I have individual chapters set aside that I edit and such, then I have a single compilation where I copy and paste the finished chapter.