yWriter - Organize your novel - free software

[Guest]

From Lifehacker :

Windows only: Freeware program yWriter helps you plan out and organize your next great novel, breaking the necessary structuring of a story into small, manageable tasks.

Okay, so we’re not all writers - but for those of you who are, and those of you who’ve considered trying out NaNoWriMo, yWrite looks like a very useful tool. Actually, it even has a feature that lets you set a word count target specifically to help track your progress toward the 50,000-word NaNoWriMo goal.

from Space Jock Software

Haven't tried it, but thought our NaNoWriMo flagellants might find it useful.

 

[FallingToFly]

Oh sweet gods, TedE, thank you, thank you, thank you!!!

*pounces, hugs, and runs*

 

[entitled]

You rock.

 

[Salvor-Hardon]

Wow.... I may try NaNo next year with this. If my other forms of self abuse fall short.

 

[Aurora Black]

Ted, I think I'll wait and see about this, if that's okay. BF got me a program called Dramatica and I'm still toying around with that. Thanks for the thought.

 

[angelicminx]

Thanks Ted. I've spent most of today checking out the site and the program. Very useful.

 

[Guest]

Thanks Ted. I've spent most of today checking out the site and the program. Very useful.

Good. I'm glad a lot are pleased I posted this. Make all the time I spend looking over tech sites seem a little less time wasting.

 

[ABSTRUSE]

I've used RoughDraft which is also very good.

RoughDraft

 

[Guest]

I've used RoughDraft which is also very good.

RoughDraft

I use RoughDraft too. It is mostly a word processer lite for writers. This program lets you lay out characters, scenarios etc. from what I can tell.

 

[ABSTRUSE]

I use RoughDraft too. It is mostly a word processer lite for writers. This program lets you lay out characters, scenarios etc. from what I can tell.

Hey, you started an actual writing thread...how did that happen?

 

[Guest]

Hey, you started an actual writing thread...how did that happen?

And I submitted a story this week.

All in all, a good week.

 

[Aurora Black]

And I submitted a story this week.

All in all, a good week.

Yay!

 

[ABSTRUSE]

And I submitted a story this week.

All in all, a good week.

WOOHOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO!!!

 

[zeb1094]

Cool, just down loaded it and played around a bit with it.

Thanks Ted!

 

[Aurora Black]

Can't find the installation disk for Dramatica, so it turns out that I'm going to need this after all. Thank goodness you started this thread, my dear sweet Ted, or else I would have really been in deep shit.

 

[zeb1094]

Ted, this is really great stuff. Just pasted one of my longer stories into it, found several areas where I had some holes to fill. And it makes it much easier to organize the scenes and chapters of long works.

 

[Aurora Black]

So far I've only downloaded RoughDraft. When I tried to get yWriter as well, all my browser windows froze.

 

[Guest]

Ted, this is really great stuff. Just pasted one of my longer stories into it, found several areas where I had some holes to fill. And it makes it much easier to organize the scenes and chapters of long works.

Great. I haven't played with it, since I mostly like the shorter stories. Glad it was a help.

I'm such a nerd; I surf a lot of sites each day (using a RSS reader, so it doesn't take much time). I've thought of starting a thread to share computer programs and tips I use.

 

[Aurora Black]

This is where I'm going to work on my novel, I can feel it.

 

[impressive]

Is anyone really using this to good effect?

I just downloaded & installed it ... and spent a chunk of time importing my two novel-length works-in-progress. All the formatting vanished 'cause it would only import TXT files. I'm wondering what this offers that I couldn't do with an Excel spreadsheet linked to my Word documents.

 

[Svenskaflicka]

I tried this one out. I think it's so-so. Could be improved. Could be more userfriendly.

 

[Aurora Black]

Still reading the manual for RoughDraft.

 

[ibhard]

I've used RoughDraft which is also very good.

RoughDraft

i like the older version of RoughDraft, 2.11 rather than the newest, 3.0 because it doesn't have that annoying horizontal panel when you edit.

Is anyone really using this to good effect?

I just downloaded & installed it ... and spent a chunk of time importing my two novel-length works-in-progress. All the formatting vanished 'cause it would only import TXT files. I'm wondering what this offers that I couldn't do with an Excel spreadsheet linked to my Word documents.

i downloaded it because i'm all techy and have to try everything. i don't like working with the text files, i use italics quite a lot. thanks for the idea on spreadsheets and linking word docs, so simple and effective for those that like to organize.

 

[Oblimo]

Wait...stories are supposed to be structured?

I am really intrigued by the storyboard view, although in my experience individual scenes need storyboarding as much as the scene sequence. However, I had to made my own timeline in Visio to make sure characters weren't two places at once in the story arc I'm working on now (except for the character who can be many places at once, that is, but she just makes things even more complicated ). It will be interesting to see if a prorgam specifically designed to timeline scenes will make a difference.

I'm not sure if I like the idea of a minimalist text editor, however. Worrying about how a manuscript looks before you finish it isn't a good idea, of course, but there are features such as drag-and-drop cut and paste and easy-to-stare-at-for-hours view styles that you miss with .txt files. Also, it sounds like yWriter is meant for writers who complete rough drafts of novels in the brainstorm phase, and I haven't met many of those. Well, I shook Stephen King's hand once, but I don't think that counts.

 

[Aurora Black]

Well, I shook Stephen King's hand once, but I don't think that counts.

Would you put that hand on the screen, please? I need the magic right about now.