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There are a ton of writing programs out there and it can be difficult to figure out which one fits you the best. I wrote an entire novel in Word, then tried to move to Scrivener and I just. couldn’t. do. it. I kept trying to push myself to use Scrivener, but this only prevented me from writing, bringing on a huge wave of writer’s block. I’ve recently moved all my writing pieces back into Word and, lo and behold, I’m writing again!
It’s safe to say I’ll be using Word for my writing program for the rest of my days. I don’t know why we prefer some writing programs over others, but it’s likely similar to why we prefer certain writing spaces over others.
Word
My one true love. I’ve used Word since way back when. In my primary school days I would spend an hour picking out the cherry styled page border and the rainbow WordArt. This was back when there was a paperclip on your screen to tell you what to do (internal laughter at the thought of kids not knowing what to do with technology these days).
Thank goodness I learnt about the Document Map though. Going through a 110,000 word document without that was not ideal.
Scrivener
I consider myself pretty savvy at learning new programs. Scrivener was easy to learn, and I can definitely see why some people swear by it. Why else would I try for so long to adapt to it? Alas, it was not for me.
It does have the option of simplifying the layout, removing all the bits and bobs that make the application overwhelming, until you’re only left with what you need. And if you’re wanting to summarise chapters on digital cue cards, then Scrivener is the program you’re looking for.
Pages
I know Pages is already installed on every Mac and super accessible, but I only recently learnt that people actually use it. I don’t know why I thought no one used it – like the notepad application on windows. I’d consider giving it a try, but been there done that with Scrivener and I think I’m good with Word.
Google Docs
I like this program for all the same reasons I like Word. And because it’s online you don’t need to panic about losing it (still keep a back-up though!). I prefer Word but potato, potato. That doesn’t quite work as text…
Other writing programs
What writing program do you use? Is it one I haven’t mentioned here?