Accurate for WriteIDE 0.7.5 · Checked October 20, 2026
Help and frequently asked questions.
WriteIDE is a free desktop writing studio for LitRPG and progression-fantasy authors, for macOS, Windows, and Linux, with no account and your work kept on your own computer. These are answers to the questions authors ask most: installing, importing, backups and recovery, copying a chapter to Royal Road, and keeping stats consistent.
The basics
What WriteIDE is and what it costs.
What is WriteIDE?
WriteIDE is a free desktop writing studio for LitRPG and progression-fantasy authors. It keeps your manuscript and your characters’ stats together, and ties every stat change to the scene where it happens, so you can see what a character’s numbers were at any point in the story. It runs on macOS, Windows, and Linux, keeps your work on your own computer, and needs no account.
Related:FeaturesTry the demo
Is WriteIDE free?
Yes. WriteIDE is free to download and use, with no account, and the app is the same whether or not you support the project. Supporting it is optional.
Related:Support WriteIDE
Which computers does WriteIDE run on?
WriteIDE 0.7.5 is published for Mac, Windows, and Linux. The Mac build is for Apple silicon and needs macOS 12 or later. Windows has an x64 installer and a portable .exe. Linux has x64 builds as an AppImage, a .deb, and a tar.gz.
The release lists no Intel Mac build.
Related:DownloadAll builds on GitHub
Install and update
Getting WriteIDE and keeping it current.
How do I install WriteIDE on a Mac?
Download WriteIDE-mac-arm64.dmg, open it, and drag WriteIDE into the Applications folder. The Mac build is signed and notarized, and it is for Apple silicon Macs running macOS 12 or later.
Related:Download
How do I install WriteIDE on Windows?
Download the Windows installer, WriteIDE-0.7.5-win-x64.exe, and run it. The installer lets you choose the install folder. If you would rather not install anything, the release also has a portable file, WriteIDE-0.7.5-win-x64-portable.exe, which you can run directly. Both are for 64-bit Windows, and the installer is code-signed.
Related:DownloadAll builds on GitHub
How do I install WriteIDE on Linux?
Download WriteIDE-0.7.5-linux-x86_64.AppImage, mark it as executable, and run it. For a package install, the release also has a .deb (WriteIDE-0.7.5-linux-amd64.deb) and a tar.gz (WriteIDE-0.7.5-linux-x64.tar.gz). All Linux builds are for x64.
Related:All builds on GitHub
How do I update WriteIDE?
WriteIDE checks for a newer version shortly after you open it and asks before downloading. Choose Download in the Update Available prompt, then Restart Now in the Update Ready prompt, or choose Later at that point and the downloaded update installs when you quit. Settings › Updates shows what changed in the version you have.
If you use the portable .exe, the .deb, or the tar.gz, download the newer file from the releases page instead; this page does not promise in-app updating for those builds.
Is my library safe when I update?
WriteIDE copies your library file before an update changes how it is stored. The 0.7.5 update changes how chapters are stored, so it saves a copy of your library file next to it first and keeps the five most recent copies. If your backup folder moved with this update (it now follows your Documents folder), nothing in the earlier folder is moved, changed, or deleted.
Related:Backups and recovery
Bring your manuscript
Importing from Word, Google Docs, Scrivener, or plain text.
Can I import my manuscript from Word, Google Docs, or Scrivener?
Yes, as a copy. WriteIDE imports .docx, Markdown (.md), and plain text (.txt) files. For Google Docs, use File › Download to save a Word (.docx) or Markdown copy first. For Scrivener, compile to Word, Markdown, or plain text first. WriteIDE does not read a .scriv project, and it does not connect to a Google account.
Importing reads a copy and leaves your original file unchanged.
Related:Move a Word manuscriptMove a Google DocUse WriteIDE beside Scrivener
How do I import a manuscript?
On the project library, choose Bring a manuscript (New Project offers it too), pick your file, and review the chapters and scenes WriteIDE detected. Nothing is created until you confirm. Reading a long file shows progress and a way to cancel.
Word imports recognize chapter titles written as bold paragraphs, a centred * * * between scenes, and Chapter 1 after a title page. Plain text and Markdown imports treat a lone # line as a scene break. If the split is wrong, adjust it on the review screen before you confirm.
Related:Import guides
Can I keep writing in Word, Google Docs, or Scrivener and only use WriteIDE for stats?
Yes. On the project library choose Track a story written elsewhere. You keep your current editor and use WriteIDE to record levels, items, classes, skills, and quests at the right scene. You can also bring in current character stats from a CSV table or an Excel workbook and review the values before creating the tracker.
Does WriteIDE keep my Word file in sync after I import it?
No. WriteIDE 0.7.5 has no linked write-back to the original Word file. Exporting to Word writes a new file; it does not save back into the one you imported.
Related:Move a Word manuscript
Files, backups, and recovery
Where your work lives and how it is protected.
Where does WriteIDE keep my files?
Your library is a SQLite database named app.db in WriteIDE’s data folder on your computer: ~/Library/Application Support/WriteIDE on macOS, %APPDATA%\WriteIDE on Windows, and ~/.config/WriteIDE on Linux. Nothing is uploaded or synced to a WriteIDE server. Backups are kept separately, in your Documents folder.
Related:What WriteIDE talks to
Where do my backups go?
Backups go to Documents › LitRPG Writer › Backups, with a folder for each project. The location follows your computer’s Documents folder, so on Windows with OneDrive managing Documents, new backups go to that OneDrive Documents folder. An older backup folder stays readable and is not moved or deleted.
Settings › Keeping your work safe shows the folder with Open folder and Change buttons, and Open backups for your project opens its folder in Finder or Explorer. You can also add a second copy on an external drive or in a cloud-synced folder, and each full backup is copied there too.
Related:What changed in 0.7.5
How do backups and saving work?
Typing is saved at least every two seconds, and automatic daily backups are on by default. A daily backup missed because WriteIDE was closed is made the next time you open the project. Automatic daily backups are trimmed to the newest 14 plus one a week; backups you make yourself are never removed. The status bar beside Saved shows how recently the project was backed up and says plainly when a backup failed or is overdue.
To back up on demand, open Settings › Keeping your work safe and choose Create Backup Now. That saves your project plus the book as Word, Markdown, and text files.
What happens to my writing if WriteIDE crashes or a save fails?
Words you typed after the last save are offered back when you reopen the scene. The prompt reads something like “Recovered 14 words you typed after 2:31 PM” with Keep and Discard. Keep puts them back as your own edit, which Undo can take back. If the scene changed since, the words are offered as a copy, so newer text is never overwritten. If the editor stops unexpectedly, the window comes back on its own in the scene you were writing.
If a save fails, for example because the disk is full, leaving the scene asks first and names the reason, with Stay, Copy text, and Leave without saving. The unsaved text is kept and offered back when you return.
How do I restore a lost or deleted project?
Open the project library. It lists projects that are not in it but have backups on this computer, each with a Restore button. If the newest backup cannot be read, WriteIDE offers the next older backup that can, and restores nothing until you choose it.
To go back inside a project that still exists, use Review › Versions, or restore from a version or a backup file in Settings › Keeping your work safe. A version is a restore point inside WriteIDE; a backup file is a file in your backup folder.
What if WriteIDE says my library file can’t be opened?
Your file has not been changed or deleted. A damaged library file no longer stops WriteIDE from starting: a normal window explains the problem and offers Show the file, Restore from backups, and Quit. Choose Restore from backups to restore from your backups.
Related:Report a problem
Posting a chapter
Copying a chapter to Royal Road and Patreon.
How do I copy a chapter to Royal Road?
Open the chapter, choose Publish › Copy for Royal Road (it is also a button in the scene editor and Chapter view), then press Copy beside Royal Road HTML and paste it into Royal Road’s source view. A separate pane copies legacy BBCode for forums that still accept it. Formatting that cannot be converted is listed before you copy.
The chapter title is left out of the body by default, with a Copy title button and an Include chapter title checkbox, and Previous and Next buttons step through chapters without closing the dialog. WriteIDE only puts the text on your clipboard; it never uploads or posts anything.
What is Ready to post?
Ready to post is a checklist for each chapter under Publish › Ready to post. It shows scenes still to review and a preview, then offers Copy for Royal Road and Copy for Patreon (which keeps stat blocks readable without tables). You can record a Mark posted date for each platform, and the chapter list shows what you posted and where. Nothing is posted or sent for you.
Related:What changed in 0.7.5
How do I add a blue box or stat box to a chapter?
Type /bluebox in the editor to insert a system message, or /statblock to insert a stat block that shows a character’s values at that scene. For a quick box outside the app, the free blue box generator makes one in your browser.
Stats and continuity
Keeping numbers consistent across a long story.
How does WriteIDE keep stats consistent across chapters?
Every stat change is recorded at the scene where it happens, and a character’s sheet and stat blocks show the values as of the scene you are in. When you record a change at an earlier scene, the Scenes to review panel lists later stat blocks whose saved values no longer match. Update block refreshes only that block and never your prose; Keep as written leaves it alone.
Click any tracked value in a stat block, or use its Why button, to see where each value was set. Review › Recorded changes lists every recorded change, with character and chapter filters.
Related:Keep LitRPG stats consistent over a long seriesStat block continuity checker
Can I see a character’s stats as of an earlier chapter?
Yes. The As of bar in the editor, the Overview, and the character sheet names the chapter and scene you are looking at, and Back to latest returns to the current values. Stats are read in story order, so a change recorded at an earlier scene does not drag later values backward.
Related:Features
Is there a free way to try stat tracking without installing anything?
Yes. The free LitRPG stat tracker runs in your browser: you log changes chapter by chapter, see a character’s numbers at any point, and copy a Royal Road stat block. It follows one character and only the chapters you type in, and nothing is uploaded. WriteIDE tracks the whole cast by scene.
Common problems
When something does not look right.
The status bar says a backup failed or is overdue. What do I do?
Click the backup status in the status bar to open Settings › Keeping your work safe, which describes the problem. Check that the backup folder is reachable and has room, then choose Create Backup Now. Backup and export errors say what to do next, for example when the disk is full, the folder is missing, or a file is in use.
Related:Backups and recovery
Where did my exported file go?
The export dialog shows the file name and the folder before you export, and files get readable names with the local date and time. Settings › Export shows the real folder with an Open folder button. Exports cover This scene, This chapter, or Entire manuscript, in formats including Markdown, HTML, BBCode, DOCX, PDF, and EPUB.
Related:Features
My imported manuscript split into the wrong chapters. How do I fix it?
Adjust the detected chapters and scenes on the import review screen before you confirm; nothing is created until then. A file with no clear chapter headings is easier to split if you add headings like Chapter 1 in the original and import a fresh copy.
Related:Import guides
Which keyboard shortcuts should I know?
Cmd or Ctrl+K opens the command palette, and Cmd or Ctrl+, opens Settings from anywhere. Cmd or Ctrl+[ and ] go Back and Forward through what you viewed, and Cmd or Ctrl+W closes the open tab. The ? overlay lists the full set.
Privacy and data
What leaves your computer, and what does not.
Does WriteIDE upload my writing or track what I do?
No. WriteIDE does not report what you write or which features you use, has no account or login, does not collect automatic crash reports, and does not upload your manuscript or keep a cloud copy. The desktop app asks the public GitHub releases repository for updates after launch, and some releases can load one image in the What’s New window. Neither request carries manuscript text or project records.
Related:What WriteIDE talks to
Does WriteIDE work offline?
Yes. Writing, stat tracking, backups, and exports all happen on your computer. The only thing that needs a connection is the update check.
Related:What WriteIDE talks to
Where to get help
Reaching a person.
How do I report a bug or ask for help?
Use Report a problem in Help or Settings (it is reachable from the project library too), the bug report form on this site, or open an issue on the public releases repository on GitHub. Say which WriteIDE version and operating system you use and what you did just before the problem. For a private question, use the contact form on the support page.
How do I ask for a feature?
Use the feature request form and describe what your story needs to track, not just the button you want.
Related:Request a feature
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Still stuck? Tell WriteIDE what happened.
If an answer here does not match what WriteIDE 0.7.5 does on your computer, that is a bug in this page or in the app, and worth reporting.