Which tool you use it for writing your reviews

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bhuvanavignaesh
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Which tool you use it for writing your reviews

Post by bhuvanavignaesh »

I normally use Scrivener software for writing and it is very much organised for writers.
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Post by Leahaldrich »

This is a great question. I have always used Microsoft Wrod or Open Office to write anything. I haven't written any reviews yet. I would love suggestions for other software that is more useful for writing.
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Post by Richard Falken »

I use LibreOffice most of the time, at least for common documents, including engineering work and files that are going to be sent to the press.. I have been reading some LaTex documentation and I would like to try it out, but I don't have found the time for doing so yet.

I suspect LaTex is not what you would use for writting an online review...

It has been some time since I last wrote a review. If I were going to publish a review on my blog today, I would just write it straight in HTML using the Vim editor. The CMS I am using for my blog is very basic and requires some manual work.
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Post by Leahaldrich »

Wow, this is all a foreign language to me. I just read my first ebook.
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Post by TrishaAnn92 »

Hmm. i write my review in Word and then transfer paragraph by paragraph to pro writing aid, to help with the editing. Not always great, I am looking into better software but it works.
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Post by HalcyonFlower »

I've been keeping it basic and using Microsoft Word, mostly out of ignorance of other programs. Good to know they exist for future reviews :)
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Post by TrishaAnn92 »

They are out there just have to look! :)
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Post by moderntimes »

Everything I write is in MS-Word, period. It's the only commonly accepted format professionally, so any review or anything else which you intend to submit to a professional format site probably has to be in Word. This has become the defacto standard pretty much anywhere in the Western world. Asian nations may have other software they use, that I don't know.

Years back I used WordPerfect because at the time it was a better product, but time has passed, WP is no longer, and MS-Word is the standard of the industry. Lots of folks don't care for that but it's a fact of life.

When I bought my new laptop last year, I also bought the Microsoft (Mickeysoft?) "Student and Home" edition of Microsoft Office, which came with Word, PowerPoint, and a couple of other MS packages, the very latest version, Word 2013, and it cost me $104. This is about as cheap as you'll find the software legally available.

This new version of Word is amazingly powerful, has a zillion features which I'll never use. First thing I did was to turn OFF all auto-correct features, such as spell or grammar or whatever. The best spellcheck system is between the writer's ears.

After about a week I was charging along just fine, have had zero bugs and no problems whatsoever.

Remember, if you send your writing out professionally, MS-Word will probably be required, something which should be recognized as you transition from hobbyist to semi-pro writer.

I know that Scott tends to champion open source software, which is fine. But if you do use something other than MS-Word, you better be certain that your publisher will accept documents in that particular format. Otherwise you're wasting time learning a piece of software which is little used in the professional world.

Another thing -- If you submit a longer work, such as a novel, to your publisher, it will undergo several professional reviews and edits, and usually these recommended changes will be returned to you via the MS-Word feature called "Track Changes". This is an option you can switch on, which keeps an accurate account of all edits, and saves the older text so it can be restored.

Anyone who's going to be submitting stories or whatever to a publisher probably needs to be reasonably up to snuff with MS-Word, and a novelist also should learn how to use the "Track Changes" feature.

Just sayin'
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Post by j p gilbert »

Good old fashioned paper for notes. Then word from draft onwards.
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Post by zaynab_m »

MS Word
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Post by moderntimes »

Having worked in high tech industries for years, I became used to putting everything into the computer. My own handwriting is execrable and so I always use my nice HP laptop, a true Goldilocks of a PC, neither too large nor small, for everything.

As I'm working on a novel (now my 4th) I keep an "ideas" file and the the actual text file, both on the desktop and quickly accessible. I got totally away from handwritten notes or any sort of manuscript logs or journals years ago. Everything goes straight from brain to Word.

And yeah, I back up my files regularly, too.
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Itsme44880
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Post by Itsme44880 »

I just signed up and reading all the comments really does help, are any of the program's free other than Microsoft
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moderntimes
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Post by moderntimes »

Itsme, depends on what you're needing the software for. Like anything -- if you go to the hardware store to buy a hammer you'll find there are maybe 20 different types, each for a specific purpose.

If all you want is to type things for fun and print them out, and maybe share with friends, there are quite a few free software packages which do basic word processing.

If on the other hand you intend to write something which you will submit for actual use via a publisher or other fairly professional use, then you might need to spend $100+ and buy MS-Word.

It's all based on your needs.
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Post by katiesquilts »

I know this isn't technically about writing the review itself, but I nifty trick I like to use instead of taking notes as I'm reading it to take a screenshot of the page I'm reading on when I find something that I want to mention in my review. First I'll highlight the part (just to jog my memory later on) and then I'll take a screenshot, and then when I'm writing I can see exactly what page it was on and can directly quote mistakes, etc. Then writing goes so much more smoothly than if I have to go back and look things up, and I don't have to carry my notes around with me!
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moderntimes
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Post by moderntimes »

Thanks. That's an excellent hint for reviewing online books. Unfortunately -- not really unfortunately, as I love reading "real" books -- all my reviews are for printed books, that's not an available option. I will stick a note in the book at the spot where I find something. But most of the times, I just remember it -- I've got a fairly high retention rate, pretty good for an old grumpy guy, ha ha.

What you recommend is the same as what I use when reading on my Kindle -- I'll bookmark the page -- to go back and re-read a fun passage or as a hint to later search for something if I'm reading a history or biography.
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