Suggestions, Dana? Or do I just weep?
The Great Write Way, Chapter Two: Twice upon a time...
A place for Buffistas to discuss, beta and otherwise deal and dish on their non-fan fiction projects.
Definitely avoid Master Document. I've never heard anything good about it. I like the idea of keeping chapters in separate documents. You might also have an easier time with long documents (100 pages or more) if you don't have a lot of formatting. The stuff I work with usually has lots of numbered lists and the like, and they have a bad tendency to reset themselves or change numbers spontaneously.
Edit: And, of course, save constantly and back up obsessively.
I never use Master Document and I work with 100+ page docs all the time. With my largest doc (300+ pages) I keep it in separate chapters when in draft and then put it in one document at the end and add the table of contents and that's worked out pretty well. I never, ever use automatic numbering (except for page numbers in the footers). That's a recipe for fuckedupedness.
I can't believe there isn't a program like what screenplay writers use.
I like Master Document when I can remember how to use it.
Of course, long docs in Word are also notoriously buggy.
I've been lucky, but then, there's no graphics or tricky formatting or anything for straight fiction submission format; it's my Word doc default and it's yet to mess with me.
I imagine that a document with graphics, imported text, bullets, footnotes etc would have the potential to be buggy as hell.
I use a separate document for each chapter and then create my own master document. Word's is aw.ful.
This does mean that I have to print and collate manually, but the ToC and index are in the master and they come out right.
BTW, I've got a story - The Gravekeeper, based on "Long Black Veil", in this anthology.
This will likely be the first in a series of these, assuming it sells. Second would likely be Bob Dylan, and that one might have stories by both erika and me.
So here's hoping it sells.
I imagine that a document with graphics, imported text, bullets, footnotes etc would have the potential to be buggy as hell.
Sobs.
IOW Yup.
Question - if you do chapters in seperate documents, how do manage cross referencing on end notes?
how do manage cross referencing on end notes?
umm...I don't have end notes. I imagine that would be a pain.