When I browse through this webpage here I sometimes find topics about compiling a manuscript into WORD (Doc) or similar word processors. I’m standing only a few days away from letting my manuscript (600 pages with 200 pictures/fotographs) be printed as a paper book.
What is it for, to compile a whole book from SCRIV into e.g. WORD-PDF while I can do it also with SCRIV myself. - Is it because of the transfer of the pictures or has it other benefits or even advantages? I have no clue.
I can’t speak for everyone, but there are a few reasons why I compile my work from Scrivener and review it using LibreOffice, Pages, Word, or another word processor before converting to PDF.
First, Scrivener isn’t necessarily designed as a true word-processing program. It’s using a lot of third-party conversion tools, and those tools might miss some of the finer formatting requirements that an agent, publisher, or print-on-demand service requires.
By compiling to another format and reviewing the output with a true word-processing program, I can make sure all the formatting is as exact as possible to the submission requirements.
I don’t want my work rejected because of some minor formatting technicality that Scrivener can’t manage.
During that formatting review process, I also have one more opportunity to read through my work and make sure I’ve caught as many spelling and grammatical errors as I can.
I always find something that I had missed during my (many, many) rounds of revisions within Scrivener. Even though I compile constantly and print out some of the drafts to review on paper.
For images, tables, or other materials that need additional formatting, a word processor gives more control as well.
From there, I can convert to PDF if it’s the format that’s required for submission.
If Scrivener’s output (PDF in this case?) is “ready to print” at this point, in your opinion — there’s nothing you have to worry about or missing out on not using another format that is meant as an intermediate step towards the final result. Because you already have that.
… review it using LibreOffice, Pages, Word, or another word processor before converting to PDF.
You mean, it’s only to watch it and evaluate the layout. The final compilation for the paper printing you do with SCRIV, not in WORD or PAGES or other software.
I agree with @RuthS. With the exception of HTML and ePub, I always compile to RTF to open automatically in my word processor (NWP), and then print from there, whether to paper or PDF. As well as the pagination and layout, I check spelling there as the different UI helps me spot things I’ve missed.
HTML opens automatically in BBEdit, and renders in Marked2 for checking; ePubs open automatically in Sigil for checking and tweaking.
No, I mean I’ll probably have the word processing program convert to PDF after I’ve made final edits with that tool.
It depends on how exacting the PDF’s standards are and which computer I’m using.
On a Mac, Scrivener’s converters are fairly good. On a Windows computer, we refer to them as a “proof-reading quality,” meaning they probably are not good enough for a print-on-demand service.
The differences between PDF quality on each platform is due to the third-party converters available to our developers. Our macOS developer has access to some tools from Apple in the toolkit that are a bit nicer.
Our Windows developer is using Qt framework to build Scrivener, which doesn’t have as robust a set of PDF conversion tools.
I didn’t understand earlier postings compiling to WORD etc. Because my compiling of 600 Pages with 200 photographs is pretty immaculate, I wondered what people here were talking about. I’d like to know SCRIV better than I do now, but I can get around pretty well. Perhaps when dealing with the printing company I will get some troubles. But I can’t complain about checking the PDF Layout on my MacBookPro at the moment.
It’s my first manuscript. So I have to learn step by step.
