Top 12 Author Skills to Put on Your Resume

Crafting an engaging resume as an author means showing, not just telling—your blend of creativity, process, and precision. Put the skills that power your voice up front: narrative control, revision discipline, and the tools that keep your drafts sharp and your deadlines honest. Clarity wins. Consistency helps. Momentum sells.

Author Skills

1. Scrivener
2. Grammarly
3. ProWritingAid
4. Google Docs
5. Microsoft Word
6. Adobe InDesign
7. WordPress
8. SEO Optimization
9. Trello
10. Evernote
11. Hootsuite
12. Canva

1. Scrivener

Scrivener is a full-bodied writing environment for long-form work, letting authors draft, rearrange, research, and compile complex manuscripts without losing the thread.

Why It's Important

It tames big projects. Chapters, scenes, research, and revision live side by side, so you focus on story rather than file chaos.

How to Improve Scrivener Skills

1. Build a Binder you trust: organize by acts, chapters, or POV. Name cards clearly. Color-code for status.

2. Use Corkboard and Outliner: summarize scenes on index cards, then zoom out for pacing checks.

3. Split the editor: draft on the left, reference notes or prior chapters on the right. No window hunting.

4. Set Project Targets: daily and manuscript goals keep momentum visible.

5. Snapshots before big edits: compare versions and revert without fear.

6. Master Compile presets: create export profiles for beta readers, agents, ebooks, and print.

7. Templates that fit your genre: novel, screenplay, research—start with structure that matches your form.

8. Back up to cloud storage: enable automatic backups to a separate location.

9. Use labels, keywords, and custom metadata: track POV, timeline dates, and revision status.

10. Integrate with editors: run drafts through tools like Grammarly or ProWritingAid after compile for final polish.

How to Display Scrivener Skills on Your Resume

2. Grammarly

Grammarly checks grammar, punctuation, clarity, tone, and consistency, giving authors quick feedback that tightens prose without flattening voice.

Why It's Important

Fast error catching saves editing hours and surfaces patterns you can fix for good.

How to Improve Grammarly Skills

1. Set goals per document: audience, formality, and intent change the guidance you get.

2. Use custom dictionary: add names, invented terms, and stylistic choices so your world-building isn’t flagged.

3. Review by category: work through correctness, clarity, and delivery in passes to avoid suggestion fatigue.

4. Turn off noise: disable rules that clash with your style guide to protect voice.

5. Read suggestions out loud: keep rhythm and tone intact while accepting fixes.

6. Run a final pass on the clean export: check compiled manuscripts, not just working drafts.

7. Track repeated issues: note your top three mistakes and hunt them first during self-edits.

How to Display Grammarly Skills on Your Resume

3. ProWritingAid

ProWritingAid provides deep-dive style reports—readability, pacing, echoes, sticky sentences—that help authors refine prose at the line and chapter level.

Why It's Important

It shines a light on hidden drags and overused habits so your pages turn smoother.

How to Improve ProWritingAid Skills

1. Customize your style guide: add house rules, serial comma preferences, and genre norms.

2. Run focused reports: one pass for passive voice, another for dialogue tags, another for pacing. Don’t shotgun the whole lot at once.

3. Use the Thesaurus and Word Explorer in context: swap repetition without losing tone.

4. Create a revision sequence: structure, then clarity, then style. Heavy to light.

5. Compare versions: check whether fixes improved readability scores instead of guessing.

6. Keep it out of first drafts: protect flow; analyze after the bones are down.

7. Stay updated: new reports and rules appear regularly—scan release notes and adjust your workflow.

How to Display ProWritingAid Skills on Your Resume

4. Google Docs

Google Docs is a browser-based word processor built for collaboration, version control, and anywhere access.

Why It's Important

Live comments, automatic saving, and shareable drafts make teamwork simple and safe.

How to Improve Google Docs Skills

1. Outline your piece: apply headings so the Document Outline becomes your quick-jump map.

2. Use version history: name milestones (First Draft, Editor Pass 1) and restore as needed.

3. Comment and suggest: switch to Suggesting for clean edit tracking with editors and beta readers.

4. Smart chips: insert people, files, and dates to keep context tight.

5. Voice typing: draft fast or capture dialogue beats by speaking.

6. Templates and styles: set paragraph and character styles once; stay consistent forever.

7. Add-ons sparingly: grammar, citation, outlining—only what you truly use.

8. Drive for desktop: sync key folders for offline work and painless backups.

How to Display Google Docs Skills on Your Resume

5. Microsoft Word

Microsoft Word remains a powerhouse for drafting, formatting, and delivering polished manuscripts.

Why It's Important

Robust styling, review tools, and publishing-friendly exports make it ideal from first line to final proof.

How to Improve Microsoft Word Skills

1. Styles first: Heading, Normal, Quote—define and apply. Your document stays clean and navigable.

2. Navigation Pane: jump between chapters and reorder sections without scrolling marathons.

3. Track Changes and Comments: collaborate clearly; lock decisions with Resolve.

4. Editor and Read Aloud: catch typos, clunky lines, and rhythm slips with a different “voice.”

5. Templates: novel, screenplay, query letters—start with structure you won’t have to fix later.

6. Citations and Bibliography: manage sources inside Word for nonfiction and research-heavy work.

7. Find/Replace with wildcards: sweep up repeated ticks and spacing gremlins in one go.

8. Customize Quick Access Toolbar: pin your top commands; shave minutes off every session.

How to Display Microsoft Word Skills on Your Resume

6. Adobe InDesign

Adobe InDesign is the standard for professional book and magazine layout, with precise control over typography, grids, and print-ready exports.

Why It's Important

It turns a manuscript into a publication—clean layout, consistent styles, and production-grade output.

How to Improve Adobe InDesign Skills

1. Paragraph and character styles: create a style sheet for headings, body, captions, callouts—consistency on autopilot.

2. Master pages and grids: set margins, folios, and baselines so every page aligns.

3. Preflight and packaging: catch overset text, missing links, and color issues before handoff.

4. Linked assets: keep images and graphics organized in a single folder; relinking becomes painless.

5. Paragraph composer and hyphenation: improve rag and spacing for readable pages.

6. Styles for TOC and indexes: auto-generate front and back matter without manual chaos.

7. Export presets: save PDF/X for print, EPUB for reflowable, and high-res print PDFs with bleeds.

8. Keyboard shortcuts: learn the essentials for type, frames, and navigation to move faster.

How to Display Adobe InDesign Skills on Your Resume

7. WordPress

WordPress is a flexible CMS that lets authors build a home base for their work—blog, landing pages, newsletter signups, the whole kit.

Why It's Important

You publish when you want, shape your brand, and grow an audience on your own turf.

How to Improve WordPress Skills

1. Pick a lightweight, responsive theme: faster pages, happier readers.

2. Use blocks smartly: headings for structure, lists for scannability, images with descriptive alt text.

3. SEO basics: set custom titles and meta descriptions; clean permalinks; internal links that guide.

4. Performance: enable caching, compress images, and limit heavy plugins.

5. Security: strong passwords, two-factor login, regular updates, and scheduled backups.

6. Editorial workflow: draft, review, schedule. Keep a content calendar for launches and announcements.

7. Accessibility: readable contrast, proper heading order, descriptive links.

8. Mobile checks: preview posts on multiple screen sizes before you publish.

How to Display WordPress Skills on Your Resume

8. SEO Optimization

SEO helps your site, blog posts, and book pages surface in search so new readers stumble onto your work on purpose.

Why It's Important

Visibility compounds. The right queries bring the right readers, and that drives discoverability and sales.

How to Improve SEO Optimization Skills

1. Keyword intent: target phrases your readers actually use—genre, tropes, problems your book solves.

2. On-page structure: compelling titles, H1/H2 hierarchy, concise meta descriptions, and clear slugs.

3. Content quality: helpful, original posts that answer questions thoroughly keep visitors on the page.

4. Internal linking: connect related posts and key pages to spread authority.

5. Speed: optimize images, cache pages, and serve modern formats to reduce bounce.

6. Mobile-first: test on phones; fix layout shifts and tap targets.

7. Backlinks: earn mentions through guest posts, interviews, and partnerships in your niche.

8. Measure: track impressions, clicks, and rankings; revise content that’s close to page-one wins.

How to Display SEO Optimization Skills on Your Resume

9. Trello

Trello is a visual board for wrangling projects—chapters, deadlines, submissions, and ideas in one glanceable grid.

Why It's Important

It keeps the creative fog from swallowing your schedule. You see what’s next, what’s blocked, what’s done.

How to Improve Trello Skills

1. One board per project: lists for Outline, Drafting, Revising, Beta, Final; cards for scenes or tasks.

2. Labels and filters: POV, priority, status—find what matters fast.

3. Checklists in cards: break scenes into beats or revision steps; watch progress tick upward.

4. Calendar view: assign due dates and track sprints, submissions, and launch milestones.

5. Attachments: link drafts, research, or images so context travels with the task.

6. Automations: set rules to move cards or add labels when checklists complete.

7. Collaborate: invite editors and co-authors, keep conversations on the card, not in your inbox.

How to Display Trello Skills on Your Resume

10. Evernote

Evernote captures ideas, research, images, audio, and outlines, then syncs them everywhere you write.

Why It's Important

Your scattered sparks land in one searchable vault, ready when the chapter needs them.

How to Improve Evernote Skills

1. Project-based notebooks: one per book; stacks for series.

2. Tag with intent: characters, settings, themes, sources—retrieval becomes instant.

3. Web Clipper: save articles and references with highlights and summaries.

4. Templates: character sheets, scene outlines, interview notes—reuse what works.

5. Audio notes: capture lines and fixes when you’re away from the keyboard.

6. Internal links: link related notes to build mini-wikis for your worlds.

7. Share selectively: send notebooks to editors or collaborators without juggling files.

How to Display Evernote Skills on Your Resume

11. Hootsuite

Hootsuite centralizes social scheduling, monitoring, and analysis so authors can stay present without living on every platform.

Why It's Important

Consistent posting and quick engagement grow a durable audience around your work.

How to Improve Hootsuite Skills

1. Batch schedule: queue a week of content in one sitting; protect writing time.

2. Streams for listening: monitor mentions, keywords, and hashtags tied to your genre.

3. Evergreen slots: recycle timeless posts (newsletter signups, backlist highlights) at smart intervals.

4. Saved replies: respond faster to common questions while keeping tone personal.

5. Track what works: study click-throughs and engagement; double down on formats and topics that resonate.

6. UTM tagging: measure which posts actually drive preorders or signups.

7. Content calendar: align posts with release cycles, events, and newsletter sends.

How to Display Hootsuite Skills on Your Resume

12. Canva

Canva lets authors design covers, ads, media kits, and social graphics with drag-and-drop speed.

Why It's Important

Strong visuals lift click-throughs, signups, and sales—without hiring a designer for every asset.

How to Improve Canva Skills

1. Brand Kit: lock in fonts, colors, and logos for consistent visuals across series and platforms.

2. Start with templates, then tailor: swap images, tweak layout, and adjust hierarchy to fit your message.

3. Use grids and margins: align elements for clean, professional compositions.

4. Layer like a pro: group, arrange, and use transparency to control focus.

5. Background remover and filters: isolate subjects and unify palettes quickly.

6. Export settings: PNG for web, JPG for small sizes, PDF for print; mind resolution.

7. Resize for platforms: repurpose a design into story, post, header—keep the message, fit the frame.

8. Collaborate: share links for comments and approvals; version names prevent mix-ups.

How to Display Canva Skills on Your Resume