Sync Scrivener external files and cleanly place them into an InDesign Document

Scrivener
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I am looking to edit and update my manuscript on Scrivener, sync my files on an external folder, and then do the remaining formatting on InDesign. However, the rtf files shows up on InDesign with a bunch of unrecognizable texts. What other options are available?

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I’ve never used Indesign and know nothing about it, so I probably shouldn’t even be attempting to answer your question. :innocent:

But I googled “does indesign use RTF”, so I now feel I’m qualified. :nerd_face:

Based on my brief foray, it seems that Indesign doesn’t work with RTF files. You can import rtf into Indesign, but doing so transforms the files into whatever Indesign’s native format is. I also assume the import process copies the rtf data to an Indesign location, meaning any Indesign changes would not be reflected in the original Scrivener files.

So I don’t believe the round trip you’re envisioning of bouncing between Scrivener and Indesign is possible.

Hopefully someone with actual hands on with both products will come along and tell me I’m wrong.

Best,
Jim

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Just Compile to DOCX and place that in InDesign. There’s no going back to Scrivener. Design your book in InDesign and export to PDF for paperbacks or ePub for e-books.

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Agreed. Syncing to an external folder is not at all helpful here.

My workflow from Scriv to inDesign is via compile to DOCX. I have a set of defined styles in Scriv which are aimed at my ultimate typographic needs (e.g. initial paragraphs with drop cap, or terms that should be set in small caps), and my compile is set to preserve defined paragraph/character styles on output. In my inDesign template, I have same-named styles defined that will give those areas the intended look. (The corresponding styles in Scriv are merely symbolic/classificatory and do not aim to give the finished look.) Plus, a macro in inDesign to step through whatever massaging steps you find you have to repeat can make the workflow pleasingly streamlined.

I do not really rely on the ability to keep inDesign linked to the docx and update the underlying docx file. I just don’t typeset until I’m well and really done. The streamlining of the workflow makes just running it again for typos and such pretty painless.

That said, most of my own use of inDesign is not generally for book-length projects.

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