# Writer apps for iPad?



## CathyQuinn (Dec 9, 2010)

I took the plunge and have a shiny new iPad!     

Can anyone recommend handy/fun apps for writers? I have to justify this somehow....


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## Thumper (Feb 26, 2009)

Pages for the iPad is a decent word processor...


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## RaineThomas (Aug 2, 2011)

I find the iPad impossible to use for serious writing. I have not tried it with an external keyboard, maybe I could handle that. Pages is a good app, especially if you have the Mac version to send the documents to for editing.

Best use for the iPad I've found as a writer has been browsing Kindle Boards!


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## mooshie78 (Jul 15, 2010)

Yeah if you get a bluetooth keyboard then pages is pretty decent if you're just writing novels or other pure text things.  And some have posted that they're ok with the on screen keyboard.  I hate it for anything more than typing a url in a browser etc. personally as I'm super slow on it, where as I'm quite fast on a real keyboard.

Pages and the other options aren't very good if you need to make more complex documents with more than text--i.e. lots of tables, figures etc. as formatting on that stuff tends to get messed up when you take it back into Word on a PC.  Probably not an issue if you just uses Pages on a Mac though.


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## tdmsu (Feb 5, 2010)

I agree with the above that Pages works very well, especially with at bluetooth keyboard, but I can type pretty well on the iPad, too.

If you are looking for a very different writing experience, look at iaWriter. It is only about writing, no formatting or font changes allowed. It greys out all but the last three lines you are writing as a way to help you focus on what you are writing.
You would have to use dropbox to sync the file, or email the text to another computer to do any formatting work later, but in the moment it works surprisingly well. I'm not affiliated with them, just pointing out a different kind of option. I mostly use Pages because it more easily plays with my laptop version of Pages.

Here is a link to iawriter if you are interested:
http://www.informationarchitects.jp/en/writer-for-ipad/


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## mattposner (Oct 28, 2010)

Maybe just me, but I find it hard to type on the ipad because whenever I try to hit the spacebar, I wind up hitting the c or v key. Then I get a composite word and the spell-checker auto-corrects it. The spell-checker's autocorrect is really annoying on the ipad also. Plus, the ipad is not designed as a storage device and it is not the easiest thing to port information on and off of it, although I suspect it can be done if you know what you're doing.

Best wishes,

Matt


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## mooshie78 (Jul 15, 2010)

Yeah, the auto-correct drove me nuts so I turned it off.  A typo is usually at least still understandable.  Whatever word the auto-correct decides to change it to?  Not so much.


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## kindlemama (Jan 5, 2010)

RaineThomas said:


> I find the iPad impossible to use for serious writing. I have not tried it with an external keyboard, maybe I could handle that. Pages is a good app, especially if you have the Mac version to send the documents to for editing.


Would you tell me the correct way to send documents from Pages on iPad to a Mac? The only way we could figure out how to do it was to email it. We even asked the Mac guy at Best Buy and then again at the Apple store, and were told emailing was the easiest way both times. Is there a better way?


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## BrentKnowles (Mar 8, 2011)

I can write first draft material on the iPad using an external keyboard (I find the touch screen keyboard only useful for quick emails and whatnot).

I can't write second draft material even with the external keyboard though because it is too hard to select text and make corrections.

(BTW I use PlainText which syncs to dropbox and that served me pretty well on a recent vacation).


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## RaineThomas (Aug 2, 2011)

kindlemama said:


> Would you tell me the correct way to send documents from Pages on iPad to a Mac? The only way we could figure out how to do it was to email it. We even asked the Mac guy at Best Buy and then again at the Apple store, and were told emailing was the easiest way both times. Is there a better way?


I don't actually use it for that, so I don't know, but my geeky husband says you can export the document from Pages on the iPad and then use iTunes to transfer. He then added, "But it's easier to just email it."

And yeah, the auto-correct on my iPhone drive me nuts. Never try and type an acronym.


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## kindlemama (Jan 5, 2010)

RaineThomas said:


> I don't actually use it for that, so I don't know, but my geeky husband says you can export the document from Pages on the iPad and then use iTunes to transfer. He then added, "But it's easier to just email it."
> 
> And yeah, the auto-correct on my iPhone drive me nuts. Never try and type an acronym.


Thank you!


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## mooshie78 (Jul 15, 2010)

Dropbox is another easy way to share files for many apps.  I'm not sure if it works with Pages though.  I've only used Pages on my girlfriend's iPad, and it didn't fit my needs, so I didn't buy it for my own.

Dropbox you just download the app to the iPad and install the program on your PC and you can share files that way.  In iPad apps that support it there's a drop box option in the same place of the menu where you go to e-mail files etc.

I love the program and use it a ton to keep files synched between my home and work PCs as well as getting PDFs etc. on and off my iPad.


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## Sharon Red (Jul 23, 2011)

I highly recommend pages with an external keyboard.  I am almost 100% able to use this to write instead of a laptop/PC.

Besides that, I love Scrabble and I use to play Words With Friends a lot.


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## journeymama (May 30, 2011)

I originally got the iPad for writing work- but I find it hard- the only way to transfer stuff from Pages is email. Dropbox works for downloading and uploading photos, but not uploading from pages.


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## robertk328 (Jul 8, 2011)

RaineThomas said:


> Best use for the iPad I've found as a writer has been browsing Kindle Boards!


Tapatalk on iPad rocks 

I think to do a lot of writing the external keyboard is a must.


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## robertk328 (Jul 8, 2011)

journeymama said:


> I originally got the iPad for writing work- but I find it hard- the only way to transfer stuff from Pages is email. Dropbox works for downloading and uploading photos, but not uploading from pages.


If you have pages on your Mac soon they will sync automatically.


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## corkyb (Apr 25, 2009)

Do I have to buy pages for my macbook pro and then buy it again for ipad?  I never purchased it for the macbook as I have Word to use for work.  But I would like a way to sync automatically between my ipad and my macbook.  I have Dropbox, but am not sure what application to use with it.  

Does anyone use logmein?  I had a trial version and it is expensive to purchase, but I ws wondering how good it is and what it does exactly?  I only used it a few times.


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## kindlemama (Jan 5, 2010)

robertk328 said:


> If you have pages on your Mac soon they will sync automatically.


Any idea when?


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## robertk328 (Jul 8, 2011)

kindlemama said:


> Any idea when?


I think it has to do with iCloud they're testing now. I would imagine with iOS 5


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## kindlemama (Jan 5, 2010)

robertk328 said:


> I think it has to do with iCloud they're testing now. I would imagine with iOS 5


Thank you. : )


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## Sharon Red (Jul 23, 2011)

kindlemama said:


> Any idea when?


I heard sometime in September but that is a rumor from my friend!


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## derekgentry (Jul 8, 2010)

These days, I'm writing everything-blog posts, grocery lists, my next novel-in Evernote, which I have on my iPad, my iPhone, and two different PCs.

Every time I make a change to a note, it syncs back to their server so I always have the most updated doc at my fingertips wherever I am. So if I'm in a meeting, and the right word or the right scene finally comes to me, I can add it to the live draft of whatever I'm working on right from my phone. I love it!

I hear you on the touchscreen typing and autocorrect issues though-my latest blog post is about that very thing: it's called I Stand Autocorrwcted


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## Betsy the Quilter (Oct 27, 2008)

CathyQuinn said:


> I took the plunge and have a shiny new iPad!
> 
> Can anyone recommend handy/fun apps for writers? I have to justify this somehow....


Cathy-

I use BlogPress to do my blog posts. It works well and will also announce your new post on on your FaceBook and Twitter accounts if you want it to. I find it easy to use. I use the Apple bluetooth keyboard for any lengthy writing (using it now from our hotel in the Olympic NP, Washington). I frequently use the iPad set up next to my PC so I can work on two things at once, or watch True Blood while I work on my PC. 

There are a couple of text apps that integrate with DropBox for writing. I use Evernote a lot for sending notes and web clippings as I find things I think useful. I also use SpringPad similarly for different subjects. There are all kinds of organizers/to do list apps, you can find one that suits the way you think. My current favorite is ThinkBook.



corkyb said:


> Does anyone use logmein? I had a trial version and it is expensive to purchase, but I ws wondering how good it is and what it does exactly? I only used it a few times.


Corkyb--I have logmein; and I believe several people who frequent this iThing section also have it. It does go on sale everynow and then. It allows you to remotely open files on your PC and run them through a virtual connection on your iPad. Some folks here use it to run games that aren't available for the iPad. I've used it to access files that weren't in my DropBox account.

Betsy


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## mikelewis (May 31, 2011)

I have recently started using a Bluetooth keyboard with my iPad and settled on documents2go as a word processor as I can edit word documents which is what I usually write in on a pc. Though I am still finding some features in d2go annoying such as the tab indenting the entire paragraph instead of just the first line.

Mike


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## Randirogue (Apr 25, 2011)

Think it's hard to write on your iPad?

I do it all the time via emails on my iPhone. lol.

I wake up in the middle of the night with a scene pinging me.  I grab my phone, start an email to myself, and type out the scene so I don't forget and can get back to sleep.  I do it at work, on the train, etc. - whenever it's not convenient to access my computer.  

If I am ever blessed enough to get an iPad, I suspect it will be a dream to type out scenes on in comparison to doing it on the iPhone.


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## Sharon Red (Jul 23, 2011)

I'm still having great success in using the writing software, learning curve isn't bad either!


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## Austin_Briggs (Aug 21, 2011)

I enjoy using Pages, because it's the only native iPad writing soft that uses more than plain text. 

Daedalus is good, too.


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## VictoriaP (Mar 1, 2009)

Has anyone tried Storyist yet? I saw recs for it over on the MacRumors forum, and was interested to see what others here thought.

http://itunes.apple.com/us/app/storyist/id438008294?mt=8&ls=1

A few reviews made it sound like a great app, but also made it seem that the files produced by the iOS apps were only compatible with the desktop version of the same app. That doesn't seem very versatile.

I currently use 



 (along with the matching iPhone app) for virtually all my writing and note taking. I've used it for about a year now and love it for its ability to infinitely organize my work; they're working on a Mac app as well. The iOS apps sync using Dropbox, MobileMe or to your computer via wifi, so it's incredibly simple to get your text off the device, especially when compared to Pages.

I also saw this recently on Scrivener's blog:



> Sync with mobile apps
> 
> Take your work with you on your iPad or iPhone using Scrivener 2.0's new synchronisation abilities. Scrivener can now sync with Simplenote, Index Card and apps that use Dropbox such as Notebooks and PlainText. And when you get back to your main computer, just sync again to bring your changes back into your project. You can also share RTF files with collaborators-or just edit work on a computer without Scrivener-and have the changes synced back to your project using the Sync with External Folder feature.


Now I guess I need to take a closer look at Scrivener, since hubby already has it and I already have Notebooks!


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