Do you really need novel writing software?

Anyone who wants to write a book may at some point or another contemplate purchasing novel writing software. Getting the tools to start writing is often the easiest step for beginning writers. You can almost compare buying novel software to buying running shoes before you start running. Is novel writing software really necessary, or is it just another way to procrastinate and avoid doing what you should be doing (which is writing)?

What are the alternatives?

The answer is yes and no. Technically, you can write your story using pen and paper. Unfortunately, that’s terribly inefficient and will probably take a lot longer. Besides, in order to publish your book, you’re going to have to type it up (or pay someone else to type it), so you may as well start typing from the get-go.

Using a typewriter is also another option, but it’s almost as outdated as pen and paper. For starters, it’s really difficult to edit anything in a typewritten document. Plus, have you tried to buy a typewriter lately? They’re so unpopular that they’re almost a vintage item again, which means they are both hard to find and expensive. Not a good combination.

The importance of word count

One of the things that proper novel writing software can do is tracking your word count for you. While some people write for fun and don’t necessarily care about the word count, any published author knows that they have to reach a minimum word count goal before they can consider their novel to be complete. Unfortunately, counting words is not really any fun. The good news is that any decent novel writing software will display your word count automatically.

Where to save your notes

One of the challenges of writing a novel is finding a place to keep important notes. Some authors utilize complicated spreadsheets; others use different Word documents or an old-fashioned paper notebook for this purpose. Good novel writing software should make saving those details easier for you. Whether you need to keep track of your characters and their personal quirks, important dates, or locations, your program should have a place for everything.

Ideally, keeping track of your notes shouldn’t distract you from writing your story. If you have to dig through the software to figure out where to save the information on your new character, you might lose your train of thought. Plus, by the time you get back to writing your story, you may have already forgotten the name of your new character. Fortunately, Novelize allows you to stay inside of your story while reading and editing your notebook information.

Creating a manuscript

If you’re writing a novel with the intent to publish a book at some point, then you’re going to want to create a manuscript. This manuscript will have to follow certain submission guidelines in order for your editor to want to read it. Technically, you can probably figure out how to configure your Word document to manuscript submission standards, but that’s going to take you a lot of time. In the end, your novel writing software is there to make life easier for you, so a pre-formatted manuscript is a must.

What’s the final verdict?

Is novel writing software a must-have in order to become the next bestselling author? No. Is novel writing software useful for novel writers? Absolutely. Novel writing software definitely makes your life easier. Can you imagine going running without your running shoes? Whether you’re just getting started on your first book or working on an outline for your 10th novel, there’s no harm in giving Novelize a trial run!