Sonar

CNET Editors' review

by: CNET staff on February 03, 2012

Anyone trying to seriously make it as a writer knows that the only way to get published is to submit your work--usually over and over again. Sonar is an easy-to-use program that lets you track submissions and responses, and we think it's an invaluable tool if you send a lot of work out and have trouble keeping up with the who, what, where, and when of the process.

The program's interface is plain and intuitive, and it took us no time at all to figure it out. Users first add works to the database; there are fields for the title, genre, word count, a description, and comments, and users can also record the file path of the document for easy access. Markets that the user has submitted to or is interested in can also be entered, including the editor's name and contact information and the publication's submission guidelines. Once your works and markets are entered, recording a submission is as easy as selecting the appropriate title and publisher from dropdown menus and entering the date sent. A check box lets users indicate if a response has been received; if so, users can record whether the piece was sold or published and enter the payment received. There's also a field for comments and feedback. Although the terminology used in the program isn't genre-specific and any writer could make use of it, poets in particular should note that Sonar doesn't support simultaneous submissions, which could be problematic for some users. The program also lacks an updated Help file, though we found it to be pretty self-explanatory. Overall, we think that Sonar is a great tool for writers who are serious about getting published, and we recommend it.

Sonar installs and uninstalls without issues.