Scrivener from a game controller
The Scrivener layout is built into InputConfig, free on the Mac App Store. You don't have to make an account, there are no subscriptions, and nothing is locked. Optimized for Apple silicon.
On a Mac: Scrivener for Mac reads the arrow keys and Command shortcuts this layout sends. Nothing to enable in Scrivener.
Yes, Scrivener works from a game controller on a Mac, and the D-pad suits its binder: up and down through documents, right to open a folder. Copy, paste, select all and undo sit on the face buttons, and nothing needs enabling in Scrivener. Add dictation and the messy first draft becomes a sofa job.
The layout, control by control
How the layout thinks
- Walk the binder. The D-pad sends the arrow keys. They move through the binder when it has focus and through the text when the editor does.
- Edit. Copy on the bottom face button, paste on the right, select all on the left, undo on the top.
- Point and scroll. The left stick is the pointer, the right stick scrolls, the right trigger clicks.
Tune it for long projects
- Dictation. Add a Start Dictation row on a bumper. Both bumpers are free in this layout.
- Move between binder and editor. Click with the pointer, or put Scrivener's focus keys from its View menu on the stick clicks.
- Composition mode. Put its key from the View menu on a stick click.
- Long binders. Turn on Repeat keys while held in the D-pad rows' Options, so a held direction keeps moving like a held arrow key.
Draft by voice, then rearrange scenes with your thumb.
Get it in two clicks
- Get InputConfig free on the Mac App Store, open it, and click Smart Preset Maker on the welcome screen.
- Search for Scrivener and pick it. The layout is created as a preset in your sidebar, named and ready.
- Press Activate. Every row can be changed afterwards: the editor's Scan button rebinds any control the moment you touch it.
Every binding, as a table
| Controller | Sends | What it does |
|---|---|---|
| Left stick left | Mouse motion left (speed 16) | Cursor left |
| Left stick right | Mouse motion right (speed 16) | Cursor right |
| Left stick up | Mouse motion up (speed 16) | Cursor up |
| Left stick down | Mouse motion down (speed 16) | Cursor down |
| Right stick down | Scroll down | Scroll down |
| Right stick up | Scroll up | Scroll up |
| Right trigger | Left click | Click |
| A / Cross | Command (Left), C | Copy |
| B / Circle | Command (Left), V | Paste |
| X / Square | Command (Left), A | Select all |
| Y / Triangle | Command (Left), Z | Undo |
| D-pad up | Up | Arrow up |
| D-pad down | Down | Arrow down |
| D-pad left | Left | Arrow left |
| D-pad right | Right | Arrow right |
Button names follow the Xbox / PlayStation pair shown in the editor, so A / Cross is the bottom face button on either pad. On a Switch Pro Controller the bottom button is labeled B; the mapping still fires on position.
Questions
Can I write in Scrivener with a controller?
With dictation, yes. The controller handles the binder and the edits, and your voice handles the words.
Related
Completely free. You don't have to make an account, there are no subscriptions, and nothing is locked. Optimized for Apple silicon. Open source on GitHub.
Updated