We have tested comic book software for the past six years. In our most recent round of testing, we compared eight programs, looking for software that provided the best combination of creative freedom, ease of use and drawing capabilities. My personal favorite tools for writing at present are all text editors: nvALT (nvALT - BrettTerpstra.com), Write for Mac (A Beautiful Note Taking & Markdown Writing App), and Write for iPhone (Write for iPhone - A Note Taking and Markdown Writing App on the App Store). Read on to find out how to write a novel using your Mac, iPad or iPhone (plus a splash of imagination too of course). How to write a book: Scrivener writing app.
Writing is a very personal practice, and as a result you have a million writing-focused apps to choose from. From distraction-free apps that take up your whole screen to feature-packed mainstays like Microsoft Word, we've put together a guide to help you choose the writing software that's right for you.
There was a time not that long ago where your choices for writing apps boiled down to plain text or Microsoft Word. Things have changed a lot over the years. Nowadays, you have almost too many options. So, with that in mind, we've tested out a ton of writing software to pick our favorites depending on what your needs are. We're leaving out notes apps here, so favorites like Evernote and Simplenote won't make an appearance. Instead, we're concentrating on tools for long form writing.
Advertisement
For the Most Options and Compatibility: Microsoft Word
Advertisement
Let's face it: some people don't have an option other than Microsoft Word ($80). Whether you're writing a novel, putting together some short stories, or just drafting up a memo for the office, Microsoft Word is the most powerful tool around.
Since Microsoft Word is the industry standard, it's good to get your bearings with it. Word is the most popular because it has the most features. With Word, you can do just about anything you could imagine with your text. It features all types of formatting options, customizable toolbars, application-specific keyboard shortcuts, draft versions, collaboration, and more. It's the kitchen sink of word processors, and if that's what you need, Word's you best option. That said, LibreOffice's Writer is pretty good these days if you prefer free software.
Advertisement
If you're not a fan of the visual clutter in Microsoft Word but you're stuck with it, you can clean it up pretty easily. That'll at least make it a little less distracting to use.
For Novelists Who Hate Microsoft Word: Scrivener/Ulysses III
Advertisement
Microsoft Word might be the default app for writing a novel, but it's not necessarily the best. If you're looking for something created with long form writing in mind, both Scrivener and Ulysses III are excellent choices.
Scrivener ($45) is a Windows and Mac app that gives you a single place to dump all your ideas and writing. It includes tools to keep notes, collect research, outline, and organize your writing. With all that, you can navigate to different sections of your text, jump around to different parts of research, and find whatever you're looking for with powerful search options. Basically, Scrivener is like Evernote for longform writing, and if you're looking for a way to organize and write in the same place, it's an excellent option. Scrivener also integrated with Simplenote if you want to take your writing on the go.
Advertisement
Ulysses III ($44.99) for Mac takes a similar approach to Scrivener, but simplifies things a little bit. It uses plain text or Markdown for writing, but also includes statistics, notes, exporting, organization, and more. The Markdown support means you can use it for regular old blogging just as easily as for novel writing. Ulysses III fits somewhere between a minimalist writing tool and Scrivener. It's feature packed, but offers a ton of options for hiding those features away too. If you want to take your writing on the go, Ulysses III integrates with Daedalus Touch on iOS.
Both Ulysses and Scrivener have demo versions, so check them both out and see which works best for you.
Advertisement
For Distraction-Free Writing: FocusWriter
Advertisement
There's no shortage of distraction-free writing tools out there, and most of them are pretty similar. After all, the main goal of a distraction-free writing app is provide a blank canvas to write on in a nice, full-screen view—and nothing else. That said, we like FocusWriter because it's free, works across Windows, Mac, and Linux, and includes a few optional features if you're looking for something more than a blank page.
With FocusWriter you can write text on a page and save it as a TXT file. On top of that, FocusWriter also includes timers, alarms, goal setting, themes, typewriter sound effects, statistics, and spell checking. Still, its main goal is to keep things simple and FocusWriter accomplishes that goal. If you're looking for just a place to write, regardless of what operating system you're on, FocusWriter is an excellent choice
Advertisement
For Screenplays: Final Draft/Fade In/Trelby
Advertisement
Final Draft is the industry standard for writing screenplays on both Windows and Mac. At $250, it's a tough sell, but it has everything you'll need. It includes a massive notes section for keeping track of characters, an index card system for summaries, a special scene view so you can see a script at a glance, and more. Of course, it also has templates for different screenplay types, a formatting assistant that helps you get used to screenwriting formats, and a revisions system for when you're ready to go to production. $250 is a lot of money, but Final Draft has a trial version to check out to make sure it'll work for you.
That said, you don't have to use Final Draft if you don't want to. Fade In is cross-platform (Windows, Mac, and Linux) script writing software with features that rival Final Draft for just $50. Like Final Draft, it comes with organization tools, revision tools, a ton of autocomplete tools, and a variety of formatting options. Fade In doesn't have all the extra bells and whistles that Final Draft does, but if writing is all you care about, Fade In has what you need.
Advertisement
All that said, if you just want to dip your toe into screenwriting, Trelby is a free alternative for Windows, Mac, and Linux, that has enough features to at least get you started. Just don't expect more than a text editor with screenwriting formating built into it.
For Editing: Hemingway/Marked 2/Phraseology
Advertisement
Editing is often the hardest part of writing, but you won't find a ton of tools specifically made for dreaded task. That said, you have a few great options for apps that help put a spotlight on your mistakes, spot repeating words, and help you clean up your writing a bit.
Hemingway is a web app that highlights problems in your writing. Once you paste your text into it, Hemingway highlights hard to read sentences, adverbs, complex phrases, and passive voice. What you decide to do with that information is up to you, but it's a great tool for editing it you're the type to use too many adverbs or drop into passive voice.
Advertisement
On the Mac, we like Marked 2. Technically, Marked 2 is just a Markdown previewer, but it includes a ton of tools for writers. You'll get word counts and a ton of advanced document statistics, but its best feature is 'Visualize Word Repetition.' This mode highlights words that you repeat throughout the document, which is helpful if you're the type to repeat phrases a lot.
For a similar experience to Hemingway on your iPad, we like Phraseology. It's a fantastic tool that includes syntax highlighting, statistics tools, readability scores, and root word breakdowns. Basically, it gives you every piece of data about your writing you could want so you can pinpoint how to fix it up.
Advertisement
For Journaling: Day One/RedNotebook
Advertisement
You can use any text editor you want as a journal, but having a special app just for this kind of writing makes it a little more fun.
If you'd prefer an open source (and Windows/Linux) option for journaling, RedNotebook is your best bet. It's a pretty simple app that lets you quickly get to writing a journal entry and moving on. Once you get going, you can easily search through old journals, find specific dates, and do just about everything else you'd expect to do in a journal.
Advertisement
Without a doubt, Day One is the best journaling app for iOS and Mac. On top of providing a clean place to write your thoughts, it also includes syncing, photo imports, a passcode lock, a public publish option, reminders, Markdown support, and more. It also pulls in a lot of information automatically, so you can add weather, location information, and even your daily exercise. Day One is incredibly organized and easy to browse through, so if you're digging through old notes you can find what you're looking for.
Once you get going, you should see all kinds of handy benefits from journaling, regardless of which app you choose.
Advertisement
For Writing on the iPad: Editorial
Advertisement
We liked Editorial when it was first released, and it's still the most powerful writing program on the iPad. The reason is pretty simple: Editorial lets you make it as simple or as complicated as you want it.
As a straightforward writing program, editorial checks all the boxes you'd expect. It supports Markdown, plain text, offers outlines, word counts, Dropbox versioning, and all the other stuff you'd expect from a text editor. Where Editorial gets interesting is its workflows. Here, you can create Automator-esque custom actions that do everything from send a block of text to Evernote to sending an email. It's complicated, but once you find a few workflows that work for you, you'll be able to use Editorial for writing in all kinds of contexts. We can't begin to go into the depth needed to get into Editorial's systems, but MacStories has a fantastic starter guide that should answer any questions.
Advertisement
You have hundreds of writing apps on the iPad (and iPhone) to choose from and each has their own strengths. Which one works best for you likely depends on what you're looking for, but this chart should help you pick the right one.
For Writing on an Android Tablet: Write
Advertisement
Writing on your Android tablet doesn't offer nearly the (over) abundance of app choices as on an iPad, but Write checks off most of the boxes for anyone looking for a simple writing app.
At its core, Write is a full screen writing app that gives you a place to dump your ideas and just write in plain text. If you want more, it also has Markdown support, a statistics menu, automatic saving, a file management system, and supports backup to pretty much every cloud service out there. It's simple, but it gets the job done and clears a space for you to just write.
Advertisement
Of course, if you're looking for more power, TextMaker, Google Docs, and QuickOffice are excellent choices that work more like a word processor than just a writing tool.
As we mentioned at the start of this post, thousands of options for writing software exist. Each of those has a specific set of features that's going to appeal to some people more than others. So, it's usually a good idea to treat your writing software like you would any productivity tool: settle on an app that works for you and stick with it.
Advertisement
Photo by Yaviki.
When tackling writing projects, you need the best writing environment possible to get the job done.
Fortunately for Mac users, there’s no shortage of writing tools available for long and short form writing projects. A good writing environment provides cross-platform access, collaboration features, and multi-format support. In addition, you may want to use a program that can assist you with all stages of the writing process, from brainstorming, drafting, to final edit.
Scrivener ($45)
For long form writing projects, such as manuals, research papers, and books, I prefer to work in Literature and Latte’s Scrivener ($45). It provides a format for managing research, outlining content, and drafting and exporting documents. This is a writing environment that makes it relatively easy to setup and manage chapters and sections of a writing project, allowing you to skip around and work on various sections of your document. It also provides an excellent distraction-free writing Four Distraction-Free Writing Environments For Mac Compared [Video]Four Distraction-Free Writing Environments For Mac Compared [Video]If you want to increase your writing productivity on your Mac, one sure fire way to do so is to use full-screen mode in a distraction-free text editor program.Read MoreenvironmentFour Distraction-Free Writing Environments For Mac Compared [Video]Four Distraction-Free Writing Environments For Mac Compared [Video]If you want to increase your writing productivity on your Mac, one sure fire way to do so is to use full-screen mode in a distraction-free text editor program.Read More.
Scrivener allows you to categorise your writing, notes, webpages and media files under a system of folders and subfolders. All content is kept packaged in a project file where it can be saved on your Mac or a cloud service, such as Dropbox and Google Docs. There’s no iOS version of Scrivener, but it does include features for exporting and syncing drafts to iOS word pressing apps.
Scrivener supports exporting documents to all major platforms, including Microsoft Word, and even the Kindle ebook format. Scrivener however is not a desktop publishing program like Word and Pages. It’s a popular application for writing writing novels, as well as plays and scripts, and non-fiction projects. We have previously published an article about advanced techniques for using ScrivenerPower Up Your Writing Workflow: Make Better Use Of ScrivenerPower Up Your Writing Workflow: Make Better Use Of ScrivenerWhen it comes to getting a research paper, ebook or novel completed, Scrivener can help you stay organized and motivated — that is, if you know how to use some of its best features.Read More, in addition to our free PDF beginner’s manual, Your Guide to ScrivenerYour Guide To ScrivenerYour Guide To ScrivenerRead More.
Pages ($20, free with new Macs)
Apple’s classic iWork Pages ($19.99) program is billed as both a word processor and desktop publishing layout software. It can easily handle simple reports, resumés, newsletters, fliers, and even entire book manuscripts.
Pages is not cluttered with lots of buttons in the toolbar, but that doesn’t mean it’s not packed with features. The latest current version (5.5) displays tools according to a selected element in a document. For instance, when text is selected, the font, body, and alignment tools are appear in the sidebar. Likewise, when an image element is selected, the image adjustment, and object arrangement tools appear. Though this approach means the tool sidebar is no longer floating off to the side as in previous versions of the application, it does reduce redundant mouse clicks in order to get the appropriate tools.
Advance features include 2D and 3D chart templates, tools for creating footnotes and endnotes, and tracking changes made to a document. Pages automatically saves previous versions of a document which allows users to revert back to or copy from previous drafts. Pages documents can be exported to PDF, Word, and even ePub for ebook publication. The online and iOS versions of Pages (previous version reviewed hereiOS Pages Turns Your iPad Into a Desktop Publishing DeviceiOS Pages Turns Your iPad Into a Desktop Publishing DeviceIf you are using your iPad like a laptop computer or notebook, Apple's iOS version of its word processor, Pages ($9.99), is exclusively designed for the iPad, iPhone, and iPod touch. In its most recent...Read More) mirror the features of the desktop client, providing nearly seamless workflow and collaboration between writing environments.
Unfortunately there are a group of older users who are still waiting for Apple to add features they removed from previous versions of Pages, and the App Store reviews very much reflect this. Regardless, Pages is still simple and user-friendly word processor for newcomers.
Microsoft Word ($140 as part of Office for Mac 2011)
For good or bad, Microsoft Word 2011 ($139.99 for the Home Edition) is still the industry standard for writing platforms. The Word version for Mac probably has the fullest range of feature and tools for both writing and desktop publishing, though compared to Pages, Word may appear cluttered and somewhat challenging to use.
Like it or not, Word is still widely used on both the Mac and PC. It includes a wide range of document templates — from newsletters and brochures, to reports and resumé layouts. The application’s toolbar includes text formatting tools, dozens of data and table formats, and SmartArt graphical templates for inserting various types of 3D charts that pull data from PowerPoint, Excel spreadsheets and Outlook mail. Word also supports Pages documents, if you need or want to work in both environments.
As with Pages, the online and the recently released free iOS versions of Word make it a cross-platform program for writing collaboration and writing in different environments. Unlike with Pages, Microsoft’s online version of Word and its other office suite of applications require a monthly subscription, whereas the iWork suite is available to anyone with an iCloud account.
LibreOffice (free)
If you’re looking for a free writing environment that includes many of the features found in Pages and Word, LibreOffice is worth a download. While its user interface is somewhat dated, and is not as attractive as Pages, it is a cross-platform application that includes tools for formatting text, spell checking, inserting images and tables, and creating footnotes. Writer documents can also be exported to PDF and HTML, and it supports Office and Lotus 123 formats.
However, Writer does not track changes made to a document, and it doesn’t have a corresponding online or iOS client. The program also doesn’t include templates for various types of documents, but a basic set of templates can be downloaded and installed. It might not be the most robust writing environment, but it gets the job done.
Note: You might be scratching your head when considering the differences between LibreOffice and OpenOffice, but generally speaking LibreOffice is making some of the best progress in terms of innovation and code optimization – but you be the judge!
Ulysses ($45)
Ulysses ($45)
Soulmen’s Ulysses III is advertised as “a smooth writing experience” – and that certainly could be the case for many users. Ulysses is a clutter-free writing environment that also provides tools for managing multiple writing projects. It’s not a desktop publication program, but it includes support for MarkdownLearning Markdown: Write For The Web, FasterLearning Markdown: Write For The Web, FasterMarkdown is the best way to write in plain text but still create complex documents. Unlike HTML or LaTex, for example, Markdown is simple to learn.Read More. An iOS version of Ulysses will be released soon, and documents can also be synced with the iOS app, Daedalus Touch.
Best Book Writing App
Ulysses provides a distraction-free writing platformFour Distraction-Free Writing Environments For Mac Compared [Video]Four Distraction-Free Writing Environments For Mac Compared [Video]If you want to increase your writing productivity on your Mac, one sure fire way to do so is to use full-screen mode in a distraction-free text editor program.Read More that includes a typewriter scrolling feature in which the current line of typing stays positioned at the selected top, middle, or bottom of the document. Its two left panels can be hidden, and the software supports full screen mode typing. With Ulysses, documents are not saved in the Finder, but instead they are kept together in a library, organized by writing projects and individual “sheets.” The Ulysses library can be saved to iCloud, Dropbox, or anywhere in your Mac Finder.
For text and header formatting, Ulysses includes a handy sidebar of Markdown attributes for applying to selected text. It also keeps track of writing related stats, including character and word count, and supports export to PDF, Word, RTF, TXT, and ePub.
Write ($10)
The note-taking and Markdown Mac client, Write ($9.99), is similar to Ulysses, but it allows for managing and syncing documents and folders in multiple locations, including iCloud, Dropbox, and Google Drive. Documents and notes can also be tagged and starred, and there’s support for Markdown.
Write includes typewriter mode, as well an option for fullscreen distraction-free writing. Notes or documents can be share shared directly from Write to email, AirDrop, Messages, Twitter and Facebook, and there is support for HTML preview. And as you might expect, there’s also an iOS version of WriteWrite App: A Beautiful iOS Text Editor With Markdown Support & Dozens of ActionsWrite App: A Beautiful iOS Text Editor With Markdown Support & Dozens of ActionsWriting apps for the iPad and iPhone are plentiful. We're lucky enough to live in a time when developers are coming up with new ways to edit text using unique features in new apps. This...Read More that can either sync through iCloud or Dropbox. Check out a 7-day trial version of Write to see if it fits your needs.
MarsEdit ($40)
If you’re managing various blogs, the long established blogging editor MarsEdit ($39.99) provides support for WordPress, Blogger, Tumblr, TypePad, Movable Type, and several other programs. I use MarsEdit for drafting most of my articles for this very website, mainly because its features are faster for embedding URL links, images, and header formats.
MarsEdit provides options for typing in WYSIWYG mode, as well as HTML and Markdown editorsWrite, Edit & Manage Blog Posts Faster With MarsEdit for OS XWrite, Edit & Manage Blog Posts Faster With MarsEdit for OS XWhile WordPress is the quintessential blogging service, writing blogs directly in its text editor is not always user friendly. That's why I use MarsEdit for composing and uploading all of my blog posts.Read More. You can manage and edit uploaded blog posts from within MarsEdit, and if for some reason the application crashes, your current draft is automatically saved.
Plenty of Options
There’s hardly no shortage of writing environments for the Mac. Others include the blogging apps, Drafts, and Blogo 2 (reviewed hereBlogo 2 Is The Mac Blogging App You've Been Looking ForBlogo 2 Is The Mac Blogging App You've Been Looking ForOne thing I've noticed Windows switchers complain about about is a lack of a solid OS X blogging client. That's about to change – Blogo 2 is out, and it's very, very good.Read More), my favorite journal writing app, Day OneKeep a Digital Diary with Day One for Mac OS X and iOSKeep a Digital Diary with Day One for Mac OS X and iOSEveryone has a story to tell. It's not always a story in need of an audience, sometimes a story just needs to be told. You may want to continue the journal you started when you...Read More, and iBooks Author for ePub publicationsHow To Write Your First Book In iBooks AuthorHow To Write Your First Book In iBooks AuthorApple recently introduced iBooks Author in a live presentation at the Guggenheim in New York. The software is aimed at textbook writers and publishers, but it can just as well be used for producing cookbooks,...Read More. Each of these applications offer unique features for particular writing and collaboration needs.
Let us know what you think of these writing platforms and which ones you prefer.
Explore more about: OS X Yosemite, Writing Tips.
Best Writing Software For Mac
- One note on Pages that your article didn't capture. It is able to publish in epub format.
- Thanks for the article. I'm working on my first book using Word for now, but I really need to find a better way to manage it, because it is structured as an chronological memoir with short stories.Take a look at the idea in the line below, any tips on what programs might work for this type of project?
- Good article, we need help in figuring the differences in the writing apps.There's so many writing applicaitions, it's hard to pick one to use, and leads to an overwhelming number of mostly un-used writing apps on the computer. One app I have liked is Jers novel writer, but it's put together by one programmer, and there's been no updates in years, so I am not sure i even want to keep using it if it never gets updated. It helps if a program has a team behind it. I've liked using Pages lately, it's more nimble than I thought it'd be.
- Fair enough, thank you!
- Could somebody please explain to me why do I need a corresponding online client for LibreOffice? The author said it is a problem because there is none but why do I need one at all? LibreOffice is for free so I can install it wherever I want, how many times I want. Also, I believe there is a track changes function in LibreOffice.Here you can find templates for LibreOffice - http://templates.libreoffice.org/
- Petar, thanks for your feedback. I included the point about the online support because some people use it for writing collaboration purposes (also editing and reader feedback.) I admit, I haven't used the application beyond reviewing it, but thought it would be a useful free option and with a few other benefits.
- I'm surprised Evernote is not included in the list. It has multi-platform support (Windows, Mac, Android, iOS and web) and has collaboration features like notes sharing and Work Chat (real time chat). The web, mobile and desktop versions have all the essential formatting options and also the ability to insert images (videos and sound also), tables, bullets and checkboxes. Most importantly, it has the ability to synchronize notes which makes them available instantly on any device of the user.
- Hmmm, I’ve never thought to use Evernote as a strict word processor for writing articles and manuscripts. I use Evernote for for collecting notes, outlines, articles, and minutes, but it feels a little too cluttered for writing entire articles or books. But definitely get your point. Thanks for your feedback.