Struggling with storyboard / index cards

[WGee1985]

I'm letting my 12 year old fangirl run free and am doing a 30 day challenge for NaNoWriMo (SherlockBBC fandom or Cabin Pressure for the Cumbercollective members in the forums - haven't quite decided yet).

 

I chose my 30 prompts and put them on index cards in a storyboard so I could play with the order/color code, etc. When I did that, they became sections in a document. If I change a single thing on that document, I lose the index card. (Let's not talk about the fact that I have an entire document filled with nothing but section separators and no idea what section should go with each card.)

 

Is there a way to make each index card a chapter - without having to go back and create chapters/recreate the cards?

[Steve]

Hi WGee1985,

Welcome to the forums.

I'm letting my 12 year old fangirl run free and am doing a 30 day challenge for NaNoWriMo (SherlockBBC fandom or Cabin Pressure for the Cumbercollective members in the forums - haven't quite decided yet).

Good luck!

I chose my 30 prompts and put them on index cards in a storyboard so I could play with the order/color code, etc. When I did that, they became sections in a document.

Yes, index cards are linked to the sections of the manuscript they represent. Think of them as card catalog entries for the text they are attached to.

If I change a single thing on that document, I lose the index card.

You shouldn't lose the card by typing, but if you do delete the text the card is attached to, the card will be deleted too. They're linked.

(Let's not talk about the fact that I have an entire document filled with nothing but section separators and no idea what section should go with each card.)

There are a couple of ways to see this:

• Position the cursor in a section causes the section title to be displayed in the navigation bar. This title is the title of your card.
• Split a view such that your manuscript is shown in one half and the index cards in the other. Option+clicking on either the section text or the card causes the corresponding item to be selected in other open split view.

Is there a way to make each index card a chapter - without having to go back and create chapters/recreate the cards?

There isn't a mechanism to automatically change all sections to chapters directly. However, in your case, there is a clever hack if you're running Storyist 2.4.3 or later.

1. Export your existing manuscript as a Fountain file. This will create a plain text file named something like "My Manuscript.fountain."
2. Open "My Manuscript.fountain" in a plain text editor.
3. Do a global search and replace of ".Section" with "# Chapter" and save the file.
4. Import "My Manuscript.fountain." Your index cards should now be chapter cards.

-Steve

[WGee1985]

Hi Steve,

 

Thank you for the quick response!

 

 

Yes, index cards are linked to the sections of the manuscript they represent. Think of them as card catalog entries for the text they are attached to.

You shouldn't lose the card by typing, but if you do delete the text the card is attached to, the card will be deleted too. They're linked.

 

That explains a lot - being forced to pick a document template and then writing index cards willy nilly could make a bit of a mess if you're not paying attention to the fact that you're only in Chapter 1.

 

 

 

There are a couple of ways to see this:

• Position the cursor in a section causes the section title to be displayed in the navigation bar. This title is the title of your card.
• Split a view such that your manuscript is shown in one half and the index cards in the other. Option+clicking on either the section text or the card causes the corresponding item to be selected in other open split view.

 

Yeah, I tried that. Still had issues with deleting and making chapters.

 

 

 

There isn't a mechanism to automatically change all sections to chapters directly. However, in your case, there is a clever hack if you're running Storyist 2.4.3 or later.

1. Export your existing manuscript as a Fountain file. This will create a plain text file named something like "My Manuscript.fountain."
2. Open "My Manuscript.fountain" in a plain text editor.
3. Do a global search and replace of ".Section" with "# Chapter" and save the file.
4. Import "My Manuscript.fountain." Your index cards should now be chapter cards.

 

 

This hack almost worked - I lost the cards that didn't have any text on them, just the chapter name. There were a few of those.

 

I hate forums / emails because I always feel like I'm struggling to explain myself. (I'm a writer and don't have the words - brilliant!!!)

 

Let's see if pictures are better than words: I'd like to have a workspace like this, but have each card be a chapter.

 

Does that make sense? Is it possible?

 

[Steve]

Hi WGee1985,

 

Thanks for the screenshot.

 

Since you've already got quite a few index cards, the easiest way to accomplish this is to use Fountain. Try this:

1. Export "CP 30 Day OTP Challenge" as a Fountain file.
2. Move any index card text (synopses) to just beneath the chapter titles (sections).
3. Reimport your Fountain file into your Storyist project.

After step 2, your Fountain file should look something like this:

 

 

Title: CP 30 Day OTP Challenge

Author: WGee1985

Type: Novel

#1 - HOLDING HANDS

= While waiting for an airport shuttle…

#2 - CUDDLING SOMEWHERE

= C walks into the…

#3 - WATCHING A MOVIE

= And so on…

 

 

-Steve

[WGee1985]

Thank you, Steve! You rock!