UPDATE: CaptSunRiser suggests this as an alternative to Scrivenr for Windows users!

I'm helping a friend of mine plot and write a fan fic (and by "helping," I mean we sort of just discuss her story and I help her sort out some kinks while she 100% writes everything) and we recently had a conversation about software for creative writers. She has been writing her story on Pages on her MacBook, but I pretty much swear by Scrivener. I decided to look into what other software was available for creative writers and share the results of my research.

First, allow me to sing the praises of Scrivener. It does pretty much everything you, as a writer, wants it to do. It puts the focus of writing on individual scenes as opposed to chapters. This helps me a lot because I really struggle with writing fics and stories in chronological order. I tend to pick the scene I'm most excited about and then write that first. Scrivener is good for this kind of writing because you can organize your draft into scenes and then you can compile it into one document when you're finished. You can also import photos, files, and webpages into the Project File, so no more switching between tabs: have all your research in one place! You can do split-screen so you can have all the info in sight. You can go into Compose Mode and get rid of distractions as you write, you can set any photo you want as the backdrop. There's a corkboard mode for storyboarding purposes, and you can add keywords to keep track of your plot and characters. You can also add comments to your manuscript using the comment feature, and when everything is done, you can export it as a Word or PDF file. It's $45 for Mac and $40 for Windows, but comes with a 30-day free trial if you just want to use it for one project or NaNoWriMo. There's a NaNo version, too, where you can have it 50% off if you reach your word count!

I pretty much use Scrivener to write everything now. Papers, reviews, essays, scripts, stories, everything. Only drawback is that it is very complicated and can take a long time to learn to use. I've been writing with it about 2 years now and just learned how to use all the complex features. You could spend hours watching tutorials on this. Some screenshots:

If you just need a way to stay focused, there are some distraction-free composition software. The ones I am currently trying out are WriteRoom and Focus Writer. Both are very minimalist so it's good for when you just need to get the words out, but they come with options for different themes and backgrounds, which I like because it helps set the mood for my writing. They're cheaper, too, $9.99 or less. Another cool word-processing thing that is online-only is Novelize. It's like an online version of Scrivener. There's also Ulysses and Storyist. I've onyl tried Ulysses before and it's okay, sort of like Scrivener, but it messed up my laptop a bit and I found it a bit confusing to use and wasn't able to do quite as much. I hear a lot of cool things about Storyist so I feel like trying it out, but I'm so attached to Scrivener and it's working for me, I'm a bit wary of trying new things. But also, don't forget that Google Docs and Google Drive is amazing and there is no shame in writing straight into Microsoft Word, hehe. 

For when you're just starting out with a story and need to get your story arc down, never underestimate the power of a good ol' fashioned Plot Diagram. You can always draw one on a piece of paper yourself, but if you prefer to fill something out online, there are interactive programs online like this one by ReadWriteThink, but I find it a little tricky to use. You can also fill in this one on PDFFiller, but they will ask you to sign up for an account before you download your file. I got away with making an account, putting my credit card info in, and then cancelling my subscription after downloading the diagram. 

I've never used Storyweaver before, but apparently it asks you a bunch of questions about your story using story cards and it helps you develop your plot, characters, setting, and overall concept. Another one of my writer friends uses it.

Whenever I do collaborative writing, it's usually on Google Docs 'cause its simple and easy but my creative writing professor recently had this idea of using Quip to coordinate writing efforts. When it comes to storyboarding, yeah, I'm mostly on Scrivener, but I just had this idea of using Trello to create "lists" of scenes and stuff. I've only ever used it during internships at marketing start-ups, and it suddenly occured to me that I could use it for writing, too. 

CHECK OUT THIS ARTICLE for a more in-depth breakdown of what software is available to you fic-writers!