Tech Cafe: Writers Tech Tips
Phil Rees
October 22, 2014
Introduction
Topics
- National Novel Writing Month
- Plotting vs Pantsing
- Distraction Free Editing
- Plotting Tools
- Gamification
Objectives
- decide whether you will be participating in NaNoWriMo this year
- identify yourself as a Plotter or a Pantser
- distinguish between a writing tool, a wordprocessor and a desktop publishing system
- identify a tool used for plotting
- identify a tool used for pantsing
- select a tool that matches your writing style and technical abilities
- describe a writing workflow
- give two examples of writing gamification
- create a plan for winning NaNoWriMo
NaNoWriMo
Wendy Beasley
Plotting and Pantsing
Plotting
- You know where you're going
- You know who you're dealing with
- You know the cast
- You know the location
- You know what happens
Pantsing
- You're flying by the seat of your pants
- Something will happen
- You don't know what
- You don't know who
- It's a ride
Exercise
About You
- Plotter or Pantser?
- Geek or Meek?
Distraction Free Writing
Dad!
- Every interuprion costs five minutues of focus.
- Two children.
- They interrupt me once every five minutes.
- Each.
Wordprecessors: All The Things
- Graphic Design
- Typography
- Illustration
- Data-mining
- Web Design
- Collaboration
Software Versions
- Can you send it to me in Version 6?
- It was fine on Windows!
- The text is all squiggles!
Use Plain Text
- It works everywhere
- You can't break it
- You can't make it look better
- You can focus on your writing
You Want To
- Write
- Edit
- Revise
- Get Published
- Self Publish
Lessons From The Past
- Wordpress
- WordPerfect
Distraction Free Editors
- Many Available
- Focus Writer
- Draft
Exercise
Writing Prompt: Ganges Mood Music
Think of a mood or emotion. Write a paragraph about a location you passed on the way to the library. Reflect your chosen mood in the language used in the description.
- mood | emotion
- location
- description
An Example
Grey wind rattles ropes against masts. Boardwalks shimmer, a thin film reflecting the sky. Beside the empty park the market hunches, tents drawn tight against the threat of rain. Weighed down. Battened down. Waiting to call it a day.
- Fortitude
Focus Writer
Features
- TXT, basic RTF, and basic ODT file support
- Timers and alarms
- Daily goals
- Fully customizable themes
- Typewriter sound effects (optional)
- Auto-save (optional)
- Live statistics (optional)
- Spell-checking (optional)
- Multi-document support
- Sessions
Download From
Good For
- Pantsing
Written By
My name is Graeme Gott, and I am an open source programmer as well as an avid Linux user since 2001. You might know me as The FocusWriter Guy, or perhaps The Whisker Menu Guy. I live with my wife, Jenn Gott, and our pampered cat. Like any good geek I love Doctor Who, the Discworld series, and ridiculous action movies.
Scrivener
The Corkboard
- Writer as detective
- Castle
- Usual Suspects
- Getting Organised
- Doing Research
- Getting Inspired
Exercise: World Making
- Genre.
- Two Locations.
- Four Characters.
Exercise: Character
- Name
- Age
- Background
- What they want
- What's stopping them getting it
- Notes
Scenes and Sequences
Knowing our characters and locations, we're going to start building a story.
- Scene | Some characters in a place at a time
- Sequence | A small collection of linked scenes
What Else Does It Do?
- keywords
- labels
- notes
- printing
- publishing
- e-publishing
Who Wrote It
I used to say that Literature & Latte is not a software company. I said this because I didn’t set out to run a software company; I was just a guy with lofty writerly ambitions who had just happened to develop a piece of software that helped me in my own writing processes (I know that makes me a geek, but that’s something I have to live with). - Keith Blount
Download
http://www.literatureandlatte.com/nanowrimo.php
- Special version for NaNoWriMo
- Extended Trial
- 50% Discount for Winners
- 20% Discount for Others
Editing
Self and Others
- You
- Friends and Family
- Other Writers
- Beta Readers
- Editorial Services
- Your Publisher
Draft
What It Does
- Distraction Free Editor
- Version Control
- Editorial Workflow
- Accept of Reject Suggestions
- Hemingway Mode
- Markdown
Who Wrote It
CEO of Highrise. Also founder of two YC companies. Engineer for President Obama’s re-election campaign. Makes the awesome writing software Draft. - Nathan Kontny
Exercise
- Split into groups
- One scene per group
- Write a scene in Draft
- Typist
- Characters
- Setting
- Interruptors
- Share the finished scene with me
- draftin.com
Bonus Content
Hemingway App
- free computerized critique
Gamification
- Badges
- Magic Spreadsheet
What's Next
It's Up To You
- Will you do it?
- Pick your tools.
- Launch Party!
- Writers' Nook.
- Write Ins.
- Pick Phil's Brains.
Tech Cafe: Writers Tech Tips
By Phil Rees
Tech Cafe: Writers Tech Tips
- 2,101