After yesterday’s post about a new cloud-based document sharing service, SavvyDox, I remembered that I was a subscriber to an even easier to use service: Draft.
No downloads, a very simple interface, and the ability to see your editor’s draft or comments side-by-side with your original. And, it’s accessible from any browser, so no problems for tablet users. And, you can export documents in a variety of formats, including Word, PDF, and ePub.
One limitation, at present, is that you can only import documents in text or Markdown. So you probably wouldn’t use this to show clients a work in progress. But this a natural for sharing drafts with editors, partners, and administrative staff, who can edit or add comments without modifying your original.
I like being able to see my editor’s changes, in a different color, side-by-side with my original. I can respond with my comments about their suggested edits. In fact, we can go back and forth with multiple versions of the document, until it’s right. This makes Draft a great tool for collaborators.
Draft also has many additional features for writers, including Hemingway mode, which prevents you from deleting anything, forcing you to bang out a first draft without stopping to edit. And, if you want to hire a professional editor, you can do that through the Draft interface at very reasonable cost.
Draft is “donate-ware” (I think that’s the term). You can use it without cost, but you are asked to support the service by paying $4 a month.
I can see a place for both SavvyDox and Draft in a lawyer’s writing arsenal. SavvyDox is probably more appropriate for business clients with whom you can share formatted documents. Draft is useful for writing and editing the document, which you can then export and email to the client.
Check them out and let me know what you think.
