Question about offline story writing

[Karipet]

What's a good program other than word to use for writing offline? I've had issues with uploading my files and having them format right. It's a pain to have to go back through the entire story to fix all the issues. I know .txt files are the preferred format.

Any help would be greatly appreciated.

Karipet

 

[Paul_Chance]

I write in Microsoft Word, so I can use the spelling, grammar and word count tools, among others. When I have finished the work and am ready to submit it, I cut and paste it into NotePad (.txt) and then walk through it to correct anything that didn't come over right. The problem with most document processing software is the prevalence of automated formatting features. They're a pain in the ass.

 

[oggbashan]

I used Word and insert HTML tags in the draft. I then copy and paste.

 

[NotWise]

What's a good program other than word to use for writing offline? I've had issues with uploading my files and having them format right. It's a pain to have to go back through the entire story to fix all the issues. I know .txt files are the preferred format.

LibreOffice Writer is an alternative to Word, and it's free of charge.

 

[SimonDoom]

I use Word, exclusively.

You can get a subscription to MS Word as part of Office 365 for $100 per year. That's only $8 per month.

 

[Hypoxia]

I write on my Win10 laptop with the free Jarte text editor and its included WordWeb dictionary-thesaurus. I run the text through an ancient version of Word for a spell and basic grammar check, then move it back to Jarte for any final touchup. I then copy and paste the text into the LIT submission window, and page through it to see it the browser found any typos. Then it's ready for preview.

I've added HTML tags to the text for such format control, though I'm ending that practice because not all display devices and warez read HTML. Keep it plain vanilla and you know it'll be visible.

 

[jaF0]

You can get a subscription to MS

I'll never pay them a dime directly. LibreOffice does everything, maybe more. No Payola.

 

[holliday1960]

What about Google Docs? I've used it in addition to and as an alternative to Word. It works well for me, but I don't rely on it for grammar or spell check much. It's also free.

 

[KeithD]

Word is the standard for the publishing industry. So, unless you're just writing for yourself . . .

 

[Handley_Page]

I'd recommend Word and then Cut&Paste into the entry box.

 

[SynSlave]

Recommend Apache's Open Office suite. Open source, free and versatile. There are others such as Libre and WPS but Open Office I find more robust and has better compatibility with all of MS suite formats (ppt, doc, xls, etc).

But as the other posters stated, it's not really the program you use as much as the style and format you save/submit in. I've had no issue when saving to standard .docx and uploading. But for Lit I keep it pretty clean... style wise.

Edit: assuming youre using a pc. I use mobile apps myself and stick with google docs and word primarily (dont need to pay for the word app).

I convert everything to docx for submission purposes (and as previously stated they both have basic spelling/grammar checks)

 

[DryLips]

What's a good program other than word to use for writing offline? I've had issues with uploading my files and having them format right. It's a pain to have to go back through the entire story to fix all the issues. I know .txt files are the preferred format.

Any help would be greatly appreciated.

Karipet

LibreOffice and OpenOffice (Libre is better) are both excellent alternatives to Word. Both word processors are free. I haven't used OpenOffice's tracking option but LibreOffice's works very nicely (this is for when your working with an editor or you want to keep track of the changes you make as you write).

I've only submitted stories is Word format, but I don't see why you wouldn't be able to submit them in the native file format for those two processors.

 

[NotWise]

LibreOffice and OpenOffice (Libre is better) are both excellent alternatives to Word. Both word processors are free. I haven't used OpenOffice's tracking option but LibreOffice's works very nicely (this is for when your working with an editor or you want to keep track of the changes you make as you write).

I've only submitted stories is Word format, but I don't see why you wouldn't be able to submit them in the native file format for those two processors.

There is nothing in the site's documentation to suggest that they could use the ODT format that is native to both OpenOffice and LibreOffice. Both word processors produce very functional files in DOC, DOCX and RTF formats, so it isn't necessary to use ODT.

OpenOffice and LibreOffice probably have 99% of their code base in common. I haven't used OpenOffice since it became an Apache product, but my understanding was that when LibreOffice forked from OpenOffice most of the active developers went with LibreOffice.

OpenOffice updates their code base when LibreOffice releases new code,but there may be a lag between versions of LibreOffice and OpenOffice.

 

[SynSlave]

There is nothing in the site's documentation to suggest that they could use the ODT format that is native to both OpenOffice and LibreOffice. Both word processors produce very functional files in DOC, DOCX and RTF formats, so it isn't necessary to use ODT.

OpenOffice and LibreOffice probably have 99% of their code base in common. I haven't used OpenOffice since it became an Apache product, but my understanding was that when LibreOffice forked from OpenOffice most of the active developers went with LibreOffice.

OpenOffice updates their code base when LibreOffice releases new code,but there may be a lag between versions of LibreOffice and OpenOffice.

I prefer Apache's build myself because ppt extensions and spreadsheet formulas have better compatibility. I also like that their config are easily manipulated through XML files (settings, plug ins and even the Menu can be configured at a user's whim).

But like others already pointed out if it's just for Lit/writing any of these are more than adequate. Even notepad, notepad++ or wordpad will give you what you need.

In my experiences and observations it usually isn't the piece of software or it's functionality that throws people off. It's usually the part when it comes to "save as" - file formats, converting and opening.

Tried to propose limiting MS licenses (cost) at my last company by switching to Open Office. Even repackaged a build with simplified menus and gutted half the options to make it easier to use. But explaining to people they simply had to choose a different file extension (format) when saving so others could open their files easily was like pulling teeth. We tried WPS and libre. Libre already had a bad rep within the company before I got there because of compatibility problems. WPS had a licensing caveat in their ELU that prevented us from deploying it in scale.

Certainly don't miss that part of the business.

But none of that really related to word so I'll stop now that I recognize I'm hijacking the thread.

 

[Jada59]

I use Word but I copy and paste rather than upload. I don't write really long stuff though.

 

[RejectReality]

I write in Wordperfect, but it's not something that I'd recommend. Not because there's anything wrong with WP. I keep writing in it because it's comfortable and familiar to me.

As SR said, Word and its document formats are the standard. That applies to the free sites as well. WP doesn't do a good job of producing accurate Word documents, and copy-paste into plain text loses carriage returns at WPs page breaks. I do a lot of extra work formatting my documents for all three of the sites I write on.

Writing in a more Word compatible platform would eliminate any need for changes to the manuscript on one site, and probably on the other. WPs export to HTML adds a lot of non-standard tags, even when set to plain HTML, and doesn't have the option to use pure old-school plain HTML without style tags.

Nothing would really change with the formatting here.

 

[CoffeeWithMonkeys]

I use Libre sometimes.

I also use google drive and blogger.

 

[ChloeTzang]

I use both Word and Google docs and insert HTML tags myself, and copy and paste into Literotica. No problem either way. Google’s free and my word is an oooold corporate version of my Dads from about 12 years ago. It’s followed me across a couple of laptops no problem.

 

[gordo12]

I have both Libre and Apache. Both are excellent and as mentioned free. I have had trouble with Libre and the autosave function which will not work for love nor money on two computers now. It goes through the save process but saves nothing.

Also I was having difficulty with large stories 12k word plus started to freeze up. But that is my only bitch. You can save in the word formats and submitting here has been a breeze. Formatting comes through fine.

 

[RejectReality]

Mine is a student licensed one from 2002 that's migrated through four computer upgrades now. LOL Ditto for my Excel.

I use both Word and Google docs and insert HTML tags myself, and copy and paste into Literotica. No problem either way. Google’s free and my word is an oooold corporate version of my Dads from about 12 years ago. It’s followed me across a couple of laptops no problem.

 

[SciFurz]

One other aspect

What's a good program other than word to use for writing offline? I've had issues with uploading my files and having them format right. It's a pain to have to go back through the entire story to fix all the issues. I know .txt files are the preferred format.

Any help would be greatly appreciated.

Karipet

Like others have suggested, I use Libreoffice because I'm a fan of open source and run it exclusively for many years. Thus since I run Debian Linux on my laptop it's a no-brainer.

Apart from that, one other major reason for using Libreoffice is the clean interface I can set up with it (see attached screenshot). No distractions and much less unused clutter. Just the few things that are needed to write and keep my focus on that. Automated functions are turned off, Spell check is invoked manually, and I can export to doc, html, pdf, and txt format for upload to various sites.

Almost forgot, I can use regular expressions to insert extra lines around for instance *** breaks for the txt exports. I don't know if MS Office has that option.

Having a matching desktop interface is a major plus and in my case it's an empty Fluxbox window manager with my own custom theme, and I don't run any software that throws notifications at me.

 

[PennameWombat]

Like others have suggested, I use Libreoffice because I'm a fan of open source and run it exclusively for many years. Thus since I run Debian Linux on my laptop it's a no-brainer.

<snip>

Other than me using Ubuntu the above is my desktop environment.

However, I do most of my actual writing on my ipad or laptop using Google Docs. I store all of my work in Google Docs as redundancy for the laptop (as well as a USB key.) From the laptop I use Google Docs through Firefox, on the ipad I have the Google Docs app.

I also have Google Docs app on my android LG phone. I've done plenty of editing while on the train commuting to or from work.

I download the final draft from Google Docs onto the laptop and use LibreOffice for the final touchups. I always use LibreOffice to store it in Word 2003 format (.doc) and attach and submit the Word file. I never cut and paste into txt for the submission window. Not had a problem with that. Since I like to use "Section Titles" I use the Word 'header3' for those. I make a note, as well as some italics, bold, etc., if they're used.

I then upload the submitted version back to Google Docs both for redundancy but also to have it in the library for review as I'm working on new stories (I have a few different series running as well as a variety of cross-overs amongst them, so I need the review of what I did before as I go.)

 

[SciFurz]

Other than me using Ubuntu the above is my desktop environment.

Ubuntu is practically Debian so that difference isn't even that much.

For redundancy I have two storage servers with BTRFS RAID1 that I built ages ago, which do a weekly check for bitrot. That's my working storage and from there I synchronise once in a while to my laptop and even my Android mobile (which has a port of openoffice on it).
The only thing I have not done yet is storing an offline copy in the shed as a backup in case of fire damaging all my equipment at home.

Years of working in IT taught me that online storage is just as insecure as local storage, thus I never use that (not to mention the likely misuse of data by the provider, they're no philantropists).

 

[Zeb_Carter]

I have used Libra Office(write), yWriter, and Word. I now use Word most of the time. I insert html tags as I go and then copy and paste into the submission form.

Of course you have to set up word paragraph correctly and then go to all the trouble of hitting the enter key twice to get the space between paragraphs.

I have posted out to set up the paragraphs before but here it is again...

Of course, the same would go for Libre Office.

Also, I haven't had any problems with the formatting of the story on Lit for a long time.

 

[Paul_Chance]

I've also done works in Google Docs, usually at the request of an editor or a content publisher. It's good. I've never used it in conjunction with Lit though, so I can't say how it works there.