oStorybook

Book authors have benefited a lot from the increased number of available digital tools, more-so in the area of plot and character management. The new text editors have largely removed the need for drawing boards and other conventional methods of keeping track of novel elements. For anyone who wants such a writer's aid, oStorybook presents itself as a viable and practical solution.

Specifically, the program can record and manage most of the core elements of a good novel, such as the characters (including the relationships between them), locations, scenes, parts, as well as any auxiliary items. More-so, the application automatically generates graphical representations of the book's framework, based on all the dependencies created by users.

Although the program might seem complex and unwieldy at start – largely due to the multiple menu items available, newcomers should rest assured, as adding new plot elements is very easy to do. Numerous fields store all the required data and to insert a new character, for example, one needs only to define all the corresponding personal details.

Once parts, scenes, and chapters have been built, users can also link their newly created book elements to these items and at each step of the way authors can add notes. Ample text boxes hold the intricate plot lines and simple statistics are always in sight in the bottom status bar.

Informative standard and Gantt charts are automatically created based on all the input data and, once satisfied with their work, authors can export projects to CSV, HTML, PDF or XML formats.

In conclusion, oStorybook is a practical writer's aid that can be highly valuable to anyone involved in writing novels. The utility keeps track of all the major book elements, including plots, characters, locations, and scenes.