# Move your book from Scrivener

Compile your Scrivener draft to a Word (.docx) file, run InkSpine's Import wizard to split chapters by heading, and bring your notes into Worldbuilding.

- <https://inkspine.app/guides/move-from-scrivener>
- Published 29 October 2026
- Updated 29 October 2026

## 1. Compile your manuscript to a Word (.docx) file in Scrivener

InkSpine does not open `.scriv` bundles directly yet, so the cleanest way to move a book across is to compile your Scrivener manuscript to a single `.docx` file first. That gives InkSpine's importer clean chapter headings, scene breaks, italics, block quotes, and footnotes without having to guess which binder folders are draft chapters and which are scratch notes.

1. Open your project in Scrivener and select the **Draft** (or **Manuscript**) folder in the binder.
2. Choose `File → Compile…`.
3. At the top of the Compile window, set **Compile for** to **Microsoft Word (.docx)**.
4. In the left-hand **Formats** list, pick **Manuscript (Times)** or a similar format, and make sure each chapter's title is written as a Word heading style (`Heading 1` or `Heading 2`) so InkSpine can split the book into chapters.
5. Click **Compile** and save the `.docx` file to your Desktop or Documents folder.

> **If you pick a .scriv folder by mistake**
>
> If you click **Open** on InkSpine's Welcome screen and select a `.scriv` bundle, InkSpine recognises it as a Scrivener project rather than showing a generic error. It displays these compile instructions with an **Import…** button ready for the compiled `.docx` file.

## 2. Open the Import wizard in InkSpine

Once your `.docx` file is saved, start the four-step importer (`Choose › Options › Preview › Import`):

1. On the Welcome screen, click **Import**. If you already have a project open, go to the **Dashboard** and click **Import book…** beside **Books in this series**.
2. On the **Choose** step, click **Choose file…** and select the `.docx` file you compiled from Scrivener, or drag the file straight onto the dialog.

## 3. Check your chapter and part heading levels

On the **Options** step, InkSpine scans the heading styles in your compiled document and proposes where chapters and parts begin.

1. Confirm the **Book title** (pre-filled from your filename).
2. Check **Chapters start at**. The dropdown lists every heading level found in the file alongside the chapter count it produces (for example, `At Heading 1 — 24 chapters`). Pick the level Scrivener used for your chapter titles.
3. If your Scrivener binder used top-level folders for **Part I**, **Part II**, or acts, set **Parts** to that shallower heading level (such as `Heading 1` when chapters are `Heading 2`). Otherwise leave **Parts** set to **None**.
4. Choose **Save to** (the parent folder on your drive where InkSpine will create your new project folder) and pick **What are you writing?** (**Fiction**, **Memoir & life writing**, or **Non-fiction & research**).

![InkSpine’s Import wizard on the preview step: a Word manuscript split into two parts and six chapters with word counts, and the options for where chapters and parts start](https://inkspine.app/guide-import-light.webp)

*The Import wizard previews every chapter detected from your compiled Scrivener manuscript, with inline renaming, drag-to-reorder handles, and word counts.*

## 4. Review the chapter list and import

Click **Preview** to read the chapter list before anything is written to disk.

1. Scan the numbered chapter list and per-chapter word counts. Click any chapter title to rename it inline, drag a row by its left-hand grip (`⋮⋮`) to change the order, or click **×** on a row to leave out a scratch scene or notes document that slipped into the compile.
2. Check the **Before you import** box at the top of the preview:
   - Any text that appeared *before* your first chapter heading—such as a title page, epigraph, or dedication—is preserved automatically as a **Front Matter** page rather than dropped or merged into Chapter 1.
   - Word footnotes come through as Markdown footnotes (`[^1]`) at the point of reference, and endnotes become footnotes.
   - Anything plain Markdown does not carry (such as underlined text, tables, or embedded images) is named in the notice so nothing disappears without your knowledge.
3. Click the import button to create the project. InkSpine writes each chapter as a numbered `.md` file inside [your new project folder](https://inkspine.app/blog/why-your-book-lives-in-plain-files) and opens your project.

![InkSpine editor showing a chapter split into three scenes in the tree, with the chapter inspector open](https://inkspine.app/editor-light.webp)

*Once imported, your Scrivener chapters appear in the left-hand manuscript sidebar with your prose on the paper canvas and the chapter inspector on the right.*

## 5. Bring across character sheets and research notes

Your draft is only half of a Scrivener binder; the rest is usually character sheets, location notes, and research folders outside the Draft folder. You can bring those into InkSpine's [Worldbuilding pages](https://inkspine.app/guides/first-character-and-place-pages) without copying and pasting one note at a time:

1. In Scrivener, select your character or research folders in the binder and choose `File → Export → Files…`. Export them as `.docx`, `.rtf`, `.md`, or `.txt` files.
2. In InkSpine, open **Worldbuilding** in the left rail (`⌘5` on macOS, `Ctrl+5` on Windows and Linux; called **Knowledge** in Memoir and Non-fiction modes).
3. Click **Import…** in the Worldbuilding header, or drag the exported files from Finder or Explorer straight onto the Worldbuilding screen.
4. Pick the entry kind (Character, Location, Lore, or Faction) for each file and confirm. Each file becomes an entry using its first heading or filename as the name and the document body as its long-form notes, and every mention of those names in your chapters is highlighted automatically.

InkSpine Free includes 10 active Worldbuilding entries per project shared across the four kinds; [InkSpine Core](https://inkspine.app/pricing) removes the limit so you can import an entire series bible at once. For more on how the two apps compare day to day, see [InkSpine vs Scrivener](https://inkspine.app/vs/scrivener) or the [Scrivener section of the FAQ](https://inkspine.app/faq#moving-from-scrivener).

## In InkSpine

- **Welcome → Import**: Opens the manuscript import wizard (Choose, Options, Preview, Import) from the Welcome screen.
- **Dashboard → Import book…**: Imports a compiled .docx manuscript into an open project or a new project folder.
- **Worldbuilding → Import…**: Turns exported Scrivener character and research files into Worldbuilding entries.
- **⌘K → Import documents…**: Import documents into Worldbuilding… starts the file pick for exported character and research documents.

## Questions

### Does InkSpine open .scriv project bundles directly?

Not yet. If you pick a .scriv folder from Welcome → Open, InkSpine recognises it as a Scrivener project and shows the compile-to-.docx steps with an Import… button.

### What happens to footnotes and front matter from Scrivener?

Footnotes in your compiled .docx file are imported as Markdown footnotes (\[^1]) at the point of reference (endnotes also become footnotes, and the import notice says so), and any text before the first chapter heading is kept as a front-matter page.

### How many character and research files can I import on InkSpine Free?

InkSpine Free includes 10 active Worldbuilding entries per project shared across characters, locations, lore, and factions. InkSpine Core removes the entry limit.

## Related reading

- [Bring a Word manuscript into InkSpine](https://inkspine.app/guides/import-word-manuscript): Click Import on the Welcome screen, pick your .docx file, choose which Word heading level marks chapters, and review the chapter list before importing.
- [Build your first character and place pages](https://inkspine.app/guides/first-character-and-place-pages): Open Worldbuilding (⌘5 / Ctrl+5) or select a name in prose and click Add to Worldbuilding ▾ to create character and place pages that link automatically.
- [Why your book lives in plain files](https://inkspine.app/blog/why-your-book-lives-in-plain-files): InkSpine stores your book as a folder of plain Markdown chapters and JSON notes on your computer, so you can read and open your manuscript anywhere.