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Scrivener (and other Academic Writing Software)

This guide focuses on human-generated writing, not generative AI writing.

How Scrivener is different

To understand the core principles of Scrivener, let's compare and contrast.

Word/Docs

  • Writing consists of one single document or many documents/chapters--you decide and there are pros and cons to the decisions.
  • A document can have a table of contents, which can be open while you write, which can be helpful for viewing your writing.

Scrivener

  • Long form writing (called a project) is divided into many pieces, as small or large as you need--chapters, sections (called documents) within chapters, paragraphs or even sentences.
  • View the individual documents and chapters in the project, move them around, or rename them through a table of contents called the binder.
  • Label the individual documents using a variety of keywords which can be viewed/downloaded/printed in different ways to help you grapple with long form writing.

Literature & Latte's Getting Started - Scrivener's Core Concepts (1.5 mins)

Scrivener's flexibility

Scrivener is extremely flexible and customizable. Everyone uses it differently.

You don't have to understand all the features the start using Scrivener. You don't need to read the entire manual.

Start out with the features that make sense to you and gradually learn more about them and start using them.

Use Scrivener in whatever way seems useful to you. As you become more comfortable, how you use Scrivener will change over time.

Commit to Scrivener Gradually

At first, the features of Scrivener can be overwhelming and the interface may seem busy and distracting. (It's easy to minimize features and change views.)

it's not all or nothing with Scrivener! You don't ned to completely master it to use it effectively. It's okay to go back and forth from Scrivener to Word. Most people do when they start exploring Scrivener. (Copy & paste between software or use Scrivener's import & split or compile features.)

It's common to give up on Scrivener and then return to try it again before being able to fully commit. Sometimes more than once!

Be prepared--Scrivener will change your writing process.

In short: use Scrivener in whatever way seems useful to you. How you use Scrivener will change over time, as you develop more comfort.