How do you manage your text files during revision?

Sure it is. You can get it from Corel. I use WPX6. Maybe I'll upgrade to WPX7, if I feel like I have the cash.

To answer the OP: I have each of my MSS in one WordPerfect file. There's no way I could keep track of the files or the continuity if I had a separate file for each chapter. How can you read through and see how the story is flowing that way? Not to mention doing book-wide searches for consistency errors. But then, I write rather short chapters, maybe 1,200 to 2,500 words each.

I name my novel files as "YYYY_MMDD--Novel Title.wpd." Every so often, when I'm about to make a major revision or simply when the spirit moves me, I do a Save As, giving the new file the current day's date. Every less often, I move the old versions to a separate folder.

I use Carbonite for backup, and have had to use it to completely restore my files more than once. And Dropbox, to make the MS available on both my PCs.

As for skipping chapters, I've done that. I just write in a brief synopsis of what needs to happen in the intervening and yet-unwritten chapters, and get on with writing the later ones I have inspiration for. Sometimes that helps me understand what needs to happen in the "previous" chapters, so they're easier to write.

 

One approach (applicable to what you already have) would be to make a few folder (new directory if you're not using Windows) and copy (not move) all your first draft files into that new folder. Work on those instead of the originals.

As for how I deal with this...

First of all, I keep all chapters in one file. In fact, I don't really deal in chapters as such until the draft is done. I just drop in a centred octathorp ('#') to signify a break and deal with chapters later.

First day of writing, I create a file and use that day's date at the end of the filename. I do it this way so the files are always in order by date when they appear in Windows File Explorer (which I highly recommend you get to know if you don't already use it). For instance, the first file I created for my WIP was: Aliens Don't Bend at the Knees - 2015-01-08

At the end of each day's writing, I make a new copy of the file (just using Save As... in MS Word) and change the date to the next day. So, at the end of the first day of writing, I saved a copy as: Aliens Don't Bend at the Knees - 2015-01-09 and that's what I used on the second day.

And I kept that up all the way through until the final day of writing that draft, the filename became: Aliens Don't Bend at the Knees - 2015-01-23

As for folder hierarchy, it's like this:
- writing
-- novels
--- Aliens Don't Bend at the Knees
---- Draft 001
---- Draft 002
---- .etc

As might be expected, all the first draft files go into Draft 001 (I use three digits in case it turns into a life-long quest to get the damned thing done.)

When I'm ready to start the second draft, I copy the last file from the Draft 001 folder into (are you ready for this?) Draft 002 and start from there for the second draft.

 

Here's a quick way to get them all set to the same formatting:
- put them all into one file (natch)
- select all (Ctrl-A)
- from the Style drop-down menu in the toolbar, select "Clear Formatting"
- then, with everything still selected, go into Format > Paragraph and do your thing.

Saves lots of time.

 

Oh, yeah, back-ups.

I have two computers in the house, so a copy goes on each. Then I make a third copy on a USB drive I keep in my pocket (in case the building's on fire and I have to make a run for it).

I used to do email back-ups, but my Google mailbox was starting to show the strain. Come to think of it, I recently set up an email account under my pen name, so I suppose I could email to that instead.

 

I used to use sync software, but since Windows 10 took over, I'm getting a lot of file permission headaches. Are these addressed in GoodSync?

Every time Windows changes a major version number, I run into this. (Damn my UNIX background.) And by the time I figure out Microsoft's new wounded-brain approach to security, they've updated the damned thing again. (sigh)

 

Isn't TNR acceptable for submissions these days? That's what I've read on most of the submission guidelines I've slogged through.

 

TNR is fine. I think the poster was talking about actually formatting for publication - like, self-publishing.

 

Ah! Okay. Not being interested in self-publishing ATM, I didn't think of that. Thanks for clearing that up.

 

Interesting to see lots of people do the same as me. When I'm writing the draft I have a separate file for each chapter. I find it easier to edit short documents: scrolling through large documents with a trackpad is frustrating. At the end of each day I replace any edited chapters in the master manuscript and save it with that day's date.

I've learned to save each version, because I often realise a rewrite was a mistake and restore them.

Once I'm at the tinkering rather than rewriting stage, I do it in the main document.

 

Thanks! Will definitely try that!

 

I pre-set my formatting before I start a new document in MS Word. I write in a single document and write my chapters in order, as I have already planned out the flow of the story manually.

I save a copy onto a memory stick and email individual chapters to my brother for safe keeping, and he always confirms he has them. That way if my laptop dies, as has happened, and my memory stick s corrupt, which has happened, although not both at the same time, I still have a backup.

If I have a section I struggle with I put a series of xxxxxx in and come back to it later. In edit stage I search for xxx to make sure I haven't missed any.

 

No worries, @EdFromNY. Glad to help.

If it's not obvious, you'll want to recheck all your hard pages (to make sure your chapter breaks survived) after doing the formatting.

 

Yes, clearly.

 

Hi,

Multiple questions here. First I use Libre Office 5.0 - saving everything as Word 2000 for simplicity's sake. I put my books in their entirity in it as one file. Having separate files for separate chapters would confuse the hell out of me and make the whole thing unworkable as it destroyed the books flow. I want if I'm writing in one part of a book to be able to fact check elsewhere instantly - eg did this guy have a moustache - and I can do that simply by searching.

If I change a book significantly, eg wiping out and replacing large chunks of the novel - and I have done so - I make the changes in a renamed file so that the original still exists if I change my mind.

Saving back ups is done through a dvd writer which I try to do every month, and a stick drive, which I should back up to every day.

As for slowing down the laptop, there's only one occasion on which this happens - when I get an edit back from my editor with track changes on. That utterly destroys my save times etc and at the beginning with a new novel a save which normally takes a second might take two minutes. (It's a real nuisance at that point to have the autosave feature on!)

As for word lengths - ignore them. You're still writing your first draft, they are completely unimportant. When it comes to revisions and beta reads and edits, you can think about adding or subtracting words. Not at this stage.

Also 250k is big - for a publisher to look at. But if you self publish it's fine. Novels can go to around 350k and still fit in a paper book. I have two novels sitting at this length, and my shortest is 47k. That's the joy of indie publishing and ebooks - you can be free.

Cheers, Greg.

 

My management is just a little minimalistic. I'll have three documents; one for characters, one for story, and of course, the first draft itself. If something is to do with story and I need to note it, it'll go into the story text, if it's something I need to reference for a character, it goes into the character text. It helps me keep track of stuff.

 

I like Google Docs, I extensively use the comments feature. My wife and I also like to edit together and because she uses a QWERTY keyboard and I use a Dvorak one, it's easier to edit together on two different computers than constantly switch the layout.

 

FOLDER: WRITING>FOLDERS: SHORT STORIES/SCRIPTS/FLASH FICTION>FOLDERS: (TITLE OF SPECIFIC WORK)>DOCUMENTS: (TITLE DRAFT #1,2,3etc.)

A great line from Draft 3 might be better utilized in Draft 93. Don't waste your precious words and you'll be grateful when Writer's Block sets in.

 

Mine is about the same size as yours, 242K/798 pages. On the first draft, I kept the chapters as a separate file, EagleCH1, etc. I don't think I would do this again, as it turned out to be unnecessary. However I had some beta readers then following me in near real time, so it was easier to shoot them a chapter than the whole thing. I have been sloppy management my research notes, and need to get that organized, along with graphics, maps and stuff.

After the first draft was finished, all the chapters went into a single folder called REV0, and I combined all of the chapters into one document REV 0. And that document I formatted and did a SPaG check (coarse edit) and added a table of contents. That makes navigating the document for editing much easier, just ctl-click to get to a specific chapter. When I was ready to do a fine edit, I saved the master in a new folder as REV1, and went through it to do major rewriting and that became REV1. This was repeated several times, and I am now up to REV 5. Important that you don't throw the old versions away. Sometimes something you deleted in one revision may be useful in another chapter (did that once) or maybe even in another WIP in the future.

I also put the date and revision number in the header (appears on each page), so I know if I am looking at a paper copy, that it is the latest version. However because the length of mine, I seldom print out a paper copy, except for my professional editor, and I do it two sided, so it is slow!

My wife and I exchange edits in track changes mode, I usually accept my own deletions, so she just sees the changed text, her edits come back with both changes, additions and deletions, which I either accept, further edit or reject, as I see fit. Doing the revs we exchanged the full master, and I just told her what chapters to edit. And I could find her edits easily by using track changes 'accept' to get to her first delta.

Good that you think about this, as configuration management can get quite problematic if it gets out of hand.

 

I just keep fine tuning the first draft, so as to avoid having a trillion extra files on the same thing. All the extra files eat up precious space I would rather have for other things.

 

I'm curious, has anyone here ever used "versioning tools?" In software, we have tools that manage versions for us automatically and allow us to got back in time day by day, tag versions that are important, and branch into multiple versions of the same thing, then merge them back together. I've thought about using this in writing too.