Tools for structuring stories?

[NoJo]

Are there any simple software tools any authors here would recommend to help structure stories?

 

[PennLady]

I'm not entirely sure what you're asking, but I have seen the programs yWriter and Scrivener recommended for writers. yWriter is free, or at least you can get a free version. Scrivener you have to pay for.

 

[NoJo]

Thanks for those, Pennlady, yWriter in particular looks useful for me. Scrivener looks like it does too much, and is less focused on fiction.

I've used Final Draft which has tools for structuring screenplays, including "index cards" for scenes. I guess I'm looking for something like that, but which isn't focused on screenplays, but novels.

 

[sr71plt]

I've found the brain to be the best software tool for this.

 

[PennLady]

I've found the brain to be the best software tool for this.

Sometimes you need supplementary software. Or hardware (like pen and paper).

 

[sr71plt]

Sometimes you need supplementary software. Or hardware (like pen and paper).

Pen and paper? What are they? If I had to rely on them, I'd then need legible handwriting too. Such a bother.

 

[Zeb_Carter]

I have used yWrite, I have used Scrivener, I have also looked at Trelby (Basically a screen writers dream tool).

But, since then, I have just gone back to using word and just type.

I mean all the great writers of the past either used pen and paper (as Pennlady suggests) or a manual typewriter, which is what word basically is, with a spell checker and grammar checker thrown in(although I turned off the business-centric grammar checker).

If I had to, I would fallback to yWrite.

 

[StrangeLife]

I will second the recommendation of Scrivener with an alternative vote on Ulysses.

Look for reviews on YouTube in order to get an impression of how they work. They might look a bit intimidation at first glance, but it's no different than MS Word - lots of functions that most people don't use on a daily basis, but they are there in case they are needed.

 

[Bramblethorn]

Thanks for those, Pennlady, yWriter in particular looks useful for me. Scrivener looks like it does too much, and is less focused on fiction.

I've used Final Draft which has tools for structuring screenplays, including index cards" for scenes. I guess I'm looking for something like that, but which isn't focused on screenplays, but novels.

Scrivener is primarily designed for fiction (novels and screenplays) although some of its features would be useful for non-fic too. It's pretty good for structuring; it lets you shuffle scenes around, flag them by content, and I'm pretty sure it allows an index-card summary as well.

Here's a professional novelist's commentary on using it for a novel: http://www.antipope.org/charlie/blog-static/2012/07/writing-a-novel-in-scrivener-e.html

I downloaded the free trial and have played with it a bit. It does take a bit of learning, and using it for a short story would be overkill, but l liked the structuring capability enough that I'll be using it for longer stuff.

 

[Stella_Omega]

I love using scrivener for short stories too.

I have one 'project' for them; I have another 'project' for essays, as well. Think of the 'projects' as folders; each item is a file stored within that doc.

... If I realise something's getting away from me, I can easily export it into its own project.

You can also cross reference files from different projects. I keep one for reference files, like lists of usable names, stuff like that.

Also, you can do things like change the colors of all of the working elements, which is helpful for people with certain vision issues

 

[NoJo]

Thanks for the posts, scribblers

For my very simple needs I managed to get along with MS Word's outlining facilities, which allowed me to create the story spine as headings and then be able to structure the story using the outline window.