Best Writing App?

[rhett7660]

as a markdown fan myself, I've been using ByWord / TextWrangler and PanDOC for most of my creations lately. but this is post writing, turning into ebooks / books. For writing, ByWord and Scrivener are my current choices, especially now Scrivener has joined the iOS team.

I know lots of writers, and there is no one answer for this. Most simply use Word. I've used quite a few apps, from Scrivener, StoryMill, Word, WordPerfect, Byword, MacJournal and Evernote... mainly because I am a nerd. =) but in the end, you could write a book in Text Edit if you had to.

This pretty much sums up the entire thread. I don't know if there is such thing as a "best writing app" since what some may consider best is utter garbage and vise versa. I would try out all the writing apps you can find until you discover one that meets your needs.

I am just starting to scratch the surface of Scrivener and I am really digging it so far.

 

[Osty]

I've been impressed with Scrivener for iOS, though I do wish it worried less about formatting, and more about writing on a phone...

It's not that bad - you can easily set and forget. I've been using the same font/size combination for years in Scrivener and its iOS counterpart. Since I also use Ulysses, I've configured that to use the same settings too. I never think about formatting until it's time to typeset the book for publishing.

I don't know if there is such thing as a "best writing app"

Bingo! Well said, sir. Best advice is to try them all and see what works for you.

 

[Tajhad]

Well what about simple old Pages ? Comes with your Mac ( free); can make full screen; can create chapters or sections; can jump between Mac and iPad ( if you work that way). You can hyperlink a contents page to jump quickly to sections. It has been suggested here a number of times.

 

[Osty]

Well what about simple old Pages ? Comes with your Mac ( free); can make full screen; can create chapters or sections; can jump between Mac and iPad ( if you work that way). You can hyperlink a contents page to jump quickly to sections. It has been suggested here a number of times.

I like Pages and I'm currently using it to edit and beta-read another novelist's work. That said I wouldn't draft in it any more than I would draft in MS Word or any other word processor for that matter. They just aren't made for creating long-form documents with complex structures. Word processors encourage a very linear approach and make it very hard to break down a big project into its more manageable constituent parts.

 

[Osty]

I've written a review of OmniOutliner, asking if it plus Ulysses can match Scrivener's seamless Outlining/Writing experience. You might find it interesting if you're on the fence

https://chrisrosser.net/posts/2018/08/11/review-omnioutliner/