Scrivener Walkthrough

I am drowning in my data right now and am looking for something that can offer me some sort of organized
outline format that has the flexibility for making minor changes yet also allows me to see my entire story from a
"god" perspective--- meaning I can have an all-encompassing view of my work.
My example is setup using the Novel in Parts Template from Scrivener. The Default View in Scrivener:
On the left you have your Binder which contains your manuscript, your project files, character sketches, etc.,
the middle shows your work area, in this case I am editing multiple Scrivenings (or scenes) by selecting a folder
in the Binder and the Group Mode button at the top. On the right is the Inspector view.
The Group Mode button. Next to that are the Corkboard & the Outline
buttons respectively. Each button gives you a different view of your
Project. You can use as much or as little of everything Scrivener has to
offer depending on your own style of writing and organization.
If I click the Corkboard Button, my view changes:
My novel is arranged in parts. My novel takes place over the course of five days. I have organized my
manuscript with a top level folder for each day with Chapters and Scenes nested within. Because I still have a
top level folder selected, I am seeing the Corkboard with all my sub folders revealed. The Corkboard is like
having a series of index cards where you can type your notes directly on the card. You can also rearrange the
cards, which will rearrange the order of your folders, the subfolders contained within those folders, and the
scenes within those sub folders. Note that each index card on the board has other cards behind it – those cards
represent the sub folders and their contents.
Example: If you have a Folder labeled Chapter 40, and that Folder contains three Scenes, then your Corkboard
will show an index card with three cards behind it.
If I select one of my sub folders in the Binder, my Corkboard view changes to that folder and its contents:
Again, I can move the cards around, which will rearrange my scenes within this folder/chapter.
You have a lot of options on where you can store notes, synopsis, etc. If I select my Top Level Folder again, I
can enter in notes or a synopsis for each chapter directly on the index card. I can also enter in a synopsis for the
section by using the Synopsis area in the Inspector on the right. There’s also a section for Document Notes – or
notes you want to keep associated with this section/folder.
The Inspector is connected to the folder or document you select in the Binder, or the Index Card you select on
the Corkboard.
So in my example, I have selected the Day Five section, so the Synopsis and Document Notes in the Inspector
are related to the entire section. Anything I type there will be associated with the entire section. If I click on
Chapter 34, the Inspector changes to show information about that Chapter only:
Clicking off the index card returns the Inspector to reflect the entire Section. If in the Binder, I select Chapter
34, both the Corkboard and Inspector change to show me only the info about that chapter and scenes:
I can also click the Outline button and see the entire document in Outline Mode:
In the example above, I clicked on the Manuscript in the Binder, then on the Outline button. This gives me an
overview of the entire project. Each section can be expanded by clicking the little arrow next to the folder icon.
This also reveals the text typed into the Synopsis section for each folder, sub folder and scene. The Inspector
now shows the Project Notes which are associated with the entire manuscript. In this view, I can type a
synopsis for each section, label each section (Idea, Notes, etc.), set a status (To Do, First Draft, Revised Draft,
Final Draft, etc.), and see Project Targets and Goals for each section (if I have set those under Project > Show
Project Targets).
Again, changing your selection in the Binder will change the information in the Outline View and the Inspector.
Selecting a folder or its contents in the Outline View, will also change the information displayed in the
Inspector:
Your Synopsis can be available to you as you are writing, either in the
Inspector, which will show you the Synopsis for the section you are working
on, or in a floating window you can activate by clicking the ‘Find Synopsis’
button, then searching for the synopsis you want to view (example: the
synopsis for the entire manuscript, a section, a chapter or a scene).
I would also like to be able to add in side notes to my story as I write, without them becoming part of my
narrative. (Expl: A note showing my character's motivation for a certain behavior that I will not address at that
moment.) Along with all of this, I would like to be able to access notes and pictures quickly and copy them into
my story but still keep them highlighted until I decide they are where they need to be. I know, I'm not asking for
much. :O)
You can do notes in the Inspector for each document. You could also add notes to your Project Notes, which
can be opened in a floating window by clicking on Project > Project Notes.
And you can have a Quick Reference note pad open or a Scratch Pad open in floating windows by clicking
Document > Open > Quick Reference or Window > Show Scratch Pad.
As for pictures, you can add pictures to your Project or your document. It sounds like you are just looking at
having pics as reference materials and not necessarily as imaged embedded with the text.
If you want to associate a picture with a specific document, you can add it to the Inspector. On the Synopsis
section, there is a small button with an up and down arrow next to it. Clicking this button will give you the
option of showing the Synopsis or a picture:
Choosing ‘picture’, will give you a window
where you can upload or drag and drop
(depending on your OS) a photo that will be
associated with this document moving
forward.
I mentioned above the Quick Reference window – you can also open up another area of your Project (photos,
character sketches, research) in a floating window by selecting View > Quick Reference > (the area you want to
view). If you add multiple images to your Project, you can view them using this method.
Lastly, I showed you how you can be editing multiple folders/documents/scenes while
in Group mode.
You can also split the main window / work area to show multiple documents at the
same time.
In the upper right hand corner, next to the Inspector but above the main window,
there is another little icon/button. It looks like a box split in two. Clicking this will
split your main window so you can have one document open on top, and another
on the bottom:
To set each half of the window, you click inside it, then click the document you want to show up there in the
Binder. This means you can have photos open while working on your text, or any other item from your Binder.
You can copy/paste text, move back and forth, etc and so on. The up and down arrows in each half will move
you to the document above or below, and you can still click a folder to view all the scenes/documents inside of
it.
The power of Scrivener is that you can use as much or as little of the program as you need. I am not an outliner,
so while the outlining tools are impressive, I don’t really use them much. I know other authors who live and die
by them.
As with any software, the easiest way to learn your way around, is to play. Try setting up a couple of demo
projects using the templates provided before setting up the next great American novel. Trust me – it’ll be worth
it ;-)
~P