What is your favorite software for writing?

Here is how my conversation went last night with an Apple representative:

Me: “My content in iCloud is gone.” Apple: “Did you back it up?” Me: “You mean, back up my back up?” Apple: “Yes.” Me: “No…”

‪#sheesh

I am not sure if it was iCloud or Scrivener, my current writing software of choice, that messed things up. My guess is each company will blame the other.

Fortunately, I had saved what I had written for my next book on digital student portfolios up to this point as a PDF, so it's a matter of copying and pasting my text into writing software. The question is: What should that software be?

Before you start offering suggestions, please scratch off Microsoft Word. To me, this is a word processing application. Editors like MS Word because they are familiar with the format - it's pretty universal - and are comfortable leaving comments in this platform.

What I like about Scrivener versus MS Word and similar applicaitons is that you can move sections around within the manuscript with ease. Visible hierarchies and icons can be personalized for each part of the text, identifying the level and completeness of each section. Scrivener allows you to play with your work, which is one of the most fun parts about writing. In addition, you can compile what you have written into many different formats, including ePub if creating a digital text.

However, I am open to the possibilities of other writing programs for authors. I've heard good things about Ulysses, but have never tried it. There are other applications available in the App Store. What works for you as you produce content in a longer format? Please share in the comments.