Over the years I’ve tested various writing programs to find an improvement over Microsoft Word for managing the development of a novel. They’ve included Grammatica, New Novelist, Story Weaver, yWriter5, and others I’ve forgotten the names of.
I had two particular requirements: the ability to export to Word; and a means of locating all scenes in which a character appeared.
When Scrivener for Windows first appeared, I gave it a shot, but it seemed rough around the edges, falling short of the Mac version’s capabilities. It joined the others as not being up to the task.
Later on, I read an article which was not only complimentary of the latest version of Scrivener, but also mentioned the two features I was looking for. I decided to give it another go. I’m pleased I did.
If you’ve not tried it, you might be interested in these reviews:
9 Reasons I’ve Decided to Use Scrivener to Write My Nonfiction Books