writing and posting questions

[foreverinasmile]

I was playing around with my profile and there's a neat feature where you can plug in your user name(s) from other sites and it will easily provide the link right there on your profile. As I was filling that out, I noticed one for Fanfiction.net! I had to go look, and yep, the account that I set up there in 2001 (!!!) is still there, as well as some really, really old fic that I wrote back in my anime days. I realize that I'm showing my age a bit here, but this did get me thinking...

I am really, really tempted to start writing again. I read back through those stories from 17 (gasp!) years ago and I thought about taking them down, but I was really proud of those then, even though they feel cringe-worthy to me now. I decided to leave them there, but I'd love see how I've changed as a writer. Interesting experiment anyway.

Since it's been so long since I did this, I thought I'd ask the writers out there a couple of things. What program do you ultimately use? I used to just open Word and go from there, but I wonder if there are better options. I've been perusing AO3s FAQ on posting, and I think I can figure that out, but I wonder of there is a better program over another to cut and paste from? Is formatting from one to another tricky? I imagine that trial and error will take me far, but I'd love to get some thoughts from those who have been doing this for awhile. In the meantime, I'll use a notebook and a pen and see if there's anything to this.

Comments

[mosylu]

Yes, get back to writing if you feel the itch!

I use a few different programs for my fic. For short one-shots or few-shots, I use Google Docs because I can log in on my desktop, my phone, my tablet, my work computer . . . um, maybe I have too much technology in my life. But that's why I use it.

For multi-chapter fics with a lot of Plot happening, I currently use Scrivener, which is a paid program. About 40 dollars, maybe? I've used yWriter in the past, which is a free program. Both work about the same - each scene is its own file and you can move things around from chapter to chapter or into the garbage pretty easily. The downside is it's not quite as portable, altho you can have Scrivener on your phone or tablet if you're willing to shell out a few more $$ and you can run yWriter off a USB stick.

Happy writing :)

[foreverinasmile]

This is great, thanks! I thought Google Docs might be a good alternative, but I didn't know about those other two programs. I'll definitely look into them!!

[callioope]

Yes!!! Start writing again!! Join us!

Oooh, 2001 is also when I set up my FF.net account to post anime fanfic!! Guess that was just the thing back then, ha. When I first started writing fic again (cuz I went through a phase in college where I thought I'd "grow up" and be "cool" and only write original stuff), I thought about taking the old fic down, but I decided I like that they show how far I've come.

I use Google Docs for everything, for the same reasons mentioned above -- it allows me to work on my computer, my Chromebook, or my phone (although I do loathe typing on my phone, it is handy to have the ability to do if the muse strikes). (Having a Chromebook really limits my options for what programs I use tbh.)

I did use Google Docs for Whatever I Do, and man it got so cumbersome by the end. I ended up creating multiple documents which I'd keep open in separate tabs -- one for notes, one for posted chapters, one for current chapter in progress I think. I also made use of Headings and Show Outline so I could quickly jump around in the doc as needed. I would not recommend it for multichapter fics, but I don't really have a choice if I want to be able to write on my laptop. Google Docs is also great for beta reading, my beta and I use it and you can track changes and insert comments just as nicely (I think, actually, more nicely) as in Word. Oh, and you would know better if you were reading AO3's FAQ, but I thought they implemented a tool where you could upload directly from GDocs to AO3. Personally I just cut and paste from GDocs and reformat in their WYSIWYG editor. The important thing to note when copy/pasting are your paragraph settings in your doc -- if you add space after the paragraph vs. use a return between paragraphs, I think that can throw it off. You can Preview your work before posting (which I always do) to make sure it looks right. It also adds spaces after italic words which bothers me and I always fix that.

I used Scrivener for NaNoWriMo 2015 and I LOVED it. So organized. But I stopped using it bc I bought the Chromebook. No idea if it has good sharing/commenting abilities though if you wanted to share it with a beta.

Before Scrivener I used Microsoft Word for writing and OneNote for all my notes (for my original novel; needed a way to keep all my worldbuilding, character notes, etc, I thought of it as a makeshift wiki, I even inserted links, it took a lot of maintenance but I enjoy that kind of stuff).

Happy writing!! :)

[foreverinasmile]

This is so helpful, thank you! I think I'm definitely leaning towards getting Scrivener eventually, but I may see how serious I am about this before I spend money (although my birthday is coming up...hmmm, that's a thought!). I haven't used Google Docs too much, but I think it might be the place to start. I can't imagine that I'll be writing anything too complicated at first. I saw some prompts on Tumblr that looked interesting, so I may start there. I appreciate your advice for posting to AO3. I'll definitely remember to preview before posting!!

Now I'm kind of curious what anime you wrote for! I haven't thought about anime in years and years, and reading through that old fic of mine sure did bring some things back!

[callioope]

Glad to be helpful!

I had to go back and check, turns out it was only Card Captor Sakura although I thought there were more. I know I read a ton of Gundam Wing, probably some Magic Knight Rayearth, too. There might have been others but it was, oh, half a lifetime ago and I don't really remember. What about you?

[foreverinasmile]

Pretty sure that I have a Card Captor Sakura manga upstairs on the bookshelf! I only wrote for Detective Conan/Case Closed (which I had to check but is still on going after 20 years!), but my favorites were Ranma 1/2 and Rurouni Kenshin. I probably read more in those two fandoms than anything else.

[callioope]

OMG I knew I was forgetting one, I love Kenshin!!!! I mean I don't think I got past episode 30, if I even got that far (that was a lot of VHS to buy!) but I loved it so much. I never saw Ranma 1/2 but I remember it being super popular.