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DESCRIPTION
Scrivener is a project management and writing tool for writers of all kinds that stays with you from that first unformed idea all the way through to the first - or even final - draft. Outline and structure your ideas; take notes; storyboard your masterpiece using a powerful virtual corkboard; view research while you write; track themes using keywords; dynamically combine multiple scenes into a single text. Scrivener has already been enthusiastically adopted by best-selling novelists and novices alike. Outline... Edit... Storyboard... Write.
WHAT'S NEW
Version 1.53:
Changes
- Files imported from WriteRoom are now selected and revealed in the binder.
- Clipping services have been renamed to include the application name so that they are more easily identified on Snow Leopard (note that because services are cached you may not see any changes until you restart your computer).
Bugs Fixed
- Fixed bug whereby override colour wasn't working in full screen (this was fixed in 1.52 a day after it was released, so only those who downloaded 1.52 early will see this bug).
- Updated internal eSellerate engine which should hopefully fix eSellerate-related activation crashes on Snow Leopard and solve the activation issues some users have been having. Please contact support@literatureandlatte.com and CC support@esellerate.net if you continue to experience activation problems after this update.
- Scrivener 1.52 added some extra project file checks upon opening projects, in order to ensure there were no stray files within the project and to recover them if necessary. Unfortunately this code was not optimised and could cause massive slowdowns upon opening projects containing hundreds of documents, to the extent that the system would seem to freeze. This has been fixed and all projects should now open quickly again.
- Fixed bug whereby the activation panel could cause two Help menus to appear within Scrivener until Scrivener was restarted.
- Fixed bug on Snow Leopard in which the cmd-C keyboard shortcut would not work for the "Copy" command in scriptwriting mode.
REQUIREMENTS
Mac OS X 10.4 or later.
RELATED LINKS
Scrivener Gold is a freeware release of an early beta version of Scrivener. Scrivener has evolved a lot since this beta - the interface is much prettier and more intuitive, and the feature-set, whilst generally the same, has been refined and much improved. Scrivener Gold is missing the niceties you would expect from a finished application (such as state-saving) and may well have a few minor bugs lurking around, but it is nonetheless a fully-functional piece of software that writers of all kinds should find useful for maintaining and organising writing and research.
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| Scrivener User Reviews (54 posts) | Write A Review |
 | Nov 2 2009 |
GRDLOIZAGA My favourite writing app BY FAR.
(Version 1.53) | |
| [ Reply ] | |
 | Sep 7 2009 |
WHITEMERE I've used this product for a while and have tested a number of the other varieties around and found Scrivener by far the most user-friendly and intuitive of the products out there. Not that the others were bad - I tried Story Mill for a long while but just didn't find it as easy to work with as Scrivener. Only reason that I'm prompted to post a review now is that I had the problem with the post Snow Leopard 'esellerate' crash and was impressed with the speed of response from Keith. That kind of excellent, responsive customer service really is worth mentioning.
(Version 1.53) | |
| [ Reply ] | |
| Sep 1 2009 |
SIMMAN This is really the best app for writers!
(Version 1.52) | |
| [ Reply ] | |
Replies:
| Apr 30 2009 |
MERRIMAC I wholeheartedly agree. But in keeping with Macupdate protocol, if you are going to post a starred review, please consider providing some further detail about what you like about the software. Thanks.
(Version 1.51) | |
| Mar 1 2009 |
LORD LIGHTNING Scrivener plays merry hell with a reviewer's superlatives. What do you say after, 'the best just got better'? Scrivener 1.5 sets the benchmark to the aspirational level where all we can say to Keith Blount is, 'I wish for this, or I wish for that?' There simply is no other writer's application for the Mac that comes within coo-ee of Scrivener. If you have any hesitation about trying Scrivener I strongly suggest watching the movie on the product page.
(Version 1.5) | |
| [ Reply ] | |
| Jan 23 2009 |
LONDONSKATER This is a swiss army knife for serious writing. But, this isn't an application to try out for an afternoon and then discard. You'll be doing both the app and yourself a disservice. I use Scrivener for two things: contributing write-ups for a online magazine, and writing academic papers for my MA. The write-ups are short, but require lots of info and shuffling around, while the academic essays are obviously longer, require references and the like. All these papers are output through LaTEX, anyhow, so I require a program that works well with LaTEX. Scrivener does compile the draft out to LaTEX, but I've not found it particularly good, and as I keep my references in Scrivener as actual BibTEX/LaTEX markup, the compile tends to mess these up. Scrivener does open BibDesk up so I copy references straight in, so that's fantastic. If I had any time to spend with the LaTEX templates in Scrivener, I could probably figure out how to make it all work. I'll bet it can be done. The whole process of writing is different to what one might expect from Microsoft Word or the like, and one should follow the tutorial videos to understand how the folder/editor/notes system works, and then how best to make it all work for you. The developer and the community are excellent, the app has never once crashed on me and it's a veritable bargain.
(Version 1.5b3) | |
| [ Reply ] | |
| Jan 19 2009 |
LEO SPILL This fascinating application has nothing but praise lauded over it. I would like to officially ask the developer, if he would put this app up Anyone else agree - please press the little smiley icon on the right...
(Version 1.5b1) | |
| [ 3 Replies - Reply ] | |
Replies:
| Jan 19 2009 |
AMBERV The developer has stated in the past that he isn't interested in participating in bundles and fire sales like this, primarily because it dramatically increases the exposure of the application to the masses, and it is really rather a niche application. The influx of support issues would not be worth the extra sales. Besides, market research indicates that these fire sales, while they have a temporary spike in product sales, do not really help out the application in the long run. Once the sale complete, growth goes back to normal and all the developer is left with is a marginal income spike (heavily dented by the host of the sale) and an inbox full of confused users who don't get the application but just bought it because it looked neat and was $20... or $19.95 or whatever.
(Version 1.5b1) | |
| Jan 19 2009 |
JOHN TUCKEY give the dev a break, its solid gold and a steal at the price already - if only larger companies where as accomodating in price and with their upgrades (and I mean you filemaker)
(Version 1.5b2) | |
| Jan 19 2009 |
HMURCHISON While I don't expect the Developer to participate in MUPROMO or a bundle deal I tend to disagree with the notion that said bundles are not beneficial. I have not seen any research that conclusively proves nor disproves that these bundles effect. For some developers they are beneficial and for some they are not. The bundles must be met with realistic expectations. Of course the influx isn't going to be sustained, users are demoing the apps and finding out which apps will remain in their computing workflow. The payoff for the developer is during the next paid upgrade and how many of these new "bundle" users become part of the moneytrain. Marketing is very expensive and every paying customer is to be valued if you want sustainable success. I'm looking forward to Scrivener but I will most likey wait until 2.0 comes and then hop in. It appears to be a well developed application and the forums are active with users that can answer just about any question you need. Job well done L&L.
(Version 1.5b2) | |
| Dec 18 2008 |
RANSKY Outstanding for novel writing. I've tried many, and Scrivener's simplicity and ease of are great. Handles chapters and scenes well through project folders and documents. Allows me to focus on writing, not software. Highly recommended.
(Version 1.12b1) | |
| [ Reply ] | |
| Dec 2 2008 |
BARAK BRUERD As a writer moving away from using multiple tools to create a composition (usually a combination of omnioutliner, MS Word, and a folder full of clippings) I started researching writing tools with some enthusiasm. Scrivener and StoryMill were the most obvious choices and both seemed to have a solid set of features. Most challenging however were the range of very mixed reviews. Scrivener by far had the most positive, while StoryMill ranged from exceedingly high marks, to very frustrated and disillusioned users. Rather than repeating a great many other feature comparison reviews I'll summarized with the key features unique to each: StoryMill: Timeline, characters, locations, and specific breakdown of chapters and scenes. Scrivener: Cork board, outline, scratch pad There are other unique features however these have been the most significant in my use of the two applications. By and large, StoryMill has a longer learning curve and is more complicated, but once learned the applications allows writers to create very complex narratives. If you write fiction and non-fiction StoryMill is probably the best fit. Scrivener on the other hand has a sleek, easy-to-use interface that allows for easy gathering and re-arranging of information. While it can be used in a similar fashion to StoryMill for narratives through detailed outlines, it is a more flexible program for research and writing of more technical or informational pieces (anything non-narrative in nature). For those with more flexible needs or who want to be up and running faster, scrivener is probably the best option. Price points on both are fairly aggressive for both programs and a mere $5 between the two should not drive a purchase decision since you will be spending many hours in front of the computer and should be choosing the best program for your work, not the cheapest. Both are outstanding apps.
(Version 1.12b1) | |
| [ Reply ] | |
| Nov 13 2008 |
LEV "See this as my review"? It's no more a review than the person you're attacking. This ad hominem snarling does nothing for anyone. Bear in mind that the plural of "opinion" is not "data". You've not justified one of your assertions, which makes them worthless. DevonThink Pro is a heavyweight information manager designed for collecting, annotating, categorizing and retrieval of info such as text notes, pdfs, webarchives and so on. Its interface is a little outdated and it lacks more recent functionality like tagging. Devotees overlook that for its speed, stability and clever "AI" retrieval functions. It is NOT a writing environment nor is it intended to be. Scrivener is the equivalent of an infinitely-expandable three-ring binder. It offers storage and manipulation of research material though not with the heavy-lift capabilities of DevonThink. It is, however, a comprehensive writing environment complete with a functional outliner, non-contiguous text selection, concatenation and editing, footnoes and comments (RTF/Word compatible), system-wide clippings and annotation services, and a wide range of manuscript export formats. It sits, for most writers, between something like DevonThink and a formatting app like Mellel or Nisus. Hope that unmuddies the waters a bit.
(Version 1.12b1) | |
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