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Posted on 3 January 2022
In Scrivener

I'm aiming for a SMART start to 2022. First, though, let me wish you a Happy New Year! People - not just writers - fall into two camps. Those who write New Year Resolutions Those who don't I'm with the first crowd, even though I know and accept the argument of those who don't: it's never long before you break those resolutions. So what's the point? Good question! What's the point of a...

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Posted on 6 December 2021
In Scrivener

Festive Greetings to one and all It's that time of year again and I am having a longer break than usual. I'm hanging up my blogging pen until Monday 3 January. Put it down to advanced age, or the fact that, what with what we've all been through the past 21 months, I need to devote more time to rest and relaxation. Meanwhile though, I have Christmas gifts for you! Christmas gift of Scrivener...

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Posted on 8 November 2021
In Scrivener

Scrivener, your nag buddy A week into NaNo and it's 'normal' to start wondering why. Why did you ever think you could maintain a daily production of 1666 words? Why didn't you do more preparation? Why? Why? Why! Frankly, having started, I'd recommend you press on. The rewards - the sense of achievement, the fact that you have a lot of words which will form the core of your next novel -...

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Posted on 25 October 2021
In Scrivener

Sketches pin down your people, places and props My RedPen Editing course called People, Places and Props explains the importance of these three essential components of any story. In a nutshell: People in a story are your characters. It would be strange to have a story that has no characters! Places are your settings. Each scene has a setting and a cast of characters involved at that moment in time. Within that setting, the characters...

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Posted on 11 October 2021
In Scrivener

Three weeks to go NaNoWriMo starts on 1 November. Until then, we can't start writing for real, but now is an excellent time to start planning that next novel. And, if you are keen to use Scrivener, now is the time to start learning how to create the perfect writing space. What is NANO? NANO, short for NaNoWriMo, is the National Novel Writers Month. Writers all over the world spend the 30 days of...

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Posted on 27 September 2021
In Scrivener

Styles: a way of categorising your text Although section types are important in determining whether your material starts on a new page, and general formatting of the text (font style and size), it's also possible to set up styles in the Editing pane, so you can see what the finished effect might be. You can also finalise - or fine tune - the formatting once you reach the Compile stage. Paragraph formatting...

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Posted on 13 September 2021
In Scrivener

In the Scrivener Mindset series so far, I've focused on what goes in the Binder, and how your decisions can be carried through to Compile to achieve whatever formatting you want for the various output routes you need. If you've not read and absorbed this information, I recommend you check out these blog posts. You'll then be ready for what I am now going to address: what goes in the...

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Posted on 30 August 2021
In Scrivener

Louise Jensen My guest today is best selling author: Louise Jensen. Louise's stories have been translated into twenty-five languages and optioned for TV as well as featuring on the USA Today and Wall Street Journal Bestsellers List. And, her books have been nominated for multiple awards. As Louise, she writes psychological thrillers. Using a pen name, Amelia Henley, she has a penchant for exploring the intricacies of relationships through writing heart-breaking, high-concept love stories, and...

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Posted on 16 August 2021
In Scrivener

Project formats lead the way This blog post is the final one in a series all pointing to the fact that the role of a project format is to provide one of your many routes out of Compile. For a single manuscript, you can set up numerous project formats, each one serving a different purpose and/or a different end recipient. Here, I explain how, referring back to the previous posts which provide...

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Posted on 2 August 2021
In Scrivener

Specifying how your material will be formatted on output - the formatting controls - is achieved via Compile and, in the previous post, we examined all the panes apart from the first: Section Layouts. Brace yourselves! Deciding your requirements Before you select File / Compile, you need to have made a few decisions. What output route do I want? What do I want to output? What section layouts will I assign to...

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