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Scrivener Reviews & Product Details

Scrivener Overview

What is Scrivener?

Scrivener is an integrated writing, outlining and research app that is tailor made for long writing projects. Since its launch in 2007 it has become the go-to for writers of all types. The project outline makes it easy to get an overview of your work and flip between sections. You can also split the screen and refer to research alongside your writing and drag and drop to rearrange your work. Write in any order, in sections as large or small as you like, and let Scrivener stitch it all together before submitting or publishing. However you write or whatever you're writing, Scrivener contains everything you need to get writing and keep writing. Scrivener is available for Mac, Windows and iPhone.

Scrivener Details
Languages Supported
German, French, Spanish
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Product Description

Project Manager & Word Processor In One! Stop Organizing. Start Writing


Seller Details
HQ Location
Truro, United Kingdom
Twitter
@ScrivenerApp
55,013 Twitter followers
LinkedIn® Page
www.linkedin.com
1 employees on LinkedIn®

Julia P.
JP
Overview Provided by:
Director - Scrivener App; Global MBA Student - Manchester University

Recent Scrivener Reviews

Verified User
U
Verified UserSmall-Business (50 or fewer emp.)
5.0 out of 5
"My writing office in one place : Scrivener"
I usually handle multiple writing and organizational tasks, and what I value most about Scrivener is that it keeps my texts structured in a single ...
Paul T.
PT
Paul T.Small-Business (50 or fewer emp.)
5.0 out of 5
"A Fully Featured Tool That Allows You To Easily Manage Large Writing Projects"
As an ESL teacher, one of my tasks is to create lessons for my students. Scrivener plays a a big part in helping me to easily break may lesson proj...
CC
Chris C.Small-Business (50 or fewer emp.)
5.0 out of 5
"Scrivener is one of the best writing packages, it’s intuitive and thorough"
The spell checker is an 8negral feature of the package
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Scrivener Media

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Video Reviews

84 Scrivener Reviews

4.6 out of 5
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84 Scrivener Reviews
4.6 out of 5
84 Scrivener Reviews
4.6 out of 5

Scrivener Pros and Cons

How are these determined?Information
Pros and Cons are compiled from review feedback and grouped into themes to provide an easy-to-understand summary of user reviews.
Pros
Cons

Overall Review Sentiment for ScrivenerQuestion

Time to Implement
<1 day
>12 months
Return on Investment
<6 months
48+ months
Ease of Setup
0 (Difficult)
10 (Easy)
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Paul T.
PT
English Second Language Teacher
Small-Business(50 or fewer emp.)
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Verified Current User
Review source: Organic
Incentivized Review
(Original )Information
What do you like best about Scrivener?

As an ESL teacher, one of my tasks is to create lessons for my students. Scrivener plays a a big part in helping me to easily break may lesson projects down into smaller parts so that I can work off each section easily while still being able to look at the whole project where these parts are nested. This is really important when having to work on large projcts that cover a full sylabus of lessons. Review collected by and hosted on G2.com.

What do you dislike about Scrivener?

The learning curve can be a bit steep, which is due to the many features that Scrivener has. However, I only use the features that are important to my needs, which lowers the learning curve quite a bit. Review collected by and hosted on G2.com.

What problems is Scrivener solving and how is that benefiting you?

Scrivener's binder and folder feature lets me break down my lesson that I create for my students into smaller sections, so it's easier to handle. I can manage everything very easily and stay focused without getting overwhelmed. Review collected by and hosted on G2.com.

Verified User in Higher Education
UH
Small-Business(50 or fewer emp.)
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Validated Reviewer
Review source: G2 invite
Incentivized Review
What do you like best about Scrivener?

I usually handle multiple writing and organizational tasks, and what I value most about Scrivener is that it keeps my texts structured in a single tool, from the initial outline to the final content. It allows me to structure complex documents into manageable sections and add notes or references in the inspector without interfering with the main flow of the text. And because of its flexibility I can use the desktop version for more intensive tasks and the mobile app to make quick adjustments or take notes when I'm on the go. Review collected by and hosted on G2.com.

What do you dislike about Scrivener?

While it offers basic tools to catch errors, integrating a more advanced real-time proofreading system would be a big step forward for those looking to perfect texts within the same application. Review collected by and hosted on G2.com.

What problems is Scrivener solving and how is that benefiting you?

I use Scrivener for writing texts, presentations and training programs. With Scrivener, I can write without worrying about order, knowing that rearranging sections is as simple as dragging and dropping. Not only does it simplify the planning of complex writing projects, but it also allows me to present more polished and professional results in less time. Review collected by and hosted on G2.com.

Andra M.
AM
Content Marketing Manager
Small-Business(50 or fewer emp.)
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Review source: G2 invite
Incentivized Review
What do you like best about Scrivener?

There are many similar software out there but Scrivener is not only the most inexpensive but also the more robust and reliable. I've used it for many many years and plan to continue to do so. Review collected by and hosted on G2.com.

What do you dislike about Scrivener?

I really can't think of any cons. I know that I don't use all of the features it comes with (it's that robust!) but the features I do use are great and I could not do my work without Scrivener. Review collected by and hosted on G2.com.

What problems is Scrivener solving and how is that benefiting you?

Scrivener just makes it easy for me to organize my thoughts and gives me incredible flexibility. This is not a word doc or google doc where you just scroll and scroll and scroll hoping to find what you need. Review collected by and hosted on G2.com.

Elli C.
EC
Book Coach and Developmental Editor
Small-Business(50 or fewer emp.)
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Verified Current User
Review source: G2 invite
Incentivized Review
What do you like best about Scrivener?

Having all my novel writing material in one place is a very neat feature, something a regular word processor can only dream about offering. You have research folders and chapter folders, which you can separate into scenes. These you can move around, so if you ever need to move a scene from one chapter to another or move a chapter to a different location, you can do that easily with drag and drop. Novel organization is a huge plus with this software.

I also love the split-screen options. In the past, I've had to open two word documents to work on translations and resize the windows and move them to properly align for translation, but with Scrivener, I can easily split the screen and access any scene or chapter in one language while looking at the same scene or chapter in another language. Review collected by and hosted on G2.com.

What do you dislike about Scrivener?

The only thing I dislike is the fact that there's so much to learn to fully utilize the software's potential. This isn't really a bad thing! It does take a learning curve though, if you wish to go into the deeper, more involved functions of the program. Review collected by and hosted on G2.com.

What problems is Scrivener solving and how is that benefiting you?

Scrivener helps me organize my novels and keeps all my research and resources at my fingertips, all in one convenient place and easily organized. I can have character sheets, setting descriptions, anything really in my research folder, and with the split-screen option, I could easily have those up if I had to keep those in mind while writing.

And then, of course, Scrivener's split-screen option is also a wonderful tool for any and all translation work you're doing. I work in two languages, so this is super helpful. Review collected by and hosted on G2.com.

Verónica M.
VM
Editor
Small-Business(50 or fewer emp.)
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Validated Reviewer
Verified Current User
Review source: G2 Gives Campaign
Incentivized Review
What do you like best about Scrivener?

It is an integrated writing, outlining and research tool that is tailor-made for long writing projects and processes. Review collected by and hosted on G2.com.

What do you dislike about Scrivener?

If you already own a computer version, mobile versions should be free. Review collected by and hosted on G2.com.

What problems is Scrivener solving and how is that benefiting you?

For those writers that get easily distracted, scrivener creates an easy space for you to manage your process. Review collected by and hosted on G2.com.

Brian "Sully" S.
BS
Principal
Internet
Small-Business(50 or fewer emp.)
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Verified Current User
Review source: Organic
(Original )Information
What do you like best about Scrivener?

The product is very full-featured for writing projects. The corkboard view is particularly helpful for long-form. Review collected by and hosted on G2.com.

What do you dislike about Scrivener?

The chief downside of Scrivener is the people who make and support it. They were particularly petulant and uncooperative during a long, extensively delayed roll-out for their Windows 3.x version. It's left a sour taste in my mouth. While I still use the product, it's only because I haven't found a better alternative yet--and I'm actively looking. Review collected by and hosted on G2.com.

What problems is Scrivener solving and how is that benefiting you?

Scrivener is marketed mainly to novel writers, but it is also useful for other long-form writing projects. We use it for website content and page planning. Review collected by and hosted on G2.com.

Victoria L.
VL
Freelance Writer
Small-Business(50 or fewer emp.)
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Validated Reviewer
Review source: Organic
What do you like best about Scrivener?

Offers unique features like typewriter, ring-binder, and scrapbook. It's a good option for writers with a lot of notes or research that needs compiling. Review collected by and hosted on G2.com.

What do you dislike about Scrivener?

There's a learning curve to the software, and the program is prone to freezing up. Review collected by and hosted on G2.com.

What problems is Scrivener solving and how is that benefiting you?

Scrivener allows you the ability to organize complex projects that require a lot of documents. Review collected by and hosted on G2.com.

Martin O.
MO
Head of Marketing
Small-Business(50 or fewer emp.)
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Validated Reviewer
Verified Current User
Review source: G2 invite
Incentivized Review
What do you like best about Scrivener?

Depending on what type of book you plan on writing (fiction, non-fiction, ...) you get certain layout options that give you a guideline during the writing process. You can brainstorm ideas and attach them to the respective chapters and keep growing the ideas. Review collected by and hosted on G2.com.

What do you dislike about Scrivener?

It is more complex than you'd assume and it makes sense to read through the how-to-guide before starting a project. In the end it all makes sense, but a little overwhelming when first trying it. Review collected by and hosted on G2.com.

Recommendations to others considering Scrivener:

If you are on the market for extensive software for writing books and long documents, that helps you from an organizational standpoint, Scrivener might be right for you. Review collected by and hosted on G2.com.

What problems is Scrivener solving and how is that benefiting you?

Organizing the thoughts, ideas and materials you collect while writing books, e-books or even longer blog articles. It helps the workflow because you don't have to focus in the how, and you can focus on the what. Review collected by and hosted on G2.com.

Erin P.
EP
Co-Founder
Small-Business(50 or fewer emp.)
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Verified Current User
Review source: G2 invite
Incentivized Review
(Original )Information
What do you like best about Scrivener?

This software is so flexible and customizable! It is also easy to use once you get the basics down, and it can be adjusted to suit any work style. My favorite thing is how organized it allows me to be, and - with five projects going at one time, all in different stages - organization is a must! All of the information you type up is also EASILY compiled; whether you need a complete manuscript, just the comments, notes, or research, you can get all of it converted into various formats.

It also automatically backs up all of your work and even allows you to save your work in various stages, so if you need to reference an old version, it's not gone completely, but it also doesn't get in the way of the new.

I also love the compiling feature, which allows you to easily and quickly format your manuscript for publishing. Review collected by and hosted on G2.com.

What do you dislike about Scrivener?

Nothing comes to mind. Everything is great! Review collected by and hosted on G2.com.

Recommendations to others considering Scrivener:

It will absolutely meet your needs as a writer, whatever your style is. Review collected by and hosted on G2.com.

What problems is Scrivener solving and how is that benefiting you?

As a full-time writer and publisher, Scrivener is great for keeping works flexibile and having clear goals on what is left to be written or re-written. It is also great for story all of the notes needed for every script and novel so they are convenient to find, access, and use. It is also compatible with cloud storage, so I can open my projects from any Scrivener program, not just the one located on the main computer. Review collected by and hosted on G2.com.

Jack C.
JC
Production manager
Small-Business(50 or fewer emp.)
More Options
Validated Reviewer
Review source: Organic
What do you like best about Scrivener?

Scrivener is useful for organizing large complex documents like novels. I like the easy visualization that the index card-like system creates. It also makes outputting the final document into various formats easy and simple to replicate. Review collected by and hosted on G2.com.

What do you dislike about Scrivener?

It is a large and cumbersome application. While it is great that it has so much customization, it can be difficult to figure out and takes a pretty steep learning curve. Review collected by and hosted on G2.com.

What problems is Scrivener solving and how is that benefiting you?

Taking lots of smaller documents and combining them and organizing them, then outputting them as ebooks, pdfs, and Word documents. It's now vital to my workflow. Review collected by and hosted on G2.com.