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NovelWriter 1.0 – A markdown-like editor for writing novels

novelwriter.io

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Re: NovelWriter 1.0 – A markdown-like editor for writing novels

#131

Post by vidarh »

lhenk wrote: post #129
michaericalribo wrote: post #91

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Just to add here, the question is not “is markdown (or tex or binary strings or...) better”, but “can the person who determines whether I get paid open the file?” The fiction publishing world is cutthroat competitive. Trying to use nonstandard tools / “breaking the mold” adds even more friction to success.

This can be accomplished by exporting to PDF

Unless you're already a big-name author you rarely get to choose. Docx will generally be an option, and if you're lucky a few other formats.

Re: NovelWriter 1.0 – A markdown-like editor for writing novels

#132

Post by [deleted] »

michaericalribo wrote: post #91
vikingcaffiene wrote: post #88

This has no word export option (unless I missed it) which makes it infeasible for a lot of writers. Like it or not, docx is the format a lot of folks in mainstream publishing expect. Context: My partner is a published author and I've pitched stuff like this at her on multiple occasions as an alternative to Scrivener. In addition to her laughing at my insistence that markdown is a superior way to write, she cites the…

Just to add here, the question is not “is markdown (or tex or binary strings or...) better”, but “can the person who determines whether I get paid open the file?” The fiction publishing world is cutthroat competitive. Trying to use nonstandard tools / “breaking the mold” adds even more friction to success.

[deleted]

Re: NovelWriter 1.0 – A markdown-like editor for writing novels

#133

Post by calebm »

Oh man, I'm definitely gonna try this. I recently did a good bit of research into how I could write a novel (or anything with footnotes) in plain text, and it was surprisingly difficult - so much so that I just decided to use Scrivener instead. But this looks promising!

Re: NovelWriter 1.0 – A markdown-like editor for writing novels

#134

Post by powersnail »

chank wrote: post #17

Outside of the more technically inclined; Does anyone who is a long-form (novel) writer actually use markdown? Outside of blogging, which it was invented for and makes total sense for syntax conversion of free formed text to html is there any real use for it? Obviously you don't have to use it if you don't want to, but it sort of feels odd to me that all these developers making writing/notes apps that neglect rich te…

Given how many published novelist write their first draft by hand, I'd argue rich text is not useful at all.

Manuscripts typically are just plain texts, at most some italics.

The organization, however, is very important.

Re: NovelWriter 1.0 – A markdown-like editor for writing novels

#135

Post by ASalazarMX »

lhenk wrote: post #129
michaericalribo wrote: post #91

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Just to add here, the question is not “is markdown (or tex or binary strings or...) better”, but “can the person who determines whether I get paid open the file?” The fiction publishing world is cutthroat competitive. Trying to use nonstandard tools / “breaking the mold” adds even more friction to success.

This can be accomplished by exporting to PDF

I guess their editor can just cut and paste to Word if he really wants to make corrections.

Re: NovelWriter 1.0 – A markdown-like editor for writing novels

#136

Post by falcolas »

edwinyzh wrote: post #112
vikingcaffiene wrote: post #88

This has no word export option (unless I missed it) which makes it infeasible for a lot of writers. Like it or not, docx is the format a lot of folks in mainstream publishing expect. Context: My partner is a published author and I've pitched stuff like this at her on multiple occasions as an alternative to Scrivener. In addition to her laughing at my insistence that markdown is a superior way to write, she cites the…

Yes, almost publishers accept Word documents only, and that's why I've built DocxManager ( https://docxmanager.com/ ) on top of Microsoft Word. ;) Basically, it's an outliner/corkboard/project manager for all kinds writers who uses Word.

Windows only. Bummer. Completely understandable, but bummer. A lot of tools can output .docx files.

Re: NovelWriter 1.0 – A markdown-like editor for writing novels

#137

Post by coliveira »

vikingcaffiene wrote: post #88

This has no word export option (unless I missed it) which makes it infeasible for a lot of writers. Like it or not, docx is the format a lot of folks in mainstream publishing expect. Context: My partner is a published author and I've pitched stuff like this at her on multiple occasions as an alternative to Scrivener. In addition to her laughing at my insistence that markdown is a superior way to write, she cites the…

She's correct. Only a programmer may entertain the idea that editing markdown is superior to any visual editor.

Re: NovelWriter 1.0 – A markdown-like editor for writing novels

#138

Post by falcolas »

ordinaryradical wrote: post #110
kadrian12 wrote: post #105

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I applaud the author for keeping everything text file based. In general, I think we should strive for non-proprietary, standard file formats. Isn't docx far too one-sided and controlled in that regard? I wonder if anyone has some info on the "state of affairs" for the "document format race".

None of this matters because the industry relies on docx (and it's a crusty, oldschool industry so good luck changing that). A minimum for a novel writing tool is that one can actually send the novel out in a format where your agent and editor will read it. Otherwise you're not getting that novel published.

If we're being fair, docx (or rather, tools that write docx files) offers a lot of tooling out of the box that is useful for proofreaders, editors, and typesetters. Revision history, suggestions, and non-printing comments are all incredibly useful.

Re: NovelWriter 1.0 – A markdown-like editor for writing novels

#139

Post by app4soft »

progx wrote: post #95
app4soft wrote: post #52

Earlier quoted context omitted.

> I'm using Papyrus Autor because... Proprietary?!

And? You know a better tool that does the work?

> You know a better tool that does the work?

Yep, KIT Scenarist.[0]

[0] https://github.com/dimkanovikov/KITScenarist

Re: NovelWriter 1.0 – A markdown-like editor for writing novels

#140

Post by powersnail »

jonnycomputer wrote: post #101
powersnail wrote: post #97

Earlier quoted context omitted.

pandoc is pretty handy. It's pretty much plain text anyway, whatever format is used.

but won't get you all the way there, unfortunately, since novel format is pretty specific.

What are some specific requirements? Aren't most formatting done by the publisher anyway?
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