I am surprised by this answer. I was pretty sure Scriv’s internal file format for docs was rtf all the way. Surely this does not change just because you type things into a doc that accord with markdown conventions!
You are mistaken. Scrivener’s native project format is RTF. It’s possible to export the component files as .TXT, but the files that Scrivener itself sees are always RTF.
Katherine
My mistake. I thought the question was about markdown in general, and not how Scrivener saves it.
found this:
cultofmac.com/291161/draft- … e-writing/
For what it’s worth I’ll share my low-tech approach here. Sometimes an integrated, technology-dependent, automated solution is not needed (I also add citations and references to my dissertation by hand, like people did for centuries).
In collaborating with my PhD supervisor, too, I found that simple and fool-proof is best for me (a certified fool). I’ll compile my manuscript to PDF, write a note to my supervisor pointing out what parts I’ve been working on, and he will read those, adding comments using Adobe Acrobat Reader. He then sends me the edited PDF, that I will open alongside Scrivener. I’ll walk through his comments one by one, making the necessary edits in the Scrivener files as I go.
This may not work for you, but it does for me.
Hello, first post.
My collaborator and editrix actually bought this product for me with the hope I’d start writing again. I’d love to have a collaborative ability. In reading this it almost sounds like if she were to get the program as well we COULD collaborate? Is that true?
Simultaneous collaboration is not possible: only one person can edit a Scrivener project at once.
Serial collaboration is possible: either you can ensure that you aren’t working on the project at the same time, or you can use the “import and merge” feature to re-integrate a revised project with the original version.
Katherine
Katherine, thank you very much for replying.
I don’t need simultaneous collaboration. Just need her to have access and edit. I am sorry for my ignorance, but I have a couple of follow up questions based on your reply:
- Would she need the program to do this?
- I believe my projects are stored on my computer. What do I do to send her what I want her to have?
Once she has any edits, then I use the “import and merge” function.
Thanks.
To edit a Scrivener project, she needs a copy of Scrivener, yes.
Use the File -> Backup -> Backup To command, and check the box to create a ZIP backup. You can send the resulting file via email or any other convenient method.
Katherine
And to qualify that a little further, she would need Scrivener 3 for Mac. The necessary mechanism for detecting that a project is a copy of the original, and merging the changes, is only currently present in that version. The Windows beta does not yet properly protect that token and when you get the project back it will appear as a completely different project, with no merge option available.
Another thing worth mentioning is that if you don’t edit while they have the project in hand, you don’t need to merge. Just replace your copy with the one they send to you—merging will be an unnecessary complication. Where merging becomes useful is when you both edit in parallel. So while you cannot both open the same project file simultaneously off of a file share, or both be synchronishing changes to the same stored copy (like a cloud share), you can both be working at once. Just observe simple common sense practices of not working on the same exact things and you’ll avoid having to sort out conflicted edits later (i.e. you take one chapter, she takes another, and you’ll be fine).
I can confirm that. I’d just been chatting to my Windows Beta using collaborator, who told me she was on the way to the airport to catch a flight … she didn’t tell me that she was planning to work on our project, offline during the flight. So I took the opportunity to go through any comments and issues she had raised.
In the evening after she had settled in to her accommodation, she got in touch to say that she had wanted to do some more work on it, but because we had both worked separately on the same chapter, there was a conflict and that she was unable to open the project as a result.
I could open the project and do the necessary reconciliation in a couple of minutes on my Mac.
Mark
Thank you Katherine, Amber, and Mark.
Has anyone tried this option to sync with Draft yet? https://www.cultofmac.com/291161/draft-scrivener-collaborative-writing/
wietse,
Thanks for posting your question. Never even heard of Draft before, but it looks interesting! I’ll be giving it a try…
Best,
Jim
I often write with a co-author or in a small team, and real-time collaboration (like Google Docs or Notion) is the one feature I deeply wish Scrivener had. I realize this would be a huge technical undertaking, but being able to work together on the same project—without file conflicts or manual merging—would be a total game-changer for so many collaborative writers.
I’d love to see even some simple options, like:
- Real-time multi-user editing of projects (or just specific documents/scenes)
- In-app commenting, chat, or suggestion modes
- Assigning font/text colors by author, so it’s always clear who wrote what in a draft
- Version tracking with merge/review tools
I understand Scrivener’s primary focus is solo writing, but more and more of us are collaborating—especially in genre fiction, game writing, and screenwriting. Many writing teams (mine included!) would gladly pay extra for this capability.
Thank you so much for everything you do. Even if this isn’t possible soon, I wanted to add my voice to the wish list!
You can do this with Scrivener’s existing Revision Mode.
There’s a reason why all the existing real time collaboration tools come from enormous companies. It’s not just the software – though that’s a very heavy technical lift – it’s also the data center infrastructure needed to support it.
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I am just completing my third novel with Scrivener. I use it every day and I love it.
I want to send out my manuscript for proofreading, but the only way I am aware to do it, is to compile into a word document, have the proofreader make their changes, and the go through each one manually in my Scrivener master-copy.
I would like to see a way to re-import the proofread/edited document that I could then do a ‘compare’, so I could approve or reject the suggested changes. I guess a bit like Word does it…but with the two documents. This would save a great deal of time.
What are the chances?
You might find the following post useful:
KB’s post there draws attention to a Scrivener function that is meant to facilitate the workflow you are talking about.
-GR
P.S. There have been numerous discussions of the various ways people choose to work with editors and Scrivener on this forum. Searching around might pull up other useful stuff.
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