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You've got a document in Scrivener you want to format. Maybe some of the folders in the binder have different formatting types and you want consistent formatting throughout the entire manuscript. Follow These steps:
This is the binder...typically on the left
1.
First you need to set the formatting how you want it. Go to:
Scrivener > Preferences > Formatting
Here you can set the formatting how you would like it. If you hit the Use Formatting in Current Editor, it will apply the formatting in the editor (main editing screen) that is currently open. Unless you want to apply the formatting of the folder open in the editor to the entire document, DO NOT click this.
Instead, click in the white area where the Nietzsche quote is then change the formatting using the buttons (bold, alignment, spacing etc.). When this is how you'd like it, close this window.
2.
Now go to Documents > Convert > Convert Formatting to Default Text Style
you will get this pop up
3.
To convert the document with the formatting you set in the formatting preferences Scrivener > Preferences > Formatting menu, (the settings you just customized -step 1,) don’t check anything. Click okay.
Now whatever you have open in the editor will match the formatting you set in formatting preferences (step 1).
4. To convert an entire manuscript or multiple folders/documents within a manuscript, select the folders (or the entire manuscript) and repeat step 2.
Done!
This process took me some digging to figure out. Hopefully someone finds this helpful. Let me know if you do.
Some of you may know I'm a Star Wars geek...if you've read my blog you may have seen my Star Wars related posts (all of which are downright hilarious if I do say so myself)
Now that you're done reading all those gems, I thought I'd continue sharing my thoughts on the upcoming film. Here is what we know: Damn near nothing. We know, from the StarWars.com news page that the release date (at the moment) is December 18, 2015. From the site: (Feel free to skip right over this...)
"With pre-production in full-swing, a confirmed release date of December 18, 2015, has been set for Lucasfilm's highly anticipated Star Wars: Episode VII. "We're very excited to share the official 2015 release date for Star Wars: Episode VII, where it will not only anchor the popular holiday filmgoing season but also ensure our extraordinary filmmaking team has the time needed to deliver a sensational picture," said Alan Horn, chairman of The Walt Disney Studios. Star Wars: Episode VII will be directed by J.J. Abrams (Super 8, Mission: Impossible III, Star Trek) and is being scripted by Abrams and Lawrence Kasdan (Raiders of the Lost Ark, The Empire Strikes Back, Return of the Jedi). Lucasfilm president Kathleen Kennedy, J.J. Abrams, and Bryan Burk are producing, with Tommy Harper (Mission: Impossible - Ghost Protocol, Jack Ryan, Star Trek Into Darkness) and Jason McGatlin (Tintin, War of the Worlds) serving as executive producers. John Williams is returning to score Star Wars: Episode VII. Shooting is scheduled to begin spring 2014 at Pinewood Studios."
Actually, according to Alan Horn, the big cheese at Walt Disney Studios, filming is already underway. As far as casting...according to this news report Chewbacca has been cast by the actor who has played him since the originals, Peter Mayhew.
I'm not sure how I feel about Chewbacca being in the re-load of Star Wars. I was hoping J.J. Abrams would move away from all the fuzzy, annoying and outdated characters (essentially the entire original cast) and on to characters with more depth and interest. The IMDB page has (sadly) many of the original cast members listed...
...but fortunately their status remains rumored.
Think about Star Trek under J.J. Abrams's wing. Did we see a bloated Bill Shatner squeeze into an Enterprise uniform? No!
So why would we try and throw Mark Hammil (looking more alien than human)
or Carrie Fisher, a far cry from her days as Jabba the Hutt's palace slave girl, in the mix?
All I'm saying is that I fear for the film when I hear the rumors about casting members of the original cast. We need to, as that insanely popular Disney flick, Frozen, character sings, Let it go! In J.J I trust My worries are quieted somewhat now that J.J. Abrams is at the helm. I believe he is setting himself up as the next uber-power director in Hollywood a-la Stephen Spielberg. He nailed it with Star Trek so why wouldn't he nail it with Star Wars? Disney? lets hope Disney doesn't try to shove too many kid friendly characters into the mix making it just plain annoying. There was also some question as to whether the film would follow the Expanded Universe stuff (more on the EU below). The Answer is no. (source article below) So, will the old characters be in episode 7? What do you think? My answer: God, I hope not. ---------------- One thing I did discover was something called the Star Wars Expanded Universe (I'm a fan of the movies...depending on which ones we're talking about -these guys are hard-core!) which is HUGE and quite amazing. Read more about it HERE or watch the video at the bottom. Source articles: Star Wars: Episode 7 -What we know so far Cinemablend.com StarWars.com Episode VII news Star Wars films 'not beholden' to Expanded Universe
I know, this is quite different than my typical creative blog post...but I also know there are a few writers who read my blog and other Scrivener users (If I tag this right) who may benefit.
I'm quasi-new to Scrivener and wanted to use it with my editor to allow her to make changes as well as allowing me to view and approve the changes she made. After searching on the web for a good explanation (and not finding one), I had to figure it out myself.
Note: I use a Mac
There is a video that is helpful (below) but it misses some things.
The first thing you have to decide is how you are going to share the Scrivener file. My editor and I use Dropbox. Dropbox is a file sharing site like Google docs only I like how it interfaces with my computer and portable devices better than Google docs. Once you create a Dropbox account and load it onto your computer, it appears and behaves as a drive (on a Mac), which is very handy.
So we figured out how to share the file back and forth. Now to view and approve changes.
I'm going to assume you are familiar with the Scrivener layout. (if not, watch this video) Before you send your draft off to your editor, you'll need to take snapshots of the document (or every chapter depending on how you lay out your document).
In the inspector, click on the small camera Icon at the bottom. This will take you to the snapshots view.
For some reason, I wasn't able to snapshot my entire manuscript at once. I had to do it chapter-by-chapter. In order to do that, click on the chapter content containing the text in the Binder. That will bring it up in the editor in the middle. From there simply click the plus.
Re-name the snapshot by clicking on the default title...or not, up to you. When you've done this for all your chapters, you're ready to send it off to your editor. I always copy the original file and keep one for myself and put the other in the DropBox shared folder.
Your editor can go through your manuscript, make changes, add comments etc. When she is done, she should do the same thing -take a snapshot. When she moves it into the Dropbox folder, you can open the file and should see her snapshot below your own.
Now, to compare.
The editor allows you to view the two versions vertically (side-by-side) or horizontally (one on top of the other) I prefer the vertical view. To change go to:
View --> Layout -->Split Vertically (or horizontally)
You want to compare the original against your editor's copy. In the inspector, select both and click compare. You should see the changes in the inspector. You can change colors of the changes (red = delete, green = addition etc.) in preferences (watch the video above for details)
The thing is, you don't want to approve changes in this tiny screen. You need to move a snapshot to the right panel of the editor in order to do a side-by-side comparison. This is the part that I had trouble with because they didn't describe it in the video too well so PAY ATTENTION.
I don't quite understand why you must do this but this is how it works.
Right now, you've got two vertical screens with identical contents in them and the changes showing up in the inspector.
To get the changes to show up in the right side of the editor you need to first click anywhere in the LEFT side of the editor. Now, go back to the inspector and click on the ORIGINAL snapshot (the one with the oldest date).
Now, click and drag that snapshot to the top menu bar of the right panel in the editor.
STOP! Before you do this you must press and hold the option key (Alt)... but don't hit it first. Click, start dragging then press and hold option, continue dragging and drop it in the top menu bar.
Now you will have the changes appear on the right, the original on the left.
I have no idea why you drag the original snapshot when you want to compare the newest snapshot...you'd think since the original is already in the left panel that you would drag and drop the newer snapshot. I also have no idea why pressing option before you click and drag doesn't work...it just doesn't (for me, anyway).
Compare old to new, you can make changes to the version in the left panel (which is the most current version -the one your editor has updated, saved and put into Dropbox) or not depending on whether you want to accept the changes.
When you're done, save and TAKE ANOTHER SNAPSHOT. This will ensure the editor can compare her changes with any changes you have made when she does another pass.
I don't believe this is as robust a method as provided by Word via track changes (Scrivener can import and export Word docs with ease...but that's just one more piece of software, one more step) but the benefits of Scrivener far outweigh this quasi-cumbersome method of comparing versions.
If you know something I don't, please share! I am a relative rookie to Scrivener and always appreciate hearing from people with more knowledge on the subject.
I'm doing something a bit different and have decided to be a part of a blog tour for a very cool author. His name is Hock G. Tjoa and his novel is The Chinese Spymaster. Below you will find my gripping interview with the author.
Synopsis:
Chinese Intelligence uncovers a North Korean trying to sell a nuclear device. Then they find five other dealers trying to do the same. The buyer is the same in every case--the Pashtuns. Is this a "Pashtun Spring"? A realignment of geopolitical power in Central Asia? A resurgence of Islamist terrorism? In order to anticipate and confront these threats, Spymaster Wang must negotiate through bureaucratic rivalries, as well as personal ambitions, at home and abroad. He reaches for ancient insight into strategies and unorthodox alliances. But the struggle he must undertake cannot cease, and the outcome always remains in doubt. The Spymaster must also confront a vendetta within the Party as well as the determination of his Old Friends and their wives to make him a "match."
Short bio
Hock G. Tjoa was born to Chinese parents and studied history at Brandeis and Harvard. He taught European history and Asian political thought at the University of Malaya in Kuala Lumpur and has published George Henry Lewes, a Victorian Mind, "The social and political ideas of Tan Cheng Lock" and various articles in the Newsletter of the China History Forum. He is married and lives with his family in the Sierra Nevada foothills of California. He published in 2010 "The Battle of Chibi (Selections from The Romance of the Three Kingdoms)" that he had translated, and in 2011, "Heaven is High and the Emperor Far Away, A Play" that he translated and adapted from Lao She's Teahouse. Both are part of his project to make more widely known traditional Chinese values.
The Interview:
When did you first start writing? Do you recall your first writing project?
I wrote a couple of very bad plays for our high school clubs and did not start writing "stories" again until six years ago. But I have been writing for school and job projects all my life.
When did you finish your first book?
My first book, George Henry Lewes, A Victorian Mind, was a research project for college that was published.
Do you work with an outline, or just write?
I have working lists of chapters and characters which are revised or discarded as the characters or situations take over.
Is there any particular author or book that influenced you in any way either growing up or as an adult?
I was a science fiction fan in high school and college and read as much of Isaac Asimov and Arthur C. Clarke as I had time for--they were pretty prolific writers.
Is anything in your book based on real life experiences or purely all imagination?
I write out of what I imagine but what I imagine is often inspired by memories of my life and of friends.
What was your favorite chapter in The Chinese Spymaster to write and why?
Some chapters were more fun to write and others more satisfying because of the challenges, fight scenes (first time), bureaucratic arguments (how to make this interesting), interrogation of an arms dealer (how to avoid all the cliches). Perhaps most enjoyable was how to find a match for the Spymaster and get them on a date!
Are there certain characters you would like to go back to, or is there a theme or idea you’d love to work with?
I enjoyed writing about the gatherings of family and friends even though these were difficult to weave into the plot of the novel; sometimes I think about making gatherings like them the centerpiece of another novel
Tell me about your writing environment. Do they use a pen and paper, laptop? Quiet room, music or what? Dog at their feet? Cat on the desk? Just whatever makes it comfortable to be productive.
In the old days when one could get someone else to type something hand-written, I remember that I really liked to write by hand on paper. But now that I have to type into a computer it just doubles the work. I have an old laptop in a small room and two cats that come in and take their naps on an old bed.
Star Wars or Star Trek?
Star Wars was so much more fun, but I liked the ingenuity of the Star Trek series. I've watched them all many times.
Are you working on any other creative projects at the moment?
I dabble in community theater and am stuck a third of the way through a new novel..
What do you think of what's happening with the publishing industry right now? Any speculation as to where it is heading?
I don't think about this at all even though I belong to a writers' group and we discuss it all the time; it's going where it's headed.
Do you have any funny stories involving a creative project you've worked on?
Sometimes I get a laugh out of reviews that say in effect that I should have written a different book.
Best show on TV?
I like watching both NCIS and White Collar simultaneously and hope their commercial breaks never coincide.
If you could have dinner with one person dead or alive, who would it be?
Harry Potter, the dining room in Hogwarts sounds really awesome.
What makes you laugh?
Movies like Get Shorty and A Fish Named Wanda.
Have you ever cast a spell, drank blood or ate raw meat due to a subconscious predatory urge you weren't aware of? (or maybe you were)
No.
Who's the best character on The Walking Dead?
No clue.
If you could have one preternatural power, what would it be?
Getting to an appointment instantaneously--flying, "apparating" or whatever.
Have you ever been paintballing?
Just once; it got too messy.
Have you managed to make peace with all the social media marketing required to get your name out there as an author or do you feel overwhelmed by it? How do you find a balance between 'working' that market and being creative (writing). I find it easy to get sucked into everything and completely distracted from writing. How do you cope?
Just do what I can and stop when it's time to write (easier said than done).
Why do you write? What’s in it for you?
When I write, it feels like there is nothing else I would rather do.
If you weren’t writing, you would be...
...getting a massage.
The world would be a better place if...
...Nobody thinks that violence/war is a solution for anything.
The Chinese Spymaster, at first glance, seems to be James Clavell’s Shōgun/Tai-Pan (Asian Saga series) mixed with Tom Clancy’s The Bear and the Dragon. The excitement of Clancy and the depth of culture, character and plot of Clavell. Is this an accurate comparison?
I like the movies made from Clancy's books but find reading them difficult; his view of the world strikes me as old fashioned--there are cowboys and there are Indians, and the future is going to be decided in a single battle.
What do you think lies ahead for China as a country? From my ignorant perspective it seems as though they are at a crossroads when it comes to economic development. They could rise to the opportunity and become the financial superpower in the world or they could flounder and slowly crawl toward getting their financial house in order. Will their traditionalist beliefs inhibit their growth as a nation? (I realize this isn’t relevant to your novel but I’ve always been fascinated with Chinese economics.)
I think that it is a disgrace to have such bad air and water quality in a country that has made so much economic progress. It is also a disgrace that healthcare for the poor and rural people is almost non-existent. One episode in The Chinese Spymaster describes how traditional/herbal medicine is brought back to a small village.
I see your on your bio you taught European history and Asian political thought at the University of Malaya in Kuala Lumpur. I’ve always been fascinated by Kaula Lumpur and Malaysia but have never had the opportunity to visit. Is K.L. the growing, diverse metropolis surrounded by the beauty of the jungle and turquoise waters that I’ve heard? It looks as if you could be in downtown K.L. and within an hour, be lost in the jungle or sitting on an empty beach. True?
On my last visit to Kuala Lumpur, I discovered that most drivers have GPS and they really need them. If you could get to the edge of the city, it would take about an hour or two to those jungles and beaches. But getting across the city could take much longer.
The Chinese Spymaster is available now. Find it online at...
Yes, this is it! You can win THE One Ring! I purchased this ring from WBShop.com, realized it was the wrong size too late and can't return it so...I want to give it to you, my readers. It is size 10 solid sterling silver. More details can be found HERE. I chose silver over gold because I just don't like gold jewelry...I realize in the movie/book it is a gold ring, I'm just picky that way. How to win: Go to my Pinterest page, follow my Pinterest page then search through the pictures until you find one with a hidden book cover design in the photo. The cover will be either Exiled or Tristis Manor (below). Remember, it will be HIDDEN. It isn't one of the covers in plain sight. Once you've found it, come back to my blog, follow my blog if you aren't already, and paste the link in the comment section of this post. Then go to my Facebook page, like my Facebook page and write a comment saying you've posted the answer here. The first person with the correct link who posts on my page will win...simple. Restrictions: US residents only (sorry, need to keep shipping costs low). That's it. Good luck! UPDATE: Two things: 1. I'm opening the contest to all North American residents. 2. I am giving out hints to get this thing moving along. Hint #1 The photo was taken inside although it looks as if it could be outside.
