you still haven’t AUTOMATED Scrivener? 🤖

So, you’ve tamed the chaos. Your Scrivener Binder is no longer a digital junk drawer, and that creeping sense of angst has subsided. Good for you. But organization is just the beginning.

It’s time to level up. To make your life even easier. Together, we’re going to build a system of structural document templates. This automated workflow will let you transform ideas into stories without fighting with your favorite writing app. By the time we’re done, you’ll have a mercilessly efficient and exponentially simple system for your writing. Here is exactly how to engineer your Scrivener setup so you can stop wrestling with folders and documents and start writing.

If your Binder still looks like a crime scene, you might want to read this article first:

First, we need a place to store our templates. Enter the “Template Sheets” folder. This is a special folder, which means you can’t just create it and chuck things inside. You have to make it special. The good news is, most Scrivener projects already have one. If yours doesn’t, fear not. We’ll make one together now.

1. Create the Templates Folder: Look at your Binder (the left-hand sidebar). Scroll down to the bottom, outside of your “Manuscript” and “Research” folders.

2. Add a New Folder: Click the + icon and name this new folder “Templates.”

   

3. Make it Official: Go to Project > Project Settings > Special Folders.

   

4. Set your new “Templates” folder as the designated templates folder. The icon will magically change to a blue “T”.

Now, Scrivener knows precisely where to find your building blocks.

Here’s the fun part, we are going to create four structural building blocks inside your new Templates folder.

1. The Scene Template: Create a standard text document (not a folder) in your Templates folder and name it “Scene Template.”