A new “cottage season” and Oklahoma thoughts…

Map of Michigan highlighting Cass County.svg (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

Ever since last September, when we closed up the lake cottage and moved back to northern Illinois, this is the week we’ve been looking forward to and thinking about.

Yep, it’s time to do it all over again—open the cottage—and these past few days have been all about shopping lists and gathering up things and loading our front dining room and table with boxes and bags and various other items that will be packed in our Ford Ranger or Chevy Malibu to be hauled up to Michigan early Friday morning to begin another “cottage season.”

With all of this “getting ready” atmosphere firmly ensconced, it seems as though it’s been way too long since I’ve attempted any sort of writing—my blog posts or work on my second novel, The Bet, or the various short stories I have “in the works.”

Writing now, I realize even more so that these next two days are only going to get more crammed with things that need to get done, and so I’ll attempt to finish this and get along to tending to many of them.

Of course, the “best laid scheme” often goes awry, and, sure enough, my plan to arise early today and get the yard mowed has gone by the boards because it’s been raining since the wee hours! Somehow, though, before we pull out of here early Friday morning to head to Michigan, I will have to manage to get it cut. My window of opportunity is quite minuscule—and getting more so as the day rolls along—so I’ll have to see how the weather cooperates (or doesn’t!) later today.

And now, it’s time to get busy. My next post will be from southwest Michigan—if I manage to get things done on this end, that is! When I think about it, though, my complaining about such things seems just a bit selfish and insignificant in the face of what those people in Oklahoma have endured and will have to continue to endure. So scratch my whining from the record, in regards to my inability to mow the lawn, please! Instead, offer some good thoughts and a prayer for those who really have issues sitting in their paths. My lawn will eventually get mowed….CortlandWriter

Ford Ranger XLT (Photo credit: Wikipedia)…

 

Shifting my focus

The Victorinox Cybertool. (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

It’s that time once again—it happens every year—when my focus shifts from daily routines of tasks around the house and writing regularly each morning to getting ready for another summer at the cottage up in Michigan. And now that we’ve had an uninterrupted string of beautiful warm spring weather, I’m finding it very difficult to stay focused on my writing duties, as much as I need and want to. I have no doubt that I will be able to pick back up once things are settled at the cottage, the pier is in place, the pontoon securely moored, and that first  gray and rainy day comes along.

The winter just passed (finally!) was very productive in the writing skills development department, I must say. For example, February and March were devoted to learning Scrivener, that powerful Swiss Army Knife of writing tools created by the good folks at Literature & Latte! And it all came about rather unexpectedly.

 I had completed a 50,000+ novel in Word during November’s NaNoWriMo event, something I jumped into for the fun of it and to actually be “forced” to have some kind of rough draft of a novel on hand at the end of the month. That was a challenge, though, as the month unwound, with all of the many November “interruptions” (Thanksgiving, guests, travel, etc.). Through it all, though, I exceeded the required word count of 50,000 and was more than pleased with what I’d created. For better or worse, I had something to work with in the months ahead.

It was during the conclusion and word count verification process in NaNoWriMo when I first heard of Scrivener. I learned that, because I was a NaNoWriMo “winner,” I could get the program for half price, about $22, following a 30-day Free Trial period. Being an old guy who has always loved learning how to use technology (I even taught those various things for many years), and since it’s been a while since I’ve really gone beyond the “basics” of Word, I jumped at the opportunity to give Scrivener a try.

It wasn’t long before I had the Free Trial up and running, and I figured the Tutorial that comes with the program would clarify everything I needed to know about using Scrivener. And, I must say, it’s a very good Tutorial, but I wanted more, and that’s where Gwen Hernandez rode in on her white steed and really opened the floodgates to understanding the program.

It wasn’t hard to come upon ads for a book Gwen had written, titled Scrivener for Dummies. Having loved all previous “Dummies” books, I once again jumped—leaped, actually—at the chance to purchase the book that I knew would be a wonderful guide through Scrivener and all its various parts. After all, my just-completed NaNoWriMo novel was resting and waiting for me to take it to the next steps, and my plan was to do so in Scrivener. So there it was, my winter project, something I could look forward to and feel that my growth as a writer would be something to make it all worthwhile.

Right about this time, I also discovered that Gwen offered online classes in Scrivener for Mac, the next one to begin in late February. Perfect! I not only leaped but did a double-back flip at the opportunity to enroll and be part of a “live” class. I don’t have time or space at this writing to list all of the wonderful positives that came from my six weeks spent in working through Gwen’s class. I’m sure there’s a post or two down the road where I will really be able to devote the time and space to extolling the positives that came from the class, her book, and an immersion in Scrivener.

So by the time April rolled around, work continued (it still does) on my novel The Bet. Meanwhile, I jaunted off into the world of publishing to Amazon. A couple of short stories (“Pinewood Farm” and “Hobo Willie”) which have been stowing away with me for a long time, were thrown into Scrivener and made ready for formatting as .mobi eBooks for Kindle. It’s a process that is pretty straightforward and simple—thanks to Scrivener! Long story short, in less than an hour, I had them on Amazon, ready for public consumption. I’ve actually sold a number of copies of those two short stories, something I smile at—appreciatively,

 (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

that is!

So now, back to my need to step back for a short time. Those cold and gray winter mornings allowed me time and space to get lots accomplished—writing and learning—but now it will be time spent packing, doing outdoor stuff here as needed, and checking into the cottage Memorial Day Weekend. But that’s not cause for concern, since my first book—Black Wolf Lodge—was written over the course of several summers on the wonderful screened front porch of that cottage, an ancient lady who turns 100 this summer. And the beauty of it is, Scrivener will be right there along with me as we watch the lake go by and the summer days grab my focus….CortlandWriter

Time flies when you’re using Scrivener…

Scrivener (software) (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

The month of April has all but disappeared, and I thought it had only just begun. Where has the time gone? It really hasn’t been because I have been spending an inordinate amount of time keeping up to date with my blog posting. On the contrary, I have probably spent way too much time reading all of the useful information about the many ways to use Scrivener, posted on Everything Scrivener, by a vast array of writers and other contributors.

And having taken Gwen Hernandez’s Scrivener for Mac online class in February thru March, I was hooked, and I have grown as a writer thanks to all of that.  Without a doubt, during this period, I have been having massive amounts of fun, while at the same time learning new things about Scrivener and the process of formatting stories and books every day!

Though I feel that I’ve pretty much neglected my regular and consistent posting during this time, and that I should, perhaps, be doing more actual writing instead of reading about writing, what I’ve gleaned from the articles and other tutorials found on YouTube have proven quite worthwhile. What I have enjoyed this past month in reading through the very helpful articles posted at Everything Scrivener, is that one tip seems to lead to another that is equally as informative and useful.

During this time, perhaps the most beneficial tutorial I found was a wonderful video posted by writer Julie Kenner titled How to format .mobi and ePub in Scrivener. After I watched this several times, I actually applied her step-by-step, clear-cut instructions to a couple of my short stories (“Hobo Willie” & “Pinewood Farm”) and compiled them perfectly to publish as Kindle Edition books. That was the first step toward actually realizing that I could do this after all!

Of course, after I’d successfully compiled my stories into the correct .mobi format required by Amazon, I needed to know how to get them into the Amazon store. As it turned out, that was one of the easiest steps—thanks to having done all of the formatting in Scrivener—and the very helpful YouTube tutorial Publishing your eBook on Amazon’s Kindle Direct Publishing (KDP) Platform from Paul Salvette of BB eBooks.

As with the Julie Kenner tutorial, I watched Mr. Salvette’s presentation a few times and proceeded to go through the steps to upload “Hobo Willie” and “Pinewood Farm.” In less than an hour’s time, I had two short stories on Amazon! And in checking not so very long ago, I’ve actually sold a few and had a nice review for each.

So what’s next as I work up this learning curve? I’m putting the finishing touches on my novel titled The Bet, and I

Scrivener 2.0 (Photo credit: mortsan)

cannot wait to compile it into a format for Smashwords and/or CreateSpace as well as eBooks. There’s still a way to go, however, but at least I now have a grasp on how it’s done. And regardless of the format, it still all comes down to having a story that is well written, full of characters who have something to share, and a problem or two that needs to be resolved satisfactorily….CortlandWriter

A sad and terrible time…

Family Portrait – Montreal 1963 (Photo credit: Mikey G Ottawa)

In my mind this morning I had a wonderful blog post all configured and worded regarding yesterday’s horrific incident in Boston. But as this day has worn on, I have begun to realize that what I might say about that incident—yet one more example of how this country’s morals and standards have eroded exponentially—would be lost in a sea of words and platitudes offered up by others far more eloquent than I.

So I’ll leave all of that to the more erudite and prolific shapers of words and only say that what took place yesterday in Boston is not a surprise. In fact, I’m stunned that something like this hasn’t happened sooner—much closer to the  date of the tragedy of the World Trade Center.

Not knowing who is responsible for the deaths and injuries causes the most anguish at the moment. I think of a little boy—eight years old, about the same age as my first grandson—who was taking part in a wonderful event and, but for any other explanation, was in the wrong place at that right time—the moment the explosions happened. I think of his sister and all of the others who, if for no other reason than their positions along that major avenue in Boston,  would be well today, celebrating the terrific event in all of its festive glory!

I had planned to write about my own accomplishments since my last post, finishing and compiling via Scrivener, two short stories and publishing them on Amazon KDP for Kindle. (Two or three copies of

English: Latest Kindle (2011) showing Esperanto characters. Esperanto: Lasta Kindle montranta Esperanto-literojn (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

them have even sold already!) And although I’m thrilled that I’ve come this far in learning the wonderful tool that is Scrivener, and that I now understand the process of how to get my finished writing projects on to Amazon.com, I’ll save my ramblings and espousals of glee for another post. There will be a time for that, but right now it’s difficult to get too enthused about my offerings.

Those two short stories, “Hobo Willie” and “Pinewood Farm”, were especially fun to write. Of course, I’d love to sell millions of them, but I’m happy at this moment just knowing that they’re “out there” and available to anyone in the world.

For now, I’ll leave all of the wit and wisdom and other mundane thoughts posted here for another time. Right now, though, I’m in that “hug-your-kids-and-grandkids” state of mind, so I hope anyone reading this will think about doing just that.

And when doing so, please offer a prayer or two for the families who were caught up in something they didn’t deserve and for the loved ones taken from them. God bless those little ones who didn’t deserve it!…CortlandWriter

 

It happens every spring…

It happens every spring, right about this time—first week of April—when winter’s harshness has moved on out, despite a chill in the mornings and evenings. An awakening of sorts kind of sets in, inspiring me to scurry down to the basement and haul up the chairs for the deck. And it isn’t long at all before I’ve settled into one, in the

 

Fox’s Cross Bottom – geograph.org.uk – 340095 (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

wonderful sunshine, portable radio tuned to one of the White Sox’ first games of the new season. And for the first time since last fall, I’ve traded long pants for my standard-issue shorts. One look at my suddenly exposed lily white legs, I realize it’s time to start spending time in the sun once again, particularly since we skipped our usual February trip to Florida this year. For the first time, I realize just how “winterized” I’ve become!

 

During the course of the afternoon, I manage to put away in the garage the extra snow shovel that spends the winter in the corner on the deck. Though convenient for removing the heavy snow that accumulates on the deck—very often this winter—the plastic orange winter tool leans there now, resembling the “Maytag repairman,” alone and friendless in the warmth and brightness of a beautiful spring day.

But I’m hesitant to run the gas out of the snow thrower, a task I complete just prior to hauling the thing down to our son’s storage shed until next November, because as soon as I do, I’m sure one last freak snowstorm is going to nail us when we aren’t looking! (Probably not, but I’ll just wait another day or so just to be sure…)

 

And speaking of motorized equipment, our old John Deere mower has been in and back to the lawnmower shop for its annual “checkup,” something that has kept the thing working wonderfully for many years. Each spring, I keep my fingers crossed that it will perform as well as it did the previous year. Unless I run over some unseen item or fail to keep it clean after each use, there’s no reason why the thing won’t get me through another mowing season. All the same, I worry about such things.

 

Now that the switch from winter to spring/summer mode has all but been completed, I relax once more in my chair on the deck and survey the back lot. A weedy row that serves as a border between our yard and the farm field (corn or soybean) is a place where litter and other loose materials get caught and collected there. For the past few years, one of the first things I do is, with garbage bag in hand, pay the area a visit and do some picking up of all of the trash and other flotsam and jetsam that have been deposited there during the long winter

Spring cleaning – #3 (Photo credit: lastonein)

months. Already, the place looks better!

 

Now I’m ready to make a run to Menard’s to pick up a bag of the crabgrass preventer/fertilizer that I’ll spread sometime next week, since the ground is finally thawing out. Many people ask why I bother to fertilize since it only makes mowing more frequently a necessity, thus more work. And I don’t have a very good answer other than it’s because it happens every spring!

 

Now, back to that comfy chair on the deck and a tall glass of something cold…CortlandWriter

 

Parting ways with my fellow “travelers”…

Flemingsbergsskogen, April 2006. (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

April!

It’s finally here, and yet we’re still forced to put on warm hoodies and jackets and keep the furnace running just a bit more than we’d prefer. I keep telling myself that it’s only a matter of time before I can ditch the long pants and long-sleeve shirts and don the “summer togs”—shorts and tee shirt! Oh, for those wonderful mornings when I can sit on our deck, warmed by the rising sun, and enjoy that first cup of hot coffee and listen to the calm and peace of a new day beginning!

Reaching April also marks the end of my recent experience in taking an online course titled Scrivener for Mac. As I’ve written about in other posts, Scrivener is a wonderful program that provides writers of all walks of life various tools and means to generate their work. When the course began on Tuesday, February 19, I was quite unsure as to exactly where this would take me. I had made up my mind that I wanted to do everything I could to “master” Scrivener so I could put it to work for my many WIPs (works in progress) and to be comfortable in most of its powerful components.

And now that all of the lessons, tutorials, Live Class presentations by instructor Gwen Hernandez, and questions and comments from students have come to an end, I must say that there is a distinct feeling of emptiness hanging around. The emptiness is not about the material covered in the class, but rather in the void that now exists because the class has ended! Call me sentimental, or whatever, but I’ve thoroughly enjoyed these days and weeks since February 19!

My morning routine of downloading the day’s lesson and working through it, hot coffee steaming at the ready nearby, was something of which I’d grown very fond these past several weeks. Not only was it an ongoing process of putting the individual pieces  of Scrivener together to see how the whole of the program functions, but it was also a fun challenge to finally grasp a concept or how to do something I’d not known how to do previously.

We were led by Gwen Hernandez, author of Scrivener for Dummies (Wiley, 2012). Before I’d taken the class, I had purchased the book and found it very good in helping with many of the trickier and more complex features of Scrivener. The book became even more valuable as a reference during the progression of the class. I return to it often for various answers to questions that crop up as I work on my current novel.

During the run of the class, Gwen provided clear explanations and answers to our many questions and comments, always with a wonderful sense of humor and lightness that made things very comfortable from the onset. The same tone pervades the book as well. Anyone who is serious about learning and using Scrivener needs to own the book. Also,taking the class—for Mac or Windows—is a terrific idea.

Traveler’s Notebook (Photo credit: koalazymonkey)

Along the way, too, were many fellow “travelers” very much with the same questions and goals as I had. And though we really have never met, my fellow Scrivener friends and I seemed to develop a sort of camaraderie that seems to occur in groups which are focused on the same goals and outcomes, regardless of each others’ experience or published status. I believe that is a direct result of a caring and competent instructor. Even with some of the technological glitches that cropped up from time to time, I still had a worthwhile time of it all. For a month or so, we were all on equal footing, wending our way through the world that is Scrivener.

Whenever I fire up Scrivener to get to work on my writing project, I will often wonder what my fellow travelers are up to and how their own various writing projects are proceeding. I will look for their names along the way in blog posts or book lists of recently published items and wonder if they will ever do the same themselves.

Now that the protective shell of our Scrivener class is closing, it’s time for us to stretch and flap our wings and fly. I know I can do so now, confident that Gwen and my fellow travelers have helped me to do so. And all these weeks later, since the course commenced, I know that my writing will be much better and headed in the right direction, with Scrivener helping me get there! I shall miss all my fellow “travelers” just the same...CortlandWriter

A Wonderful Scrivener Class & Other Musings…

Scrivener – bokprosjekt (Photo credit: Leif (Bryne))

I feel as though I’m in unfamiliar waters as I begin writing this for my long-neglected blog since the last I posted was about my adventures of clearing the snow back in early March.

I have had every intention to get caught up, but for some reason, I’ve been devoting most of my time to learning the Scrivener program. The process has been challenging, true, but I have gained so much since it all began back on Tuesday, February 19. And with today’s lesson (#22), the  class “officially” closes. However, until April 2, the course forum for questions and answers will remain open. I am sure there will be lots of continued back-and-forth during these next few weeks, as the daily input from various folks working through the course has been very good.

Gwen Hernandez, the instructor, and also the author of the very helpful Scrivener for Dummies, has provided us all with the very basics of how to get a project off the ground and how to employ important “tools” for each. (e.g.-Keywords, Labels, Meta-Data, Snapshots, Notes, Synopsis, Templates, Compiling, etc.) And I am not alone in wishing that the class didn’t have to draw to a close just yet. Others who have written in to Gwen have posed the question as to the possibility of an “Advanced” class somewhere down the road.

And though Gwen is a very busy lady, I think we’re all keeping our fingers crossed that she might consent to putting together another course that would build upon this first one—sort of a “specialized” one that would help us all “cement” (the word of a fellow student) all of the skills covered in class one—to allow us to increase our Scrivener proficiency all the more. We shall see what might come of all this, but regardless, the Scrivener for Mac class has been a winner.

***

On another topic, cold and snowy weather simply refuses to bid adieu. A year ago today, we were walking around in shorts and t-shirts in 80-degree weather (or somewhere in the vicinity!), and right now where I write this from Holly, Michigan, it’s 23° (feels like 9°) with on-and-off snow showers all day long. Let’s face it, we here in the Midwest became a bit spoiled last year when the snow and sleet and freezing rain avoided us and the temperatures were more than moderate.

We paid a price for it during the summer, though, with record drought and seasonal crops that didn’t materialize. So I’m willing to put up with this more “typical” winter weather pattern for as long as it takes in hopes that things will be more normal in the spring and summer. I have to admit, with cherry blossoms popping out about this time last year, things just weren’t “right.” Maybe the cycle has come back around to normal. Let’s hope so.

***

I made the trip to Holly yesterday from home in Illinois–in fog, snow/rain the whole way–to spend a day with my daughter and son-in-law and their two foster children. I look at the two of them, a boy (3) and the little girl (8 months), and I try to picture what will happen to them both down the road. The situations from where they come are not pretty pictures by any account, and I fail to understand the legal opinions in handling these children. All I know is that as long as they are under this roof, they are getting the love, attention, care, hugs, food, nutrition, shelter, warmth, and direction they so deserve. In a fair world we could wish for them to just become an “official” part of this family. But, unfortunately, that’s not how it works in the world of Foster Parenting. Even so, I’m very proud of my daughter and son-in-law.…CortlandWriter

Conquering the driveway…

In my last post, I wrote about the beauty of the snowstorm, the white silence, and romantic notions of all that can be accomplished inside—in the warmth of our various nooks and crannies. I even waxed nostalgic just a little when I recalled attentively listening to the list of school closings being broadcast in the early morning the day of the storm, remembering how I’d do the very same thing growing up as a student and later as a teacher for 35 years.

In the meantime, I failed to write about the reality that comes right along with all the other images of crackling fires in the fireplace, reading of good books, working on the novel while listening to some pleasant mood-enhancing classical music on iTunes, etc. And that reality is that all that snow has to be removed—sooner or later—and, since I don’t have a maintenance service, the removal duty falls on me! As was the case with Tuesday’s steady and continuous snowfall accumulating through the afternoon and evening, I knew our trusty John Deere snow thrower would be called to action more than once. And so it came to pass.

“The Conqueror”-after the “final” clearing

Donning my Carhartts and boots, I went out into it in the late morning and soon discovered that there was much more of the white stuff plugging my driveway—end-to-end—than I’d realized. And while the initial downfall had tapered off, it was still managing to add to the accumulation.

The John Deere sprang to life on the very first pull, and I proceeded to do battle with the wet, heavy snow that was probably three-to-four inches deep. Though it was a slow process, due to the constant clogging of the chute, I had the majority of the driveway and front sidewalk pretty well cleared within thirty minutes, leaving the worst until last: The end of the driveway!

I’m not talking about the “end” closest to the garage. Rather, I’m talking about the entrance “end”…the one that the town snowplows seal shut in their efforts to clear the streets of the white stuff! This is always the most critical part, because left piled where it is, the snow and ice “barrier” will harden as temperatures drop, making the process of opening the end of the driveway virtually impossible with the meager tools and equipment at hand.

I’ve extolled the glorious virtues of my old John Deere, but even it has its limits! Fortunately, I managed to push and pull, coaxing the bright green and yellow machine to eat up and throw out and away the thick, wet slushy stuff before the second band of the snowstorm was to settle in later in the day. For the moment, I had an open driveway and a chance to quit for the rest of the day. If the wife was to make it home from work later on, she’d at least be able to get into the driveway and garage.

Meanwhile, as the day wore on, what followed was exactly what had been predicted. The second band of the storm hit hard, with increased winds and lower temperatures. Carolyn did, in fact, get home from her place of employment (an hour away!) and into the garage without any issues. The garage door remained shut over night, and I knew that I’d have to go out the next day and do everything all over again. As it turned out, one would never have believed that I had made any kind of effort the day before. There was well over five inches of newly deposited white stuff out there, and that nasty entrance was once more piled full of snow, slush, and whatever else the town snowplow driver could manage to leave there!

The storm was over, having moved east, and now winter in northern Illinois was an endless white blanket. My thoughts moved back toward those more pleasant notions of reading books, working on the novel, writing blog posts, etc., etc., as the work of clearing the driveway was finished—at least for a while and until the next snowplow driver provides me with another grueling challenge…CortlandWriter

Old habits die hard…

English: White MacBook laptop (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

Greetings from the rural lands of northern Illinois! We’re getting that big snow that the weather people and everyone else have been talking about for the past few days, and—for once—they weren’t wrong. Safe and dry here in my work room, warmed by the glow of my MacBook screen and keyboard and a tall hot mug of strong coffee nearby, I look out on a world of white. As I tend to do at times such as these, I harken back to Jack London’s classic phrase, The white silence, and watch it come down fast and furious and beautiful.

 Funny thing, though, earlier, as the wife was hurriedly getting ready to head off to her job an hour’s drive away—not long after this whole storm was getting cranked up—I was making the bed (one of my grueling daily chores!) and had the radio tuned in to the news and listening to the announcer read off a list of school closings. It quickly jolted me back to all those winter mornings as a kid, and later as a teacher, when there was a storm impending or already raging, and I’d snap wide awake, hoping that my school would be included on the list. Sometimes, when the weather gods were smiling on me, my school would, indeed, be included. More often than not, though, the “storm of the century” that was supposed to hit us somehow moved off in another direction, missing us altogether, or just amounting to something less than original forecasts predicted.

 For whatever reasons, I’ve always loved snowstorms, especially when I have nowhere to go or nothing that I absolutely have to get done. And even though it’s ridiculous, when the predicted storm fails to materialize, for whatever reason, I find myself actually getting ticked-off at the professional weather “experts” who always get us excited and expectant for the thing!

 I’ve always considered snow days to be those perfect occasions to get caught up on overdue tasks (besides the common routines around the house) such as getting lost in a book or pounding out those thousand words to move the limping novel along just a bit more. These are perfect days for doing all of those little things that we’re always putting aside “until later” and never really having much eagerness to actually get to them. However, cleaning out that desk drawer now doesn’t seem like such a waste of time. Getting the books straightened on the bookshelves also seems to get accomplished. Somehow, the little things that get done feel like major things at the end of the day.

Jack London at Work (Photo credit: SP8254)

 And when the storm eventually peters out and stops altogether, there’s a good feeling that some important “stuff” got done inside, out of the snow and the beauty of the “white silence.” These days don’t come along too often anymore, but when they do, those old habits seem to die hard. What better time to get back to reading that book, or working on the novel, or—most definitely—enjoying another cup of that strong, hot coffee?…MLA

Learning Scrivener: It’s all good!

Scrivener 2.0 (Photo credit: mortsan)

For the past couple of weeks, I’ve been immersed in learning the basics and the various whistles and bells of Scrivener, that flexible writing program that has become quite popular “out there” among folks who write for a living, for a hobby, or for just the fun of it! And, I must say, I’m enjoying every moment of it so far.

Each weekday morning, I log-in to the class site and download the lesson/tutorial that awaits and print out a hard copy. I then read and work through the ten pages or so and add the previously unknown skill to my base and then practice it within my current writing project—editing and revising my NaNoWriMo novel. I wasn’t too sure how that would all work, but I’ve learned how to import the Word document, split it in appropriate chapters or scenes, and add colorful icons and labels for easy reference. Of course, there’s much more that has made the writing and revising process so much easier. The cork board has become an important tool for helping me keep track of characters, plot elements, and what exactly is going on in a particular scene. And it’s all right there, easily manipulated and accessed!

I have always wanted to be a more organized writer, and Scrivener definitely allows for that. There is no more need to have an over abundance of files open and trying to work back and forth as one has to do in Word. In Scrivener there is a delightful Split Screen option that makes it so easy to look at one thing while working in another. And even though the text I’m working with was not created within Scrivener, it still is easy to change as needed.

I have even moved writing my blog posts into a Scrivener project. One more fantastic feature is the Composition Mode which allows me to shut out all other distractions. In this mode, it’s just a blank page where I can type my important words and thoughts, and a wonderful background scene of our lake cottage in winter so I’m always in the correct writing mood! The typewriter scrolling makes it so nice since I’m always in the center of the page. And while I crank out my blog posts, I can quickly look at the “floating” Target and the progress toward reaching the number of words I’ve set as the blog post’s “target.” Since I usually shoot for 500 words per post, I no longer have to guess or estimate just how many words I’ve written or need to add.

The class, Scrivener for Mac, is taught by Gwen Hernandez, who wrote the book Scrivener for Dummies. She has demonstrated great patience thus far in answering questions that we “students” invariably have. She is quite thorough and presents the concepts and functions of the program in a clear way. As I mentioned earlier, I’ve actually employed the majority of things taught these first couple of weeks, and I am eager to do the same with the remainder beginning tomorrow.

I would highly recommend this Scrivener program for anyone who is serious about creating fiction or non-fiction. It’s easy to get a copy of the program, and a free 30-day trial at that, by going to 

Scrivener (software) (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

http://www.literatureandlatte.com

The price is $45 for the Mac version and $40 for Windows. Thanks to my efforts in this year’s NaNoWriMo, I got it for half price. And I haven’t looked back!