Scrivener Tips
Scrivener is the software that I use to write my books. I love it and I'm not being paid to say that. There's a learning curve to it though. Once one learns how to use it, it's difficult to consider using any other writing program.
Below are some esoteric tips for how to accomplish certain tasks in Scrivener. I decided to put it on my website mainly so I can easily find it again. These are functions that I don't do frequently, sometimes just once for a whole book. So, you can understand how I might forget. I use MacOS, but the Windows version should be similar.
Scene Separator Graphics
Especially for print editions, when you have multiple scenes in a chapter, it's recommended to include a separator. To make a professional book design, I use graphical separators. One source of free graphics is Pixelbay. Just search for flourishes or separators. Once you find one, download it. I simplify the name to something like divider.png, then add it to the Scrivener binder. Make a root level folder called Graphics, then drag the divider file into it.
Next, select File/Compile... and in the section layouts, find the Scene layout. In the upper right of that panel, click the tiny edit icon. Then click Edit "Section Text" Layout. On the left side, select Separators. For the entry that is labeled "Separator between sections," choose Custom. In the text box, type: <$img:divider;w=100;h=25>
This will create a divider between scenes that is 100 points wide, 25 points tall. You don't include the .png on the file name, just type divider. You also don't have to reference the Graphics folder, but it makes it cleaner in the binder. Click Save and you're good to go. Compile it and view the magic of professional looking dividers.
Drop Caps for Chapters
Scrivener doesn't do drop caps. It's sad but true. Therefore, if I want drop caps as the first letter of the first word of each chapter, I have to use Microsoft Word or similar. So, I compile to a .docx file, then go to each chapter and put in the drop cap. Drop Cap is on the Insert panel toward the right side. Sometimes I use a different font for that letter. I created a keyboard macro to simplify it. Each time I compile, I just go to each chapter, position the cursor next to the first letter, then hit Control-1, which is the keyboard shortcut I assigned. It selects the first letter, changes the font, then inserts the drop cap. This is one of the few areas where Scrivener frustrates me. Maybe a future version will support this feature.
Cleaning Up Text
When you're ready to publish, be it ebooks or print, you'll want to make sure your manuscript is devoid of whitespace (extra spaces at the ends of paragraphs or scenes, blank lines, etc.) and places where you have two spaces in a row.
For those places where you have spaces at the end of paragraphs, you'll need to use a find/replace. First, using scrivenings mode, make sure you can see your entire manuscript.
Two spaces is an easy fix: select Edit/Text Tidying/Replace Multiple Spaces with Single Spaces.
Next, hit Cmd-F to bring up the dialog. For the find phrase type: \.\s\n and for the replace phrase type: \.\n
You then need to change the Find Options to be: Regular Expressions(RegEx). Then click Find. Don't Replace All. Do one at a time and make sure it doesn't mess anything up. It can.
Fonts and Rights
There's an aspect of fonts, or more properly, typefaces, are something that many writers may ignore: Just because a font is on your computer doesn't mean you can publish a book with it. Fonts must be licensed. Fortunately, there's a free alternative. Google Fonts are typically royalty free, even for commercial use. While I like to write using the lovely Palatino font, when it's time to publish, Scrivener can compile my manuscript with a different font. I find that the one called EB Garamonde makes a nice print book.