It is said that to err is human. But let’s be honest, a total breakdown requires a computer. Sooner or later you will lose files on your computer (or the entire computer) and if you have written a novel that gets lost in the process, well, it will be a slightly upsetting event.
Now, I am sure you’re already backing up your work. I do too. Not only do I backup my Mac to an external disk but I also put my Scrivener backup files on iCloud—and on dropbox. I’m paranoid like that. I’m also lazy, and in all honesty I don’t backup my computer often enough (hello 120 days notification). To make matters worse I also frequently forget to put the backup files in my dropbox folder or on iCloud altogether.
That’s where Automator comes in.
Armed with a cup of coffee and in less than 5 minutes I was able to set up a workflow that automatically grabs Scrivener backups and puts them in both iCloud and dropbox. The best part, I don’t have to remember a thing, or do any menial tasks.
So I can focus on writing.
It’s also completely free. Well, as long as you paid for Scrivener. And bought a Macbook. And have enough iCloud storage, oh, and a dropbox account. But then it’s free.
First, open the Automator app, then choose a Folder Action.
Search for the action Copy Finder Items and drag it to the area on the right.
In the top section, select which folder you want to copy files from by using the dropdown (receive files). This is where you pick the folder where Scrivener stores its backups.
In the Copy Finder Items action, select the folder where you want files copied to. For example your dropbox folder. If you installed the dropbox app on your computer, you have a folder for it.
If you want to copy the files to multiple locations, drag out another Copy Finder Items action and select a second destination folder. Like say, an iCloud folder.
Save, and you’re done.
In the end you should have something that looks like the screenshot below. I added a Pause action as well because I don’t like to rush things (who am I kidding, I’m super impatient).
That said, now that I pause to think about it, this doesn’t require Scrivener at all—or iCloud, or dropbox. Automator does come with your Mac OS, so it isn’t very relevant if you’re a Windows user.
I’m also asking myself why I didn’t just point Scrivener’s backup folder directly to my iCloud drive?
I should probably get back to writing.
Leave a Reply