Scrivener
Typewriter. Ring-binder. Scrapbook. Scrivener combines everything you need to craft your first draft, from nascent notion to final full stop.
Summary
Our users have written 17 comments and reviews about Scrivener, and it has gotten 230 likes
- Developed by Literature & Latte Ltd.
- Proprietary and Commercial product.
- One time purchase (perpetual license) ranging between $51 and $52.
- Average rating of 3.5
- 91 alternatives listed
Popular alternatives
View allTop Scrivener apps, plugins, extensions and add-ons
View allRecent user activities on Scrivener
- hex111 Upvoted a comment on Nulis as an alternative to ScrivenerNo rich text. I need color changes to skim and find sections.
- rufus_spb added Scrivener as alternative(s) to ZenWriter Online
- AmileiaWilliams liked ScrivenerAm
Scrivener is a specialized word processing and file management system for writers. It allows you to develop a new work, or import an existing work, and break it up into manageable parts. While designed primarily for fiction writing, I have also used it on a manual that required little advanced formatting.
I could not find a comparable product on Windows, however it should be said that the Mac OS X version is far more advanced than the Windows version - with features unimplemented on Windows. The Windows version is being actively developed but L&L hasn't really made much of an attempt to 'catch up' the Windows version. Despite this negative, I haven't found a better platform for writing fiction on Windows.
Scrivener does not have sophisticated formatting tools - but it does have some. It has everything you'd expect from a word processor, plus a whole lot more. However a major omission is two column formatting, which is necessary for a lot of publishing.
Has Appleitis: in Scrivener 3 (Mac), you can't delete 'Draft' and 'Research' folders. You're able to rename them but for some ridiculous reason you can't change their icon into default folder icon. You can't hide the trash folder as well.
There are also reports of users who lost their saved project. When they open their project, it was just empty. (They didn't tell what Scrivener version they had.)
Windows users are third class citizens and never get updates within two years of Mac users. Any criticism of this policy on their forums results in locked threads, never admitting any wrong or responsibility to their customers. It's some of the most anti-consumer practices I've seen, especially for such a dedicated, niche customer base.
This. We're in January of 2020, and they have missed yet another deadline. They don't give one single, solitary firetruck about Windows users.
Reply written over 1 year ago
Agreed. I'm starting to think Version 3 for Windows will get here around the same time as Version 4 for Mac. The Windows version is already sliding behind features for the Mac version with excuses like "Well, the Mac OS lets us easily hook into this feature, so the Windows version just won't have it at all." Here we are in September and a simple "Find & Replace" operation in the Windows version absolutely explodes ("whole word" replaces even partial words). If you want to spend money on something and be disrespected, choose Scrivener for Windows.
Reply written about 1 year ago
When the hell is this going to update for Windows?! It's starting to look its age
Great software, but only if you are using a mac. As noted by other users, the business prioritizes mac users over everyone else, going so far as to port over to ipad while the Windows version hasn't been updated since Version 1 (mac is currently on version 3).
Also, thanks to their last license management company going under, their software now uses a service that will not allow offline activation. That's a big deal breaker for me.
You will find a plenty of reviews of Scrivener on how good it is. But this program has its bad side.
Scrivener save files can get corrupted. We don't know when and why. Backups made by Scrivener can fail too.
Scrivener 3 (Mac) save format is not compatible with Scrivener 1 (Windows). Scrivener 3 beta (Windows) is not made for work and has fixed expiry date. Exporting then importing save file back and forth is not that smooth.
So, when will Scrivener 3 for Windows out? It has been like forever.
If you're on Windows, take a look at SmartEdit Writer (free).
Inexpensive and powerful. I’m halfway through my third novel written with this software and I love it. I keep learning new things I can do with it. I’m a Mac user so I can’t speak to the quality of the windows version though I can identify with the user who complains that windows users don’t get the same attention—welcome to a Mac users experience with nearly every other software developer.
I tell everyone, use the free trial first, and take the time to work through the free tutorial exercise document before you do anything else. It isn’t for everyone and many get overwhelmed at first. The tutorial will teach you well and only after trying that should you decide whether you should buy it. Good news is that a license is super cheap. 45 bucks I think.