Like all writers, I know how often we’re asked “what software do you use to write”. I’m going to tell you about the best writing software; then we’ll be able to chat like pro book writers and authors and won’t need to always go back and forth asking about the best novel writing software. It’s frustrating, inefficient and mainly unprofessional when we ask potential clients what free writing software they use to write their stories or books.
Novel writing software is a type of program that helps writers to write. Most of the individuals who are passionate about novel writing are very eager to find out about best software to use for their work. This helps them in getting the best possible help. However, it’s not an easy feat. It certainly is not a cup of tea for someone who is new to creating novels.
Google Docs:
Google Docs is a great collaborative tool. My team and I are literally a thousand miles from each other, and we use this program virtually every day.
It’s a free, standard word processor that allows multiple people to work on the same document simultaneously. I’m working on this document in Google Docs right now.
Just as with Track Changes in Word, an agent or editor or accountability partner can help fine-tune your work-in-progress in Suggestion Mode. You accept or reject the suggestions, and you can both comment in the margin.
Other advantages:
- Easily share your work-in-progress via email or a link
- Access from any device
- Free
Cons:
- Performance slows when tracking changes on documents of 80 or more pages
- Unable to toggle between Tracked Changes and Final Version without accepting all the changes
Price: Free
ProWritingAid:
ProWritingAid offers grammar, style, and writing suggestions as you write—for you to accept — or reject — at the click of a button.
It integrates with the apps and programs you use most, like:
- Google Docs
- Google Chrome
- Microsoft Word
- Scrivener
Other pros:
- Detailed explanations
- Built-in Thesaurus
- Context-focused grammar checker
- Free version
Con:
- You need a premium account to access its best features
Price: $50 for 1 year, $75 for 2 years, $100 for 3 years, or $175 for life
I recommend trying the free version first.
Scrivener:
Scrivener is the premier book writing app made by writers for writers.
Scrivener’s “binder” view allows you to break up your book into chapters and sections and easily reorganize it with drag and drop interface.
You can also get a high-level view of your book using the corkboard and outliner modes, allowing you to view chapters, sections, or individual scenes as index cards.
Project targets let you create word count goals and then track your progress daily. Its composition mode can help you stay focused by removing all the clutter.
Scrivener has formatting features for publishing (e.g. on Amazon or Barnes & Noble), as well as features for distraction-free writing, and has templates for novels, nonfiction books, screenplays, and more.
You can read our full Scrivener review here.
To be fair, Scrivener also has its weaknesses.
Formatting is more complicated than it needs to be and collaborating isn’t easy, meaning it loses its effectiveness as soon as you bring on an editor (we recommend Google Docs for collaborating).
You can sync with your iPhone/iPad, but only through Dropbox, making it not as easy as it should be. It also has something of a learning curve, especially for its advanced features. But it more than makes up for that by being so helpful in the early stages of the writing process.
Again, here are the pros and cons for Scrivener.
Pros of Scrivener:
- Easily manage a large book writing project (or screenplay) in the binder view
- Get a high-level view of your book’s structure using corkboard and outliner views
- Manage your writing productivity with project targets and deadlines
- iPhone and iPad app
Cons of Scrivener:
- Formatting can be overly complicated
- Learning curve
- Syncing with Dropbox isn’t always easy
- No Android app
We believe in Scrivener so much, we published a book about how creative writers can write more faster using it. It’s called Scrivener Superpowers. If you’re using Scrivener or want a tutorial to save yourself time as you learn how to use it for your creative writing, you can get Scrivener Superpowers here.
LibreOffice:
Developed by the Document Foundation, LibreOffice is open source software that prides itself on being a free office suite. While it boasts other programs for spreadsheets and charts, Write is the name of its free word processor.
Benefits to using LibreOffice Writer as a free book writing software for beginners:
#1 – It’s a robust one-stop-shop for writers. And it’s similar to Microsoft Word (which we’ll cover in our paid writing software section).
#2 – It’s an effective word processing tool with helpful features for authors. It wasn’t only created for writers, but can be used by anyone who needs a word processor. At its core, it can be used as a powerful book writing software for authors. The autocorrect and spell checker tools allows you to catch grammar and spelling mistakes in the fly. It also supports other languages no need to worry if you want to write your book in your native language.
#3 – It provides useful templates. LibreOffice includes readily available templates to choose from, that are properly formatted to meet your needs. All you need to do is add your text! Whether you want to write your resume, brochures, letters or your book, these templates can save you time and come in handy for clean, crisp formatting.
Novel Factory:
A creative writing software that guides you through the novel writing process.
Novel Factory prompts you to:
- Write your story’s premise
- Develop characters
- Make notes
- Follow the Hero’s Journey outline
It offers:
- A built-in word processor
- A split screen view
Novel Factory is designed for Windows and is currently unavailable for Mac.
Cost: $39.99
Vellum:
If you want to turn your book into an eBook, it’s not that hard. Scrivener, Word, Pages, they all can format eBooks and print books. But that doesn’t mean they’ll look good.
In fact, it takes a lot of skill and effort to format a printed book that looks good on any of those word processors. That’s why I love Vellum so much.
Vellum makes beautiful books.
Vellum picks up where Scrivener, Word, and Pages leave off, giving you a tool to make great looking eBooks and print books, usually in under an hour.
The most important part of this is the previewer (see the image below), which lets you see how each formatting change or book edit you make will appear on Kindle, Fire, iPhone, Nook, and other eReaders.
It also has stripped-down, option-based formatting, which is perfect for designing both eBooks and print books.
I really love this writing app!
Pros of Vellum:
- Easy and intuitive
- Format a manuscript for print and ebook in less than an hour
- Beautiful styling
Cons of Vellum:
- Limited styles
- Relatively expensive
Cost: $199 for eBook generation; $249 for paperback formatting
Zoho Writer:
Writer by Zoho, also known as Zoho Writer, is an online word processor that comes with special features to help you write from anywhere and at any time you want to. It is a cloud software, which means you can access it on all of your devices, no matter where you are.
Even better, Zoho has different templates for you to choose from, depending on what it is you need to write.
Benefits to using Zoho Writer as a free book writing software for beginners:
#1 – It’s readily available. You do not need to sign up or log in to be able to use it. And to add, Zoho Writer is user-friendly and if you are a team of writers, you can work together and share the documents with each other using the share button at the top right corner.
#2 – You can write offline, without internet access. To add, despite this software being on online writing tool, you can still write your way offline and have you’re work synced to your account.
#3 – You can use it across all devices. You can also use this book writing software across all the devices be it your phone, Tablet, or a PC. No need to worry about accessing your manuscript from the wrong device.
Conclusion:
I’m a huge fan of writing software. Software can give you the freedom to be organized, to collaborate and even create your own, custom quotes. If you’re tired of Word and other software solutions, or if you’ve never used writing software before, this is a list of software that I recommend for novel writers and authors.