Final Draft AlternativesTop Novel Authoring & Story Writing Tools like Final Draft

Final Draft is described as 'Use your creative energy to focus on the content; let Final Draft take care of the style. Final Draft is the number-one selling word processor specifically designed for writing movie scripts, television episodics and stage plays' and is a Novel Authoring tool in the news & books category. There are more than 50 alternatives to Final Draft for a variety of platforms, including Web-based, Windows, Mac, iPhone and Linux apps. The best Final Draft alternative is Scrivener. It's not free, so if you're looking for a free alternative, you could try Manuskript or Story Architect (STARC). Other great apps like Final Draft are Fade In, Hemingway Editor, GrinTale and Untold Novel.

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Alternatives
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Alternatives list

  1. Scrivener icon
     267 likes

    Tailored for extensive writing, this tool offers flexible structure and organization, integrates project outlines, supports various formats, and allows reorganization through drag and drop, ensuring research materials are within reach for efficient work.

    187 Scrivener alternatives

    Cost / License

    • Paid
    • Proprietary

    Application type

    Platforms

    • Mac
    • Windows
    • iPhone
    • iPad
    • PlayOnLinux - PlayOnMac
    • Wine
    • GB flagUnited Kingdom
    Scrivener screenshot 1
    Good alternative?
     
  2. Fade In icon
     6 likes

    Fade In Professional Screenwriting Software is a complete application for writing motion picture screenplays, including tools for outlining, organizing, and navigating, plus extensive screenplay formatting and robust tools for managing rewrites and revisions.

    Cost / License

    • Paid
    • Proprietary

    Application type

    Platforms

    • Mac
    • Windows
    • Linux
    • Android
    • iPhone
    • iPad
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  3. Manuskript icon
     176 likes

    Open-source software offering a hierarchical outliner, distraction-free editor, character management, plot tools, Snowflake method support, section multi-organization, customizable writing workflows, cross-platform availability, and export to standard formats.

    Cost / License

    Application type

    Platforms

    • Mac
    • Windows
    • Linux
    • Snapcraft
    • Flathub
    • Flatpak
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  4. A smooth yet powerful writing experience for devoted authors. With only wanted features and native workflow it runs faster than all your previous apps combined.

    71 Story Architect (STARC) alternatives

    Cost / License

    Application type

    Platforms

    • Mac
    • Windows
    • Linux
    • Chrome OS
    • AppImageHub
    • Flathub
    • Android
    Good alternative?
     
  5. GrinTale icon
     2 likes

    Cloud-based novel writing platform with tree-structured binder, corkboard, outliner, detailed character sheets, mind mapping, DOCX import with auto chapters, PDF/DOCX/EPUB export, built-in encyclopedia, distraction-free writing, and multilingual support.

    Cost / License

    • Paid
    • Proprietary

    Application type

    Platforms

    • Online
    Good alternative?
     
  6. Untold Novel icon
     4 likes

    Untold Novel is a fresh new approach to planning your next bestseller. It helps you keep all your notes, ideas, characters, locations, and much more organized in one convenient place.

    Cost / License

    • Paid
    • Proprietary

    Application type

    Platforms

    • iPhone
    • iPad
    Good alternative?
     
  7. Aevon icon
     5 likes

    Aevon is the all-in-one workspace where authors manage manuscripts, characters, maps, lore, and items — all connected and always in sync. Now with comics!!!

    79 Aevon alternatives

    Cost / License

    • Free
    • Proprietary

    Application type

    Platforms

    • Mac
    • Windows
    • Online
    • Android
    • US flagUnited States
    Aevon screenshot 1
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  8. Kindling icon
     7 likes

    Free, open-source writing app for plotters. Import your outline from Scrivener, Plottr, yWriter, or Obsidian — then draft with your scene beats, character notes, and story structure visible alongside your prose. No AI, no subscription, no cloud.

    Cost / License

    • Free
    • Open Source (MIT)

    Application type

    Platforms

    • Mac
    • Windows
    • Linux
    Good alternative?
     
  9. Manuscript.no icon
     5 likes

    Modern workspace for novels with ethical AI that analyzes writing but never writes, live readability, import/export, auto-save, full version history, character and plot tools, structured critique, and provenance tracking while ensuring all text remains original.

    Cost / License

    • Freemium
    • Proprietary

    Application type

    Platforms

    • Online
    Good alternative?
     
  10. yWriter icon
     70 likes

    yWriter is a writing tool that uses "scenes" as a unit of text and allows you to associate that text with all manner of story elements (characters, locations, items) as well as place it and rearrange it within the context of chapters.

    112 yWriter alternatives

    Cost / License

    • Freemium
    • Proprietary

    Application type

    Platforms

    • Mac
    • Windows
    • Android
    • Android Tablet
    Good alternative?
     
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  11. Trelby icon
     33 likes

    Trelby is simple, fast and elegantly laid out to make screenwriting simple. It is infinitely configurable.

    52 Trelby alternatives

    Cost / License

    Application type

    Platforms

    • Windows
    • Linux
    • Flathub
    • Flatpak
    • US flagUnited States
    Trelby
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    1
12 of 87 Final Draft alternatives