Novelist is an app and website that allows you to keep digital ‘notebooks’, similar to programs such as OneNote and Scrivener. You can create separate sections, labels and documents, and then compile it into three different formats.
Before delving into the rest of the review, I’d like to say that I haven’t be subsidised for this review nor have I been paid to do it. This review contains my own thoughts and feelings towards the product.
First Impressions
When I decided to download the app, I’d been searching for a mobile substitute for Scrivener since they haven’t brought out an Android app. I’d come across three or four different ones, but I’d taken a chance on this one first. At first glance I’d been disappointed you couldn’t directly access your Google Drive, nor could you export your documents into a .doc or .docx file, but I’d persevered because I needed to be able to organise my thoughts on the go.
Digging Deeper
I’d taken a break from exploring the app since I didn’t think I had any way of backing up my files unless I saved it as a .novel extension, and I didn’t want to clog up my device. My second attempt at using the app led me to find that you could connect it to your Google Drive, the files just won’t show up on there. It’s called ‘pushing’ and ‘pulling’ the ‘books’, which means they become hidden files connected to your Google account and you can access them on any device via the Novelist app or website.
This was a game changer since I didn’t need to back it up in order to access it on my computer, I could simply jump straight back into my plotting and planning. Pushing and pulling the books are manual, they don’t automatically save to your Google account, nor do they automatically update when you open them on another device.
The ability to add labels, link relationships and create your own metadata for characters, themes, and other categories in the ‘Plot’ tab is more than I expected for a completely free app and website. There’re no advertisements and there’s no option to upgrade to premium — you get everything for nothing at all.
Improvements
If I could suggest improvements, it would be to allow someone to log in and log out of their Google accounts. Once you’ve connected a Google account, you can’t remove it, so anyone on the device can access your WIPs and edit them.
Another suggestion would be the ability to compile into a .doc or .docx document. Novelist uses standard formatting for manuscripts but being able to adjust the formatting yourself isn’t an option on the app or website. To prevent the app and website for becoming too complicated, it would be a good idea to allow it to be exported into a universal document type.
Conclusion
For a free app, Novelist is full of all the features you’d need to plan and write your WIPs. Everything comes as standard with no premium option and no advertisements, so you can focus on writing your books without a paywall. The positives of the app outweigh the negatives and I’d recommend everyone try it. If you don’t like it, you’ve not lost anything!
I’ve rated the customer support/communication three stars as I’ve not had to reach out to them. However, the only social media (alongside their support email) they have available on their help page is Facebook. Social media isn’t necessary, but it feels a lot more accessible to be able to interact with developers, companies, and creators via Twitter.
Rating Breakdown
Ease of Use: ★★★★★
Features: ★★★★☆
Customer Support/Communication: ★★★☆☆
Price: ★★★★★
