I’ve been using Google Docs for writing my books for several years, all the while knowing that many writers recommended Scrivener. I knew it had a lot of functionality and tools just for authors but I always thought, “Whatever. I’ll keep it simple. I don’t need fancy software for my books. Google Docs suits me just fine.”

And then my first longer novel came along, complete with multiple points of view and dates and real events to keep track of.

Photo by Amelia Bartlett

I wrote the entirety of my new novel on Google Docs and then started my edits there but decided that maybe I should give Scrivener a shot since keeping the timelines straight in my head was becoming pretty challenging.

Now, frankly, I’m angry at myself for not switching to Scrivener sooner.

It is usable from the early stages of a book to the final creation of indie publishing files. It’s highly customizable and includes so, so many features and functions that writers of all styles make use of. I’m not going to list them all here but I love that it can be used from the earliest stages of a book’s life and see it through until it’s totally complete. It also lets you view your work in different ways, depending on what kind of writer you are. It really is a stunning piece of software and I can’t wait to use it again for my next project.

I also want to give a shoutout to Kristen Kieffer of Well-Storied and applaud her for creating an incredibly in-depth and easy-to-follow course on Scrivener that I am happy to recommend: Storytelling with Scrivener. (This isn’t an affiliate link, I just really appreciated the course.)

And, I should add: I just finished my edits for my first historical fiction novel. I’m going to do more run-through of it before I prepare my query and then I’ll be pitching agents in the new year. Wish me luck!