I've taken to using Google Docs & Spreadsheets for a large part of my writing lately, and I can say simply that it has a lot to recommend it.
What Works?
- It's free. So all you risk to give it a try is your time.
- It's web-based, meaning anywhere you go--assuming you've got a web connection--your word processor and your documents go with you.
- It has a nice built-in document versioning feature. At any time, you can revert to any save point. It also has a view that allows you to see the changes you've made between saves.
- It has nice collaboration tools. It's easy to allow others to view and/or edit your documents with you.
- It has very shallow learning curve. It's not the most feature-rich word processor in the world. But that's more virtue than vice when it comes to writing fiction. We don't need four-thousand formatting options, tables, a clip-art editor, snaking columns, and a slow-witted grammar checker. Instead, we need basic fonts, double-spacing, word count, and spell checking. Docs & Spreadsheets provides these features and more.
- It both reads and writes to a wide range of formats.
How do I get it?
All it takes to get hold of Docs & Spreadsheets is an active gmail account, which is another great free service from Google.
