Novelcrafter

Your First Writing Session

A handy guide to your first time writing in Novelcrafter.

2 min read Last updated Jan 23, 2025

Start writing

When you create your first novel, you are taken to a blank plan interface. To begin writing prose, all you need to do is:

  1. Go to the write interface Text selection interface
  2. Click add initial scene Text selection interface
  3. Start writing!

Text selection interface

To navigate between chapters, you can either use the navigation timeline (1), or select the chapter from the dropdown menu at the top of the interface (2).

Navigation between chapters in the write mode

Saving your work

Novelcrafter automatically saves your work as you write, so you can focus on your story without worrying about losing progress.

Your work is automatically saved whenever you:

  • Switch between different parts of your novel
  • Leave a text field
  • Take a brief pause from typing

You’ll see a small save indicator in the sidebar that lets you know when your work is being saved. Every three minutes, Novelcrafter creates a revision entry of your scene. For example, if you’re writing for an hour, you’ll have a saved revision for every three-minute interval (0-2 minutes, 3-5 minutes, 6-8 minutes, and so on), with each new revision overwriting the previous one for that 3 minute chunk.

Accessing revision history

You can access scene history from the actions menu.

  1. Click on the scene level actions menu. Navigation between chapters in the write mode
  2. In the history section, select scene contents. Navigation between chapters in the write mode
  3. You will now see your revision history, and can restore previous versions. Navigation between chapters in the write mode

Managing your story

If you accidentally delete something, don’t panic! We can recover your data from any point within the last 30 days. You’ll need to submit a support ticket, giving us permission to access your story (and the novel details so we can find it!). While recovery might take a little time, your work isn’t lost forever.

Important: Avoid opening the same novel or series in multiple browser tabs, even across different devices. While Novelcrafter will save your changes, working in multiple tabs simultaneously could result in you overwriting the first tabs changes, leading to lost data. Currently, there’s no real-time synchronization between browsers or devices.

Best practices for protecting your work

  1. Work in a single browser window
  2. Export your work regularly (we recommend weekly backups)
  3. Always export before making major changes to your novel
  4. If collaborating with other writers, coordinate your writing sessions to avoid overlap

What about when I’m working on a shared novel?

While real-time collaboration is on our development roadmap, it’s not currently available. If you’re working with a writing partner, establish clear communication about when each person will be working on the novel to prevent any data conflicts.