MAC Writing Tools

Try these MAC writing tools below for writing long documents.

1. BBEdit

BBEdit is a proprietary text editor made by Bare Bones Software. It was originally developed for Macintosh System Software 6 and is now available for Mac OS X. BBEdit is marketed under the trademark slogan, “It doesn’t suck.”

2. OmniOutliner

OmniOutliner is commercial outlining software for Mac OS X produced by The Omni Group. OmniOutliner has most features of a conventional outliner, allowing the user to create nested lists of topics for almost any purpose, but has additional features extending its functionality beyond simple outlining. Recent versions of the software are universal binaries. OmniOutliner received a Special Mention in the 2005 Apple Design Awards, and MacWorld gave the “Professional” version its highest rating.

3. WriteRoom

For people who enjoy the simplicity of a typewriter, but live in the digital world. WriteRoom is a distraction free writing environment. Unlike the cluttered word processors you’re used to, WriteRoom lets you focus on writing. Requires Mac OS X 10.4 or later

4. Storyist

Storyist is designed exclusively for Mac OS X. Storyist is a powerful story development tool for novelists and screenwriters. Remove the distractions and focus on your writing with full-screen editing view. Annotate your text with sticky-note style comments. Assemble collages of photos and index cards to visualize the relationships between your story elements. Use the new Workspaces manager to take snapshots of your window configurations for easy recall.

5. StoryMill

StoryMill (originally Avenir) is a text editor designed for fiction writers. It provides scene, chapter and character management capabilities along with the ability to annotate text and a claimed industry-first timeline view. Avenir was developed by Todd Ransom, of Return Self Software, who also developed Montage, a Mac screenwriting application, for Mariner Software. From version 3, Avenir is being “republished” by Mariner, as StoryMill.

6. Scrivener

Scrivener is a word processing program designed for writers. Scrivener contains a document, note and metadata managing system allowing the user to keep track of notes, concepts, research and whole documents for reference (documents including text, images, PDF, audio, video, web pages, etc.). After the user has written their piece, they may export it to their favorite word processor for formatting.

Video Comparison of the Writing Tools