Write Now with Scrivener, Episode No. 68: Dave Bartell, Author of Archeological Thrillers

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Dave Bartell, author of ten archaeological thrillers, is transitioning to a new series of techno thrillers featuring a protagonist involved with the Department of Energy investigating anomalies. He self-publishes his work to maintain control over his intellectual property and uses Scrivener extensively for organizing his writing, employing its features like the Corkboard to structure and rearrange his numerous short scenes for better storytelling flow.

https://www.literatureandlatte.com/blog/write-now-with-scrivener-episode-no-68-dave-bartell-author-of-archeological-thrillers

Becoming a Better Writer

Gergely Orosz emphasizes that strong writing skills are crucial for engineering leaders and senior software professionals, as effective writing enables clear communication, durable documentation, and broader influence across teams and organizations. He outlines a process to improve writing that includes drafting, thoughtful editing for clarity and conciseness, seeking specific feedback, and building regular writing habits. Orosz also recommends studying excellent writing samples, reading widely, using tools like Hemingway Editor and Grammarly, and continuous learning through books and courses to develop writing as a key career skill in tech.

https://newsletter.pragmaticengineer.com/p/becoming-a-better-writer

Understanding Scrivener’s Default Templates: What Each One Contains

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Scrivener provides over 20 project templates tailored for different writing types, including fiction, non-fiction, scriptwriting, and miscellaneous formats like lectures, poems, and recipe collections. Each template features a unique Binder structure with relevant folders, metadata, and compile settings designed to support the specific needs of that writing project, and users can customize or create new templates based on their workflow. Understanding and experimenting with these templates can help writers optimize their project organization and take full advantage of Scrivener’s capabilities.

https://www.literatureandlatte.com/blog/understanding-scriveners-default-templates-what-each-one-contains

It Takes Two to Duo

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iA Writer and iA Presenter have been updated to fully support the new iPhone Duo, adapting to its dual-screen design by optimizing for both the inner and outer displays. iA Writer embraces a minimalistic “baby typewriter” interface for fast, focused writing, while iA Presenter allows users to write and present slides in plain text directly from their phone without additional equipment. These enhancements aim to leverage the unfolded screen for improved usability, offering a fresh approach to writing and presenting on the go.

https://ia.net/topics/it-takes-two-to-duo

Critique and Writing

Cory Doctorow emphasizes that the most valuable aspect of a writing workshop is the act of critiquing other writers’ work, which cultivates critical skills that improve one’s own writing more effectively than receiving feedback. He argues that while editorial notes or AI-generated feedback can help fix individual stories, consistent peer-based critique fosters the creative instincts and discipline necessary to develop a sustainable body of work. Doctorow outlines key principles and structures for effective peer workshops and contrasts their benefits with the limitations of relying solely on AI editorial feedback.

https://pluralistic.net/2026/10/23/better-to-give/#than-to-receive

Finishing Your First Draft with Scrivener

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Scrivener offers several features to help writers complete the first draft of their novels by supporting regular writing habits, setting word count targets, and tracking progress with statistics and writing history tools. The article emphasizes that a first draft should be a rough but coherent scaffold of the story, encouraging use of story structures like Save the Cat to manage plot and pacing. After finishing the draft, Scrivener also aids the revision process through tools like revision mode, annotations, and comments to refine the manuscript over multiple drafts.

https://www.literatureandlatte.com/blog/finishing-your-first-draft-with-scrivener

TextEdit Vs. Pages

Dr. Drang compares TextEdit and Pages, favoring Pages for word processing despite Allison Sheridan’s praise of TextEdit. He critiques TextEdit’s always-visible, non-customizable toolbar and coarse zoom controls, while highlighting Pages’ customizable, space-efficient toolbar and useful document templates. Although TextEdit uses less memory, Drang prefers Pages’ flexibility and styling features for one-off documents.

https://leancrew.com/all-this/2026/10/textedit-vs-pages/

Michel Chaouli: “Do You Actually Have to Finish That Novel?”

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Michel Chaouli explores the moral pressure readers feel to finish novels, examining the tension between the impulse to complete a book and the freedom to abandon it. He argues that a novel’s end shapes its entire narrative by bestowing meaning on preceding events, much like how death retrospectively defines a life, and that this structural demand explains both the reader’s compulsion to reach the conclusion and the significance we derive from it.

https://yalereview.org/article/michel-chaouli-ending-it

What Makes a Good First Draft of a Novel?

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The first draft of a novel serves as the foundational scaffolding of a story, containing the essential elements such as the main plot arc, point of view, characters, setting, and dialogue, though none need to be fully polished or finalized. Writers are encouraged to include major story events and character motivations while leaving room to revise or add details later, using notes and placeholders to maintain writing momentum. This approach views the first draft as a discovery process rather than a finished product, supporting subsequent revisions that deepen and refine the narrative.

https://www.literatureandlatte.com/blog/what-makes-a-good-first-draft-of-a-novel

Pangram: AI Detector for ChatGPT, Claude & Gemini

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Pangram offers an AI detection tool that identifies AI-generated and AI-assisted text with over 99.98% accuracy, verified by independent research from institutions like the University of Chicago and the University of Maryland. It supports detection of content from major language models including ChatGPT, Claude, Gemini, and Llama across 20+ languages, and integrates with platforms such as Google Docs, Chrome, and learning management systems, helping educators, publishers, and enterprises maintain content authenticity. Pangram combines AI detection with plagiarism checking and provides detailed analyses, segment highlights, and ongoing model updates to adapt to the latest AI-generated writing styles and tools.

https://www.pangram.com/

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