Getting started

Story Builder is a place to start planning a novel and write it in the same project: your characters, places and timeline sit next to the chapters they belong to. This page takes you from a new account to your first chapter.

Projects and modules #

A project is a book, a series or a world: whatever you think of as one body of work. Everything you create lives inside a project, and a project belongs to whoever created it.
Modules are the parts of a project: chapters, characters, maps, a timeline and so on. You switch on the ones you need, and the rest stay out of your way. See modules for the full list.

Anyone you invite works inside your project, and what they write there stays with the project.

How do I start planning a novel in Story Builder? #

Start a project, give it a working title, and pick what kind of project it is. When your account has no projects yet, the builder opens Start a project for you:

Type a Project name. A working title is fine; you can rename it whenever you like.
Choose what kind of project it is: one of the four starter templates, or Start empty for chapters and characters only.
Select Create project.

Later, Quick project on the builder's home page runs the same two steps. Create Project opens the longer version, where you also add a description, an icon and a colour, pick a genre and a set of modules, and can invite people straight away. The icon is one of the bundled symbols; later, in Settings → General, you can pick another or use one of the project's images instead.

Choosing a builder #

The first time you open the builder, it asks how you would like to work. The simplified builder shows your projects and, inside each one, the chapters, characters, entries and maps. The advanced builder shows every module in a sidebar. You can switch at any time from the header or your profile menu.

Your first half hour #

Write something before you plan anything. Open Chapters and start a chapter. The editor saves as you type; there is no save button.
Add characters as they appear. When you name someone in a paragraph, add them in Characters. Records you create because a scene needs them are the ones you will use.
Connect two things. Open a character and add a relation to another character or a location. Relations are what let you move through your world from record to record.
Switch on more modules when you need them. Go to the project's Settings, then Modules. Switching a module off only hides it: switch it back on and everything in it returns.

How many projects can I have? #

You can own two projects at a time. Projects someone else invited you into do not count toward that limit. If you reach it, delete a project you no longer need to start another.

Can I join someone else's project? #

Yes. Once the owner invites you, you work inside their project with the role they gave you. Read roles and permissions first: it explains what your role lets you do, and who owns what you write there.

Tips #

Start with fewer modules than you think you need. Adding one later takes a second.
Press Shift + / anywhere to see the keyboard shortcuts, and Ctrl + K to search for any record by name.
Once a project is set up the way you like, save it as a template and start the next one from it.
If you already have a draft, import it instead of pasting it chapter by chapter.

Chapters — the editor, drafts and revisions.
Modules — what each module does and how to switch it on.
Characters — the record most projects rely on.
Templates — start a project with its modules already chosen.
The simplified builder — a smaller builder for getting the first chapter written.