Resources

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Handy Tools, Sheets, and Templates

The WordFam maintains a Digital Goodie Bag of various tools and templates for writing and writers. You can download the whole goodie bag as a zip file, or grab individual sheets and tools from the sections below.

These files are all Copyright (c) WordFamily. They are provided under the Creative Commons license and free to use. If you reproduce or repost these anywhere, please credit the WordFamily and link to this site.

Our Scrivener template contains all of the sheets included in our Digital Goodie Bag (and in the sections below this one), along with additional templates and configuration to help you build your story.

Scrivener v3 template | Mac / Windows
Scrivener v1 template | Windows (deprecated, provided for backwards compatibility)

To use our template, you must import it into Scrivener as a template; you cannot open it directly. Do not double-click on it or attempt to force Scrivener to open it.

First, save the template linked above to a location you can easily find on your computer.
In Scrivener:
  1. Go to File -> New Project…
  2. In the Project Templates pop-up, go to Options -> Import Templates…
  3. Find and select the template you saved to your computer.
  4. Click Import.
  5. Ensure you have the imported template selected in the Project Templates window. If you don’t, you should be able to find it in the Fiction section.
  6. Click Choose…
  7. Enter a filename for your new Scrivener project and click Create.
  8. Check out the How to Get Started section for how to use the template.
  9. Write your story!
You only need to do the above for the first time you use the template. To use it for future projects, just locate it in the Fiction section when creating a new project.
Sheets Information
Sheets Handy Tools
Sheets
Sheets
  • Series Metadata: information about your story series, if you are writing one
  • Book/Story Metadata: information about your story you will need if you wish to publish it, including metadata and marketing resources
  • Submission Log (Numbers / Excel): log where and when you have submitted your story for publication, available in Apple and Microsoft formats
Information
  • Synopsis: information about how to write an effective synopsis for submission to a publisher or agent
  • Cover Template: a template for how to put together a cover for a 5" x 8" paperback book

Useful Software and Sites

There are so many options for what to use to support and do our writing. Here are the WordFam’s recommendations!

Recommended software for writing:
Recommended software for planning stories or world building:
Here are some great resources for creating character pictures and concepts:

Protect Yourself and Your Writing

There are many services, sites, and offerings for writers around. Sadly, not all of them are legitimate or good for you as a writer. These are some resources to help you protect yourself from the less reputable deals on offer.

These sites can help you to identify suspicious or fraudulent publishing services:
  • Writer Beware: a resource run by the SWFA to identify sites and services of which writers should be wary
  • Preditors & Editors: a useful site where you can check the reputations of editors and agencies
  • Vanity Presses and what to avoid

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