Features · Timeline
From the whole book to five minutes.
See the shape of the book, then see one hour of it.
Strands show what carries each chapter.
A strand is a thread: the main plot, a character's arc, a relationship, a mystery, the weather. Events belong to strands. The board shows strands against chapters, so a thread that goes quiet for too long stands out.
- Plot, subplot, character arc, relationship, theme, setting, weather, mystery, structure, custom
- Colour, group, hide and lock strands
- Story views: timeline, board, outline, events
Zoom five levels.
The timeline draws clips per strand with empty stretches folded away, and a lane for the checks. Zoom from the year to the month, the day, the hour and the minute. Switch between story time and reading order (by words).
Structure
Six outline templates.
Apply an outline template and Author adds a structure strand with one beat event per beat, each with a target position in the book. A beat far from its mark shows as information, not as an error.
- Three-act structure
- The hero's journey, Save the Cat, seven-point structure
- Freytag's pyramid, kishōtenketsu
Questions
About the timeline.
What if my story has no real dates?
Choose a relative calendar for the book. Story time is then counted from a zero point you set, and the timeline works the same.
What is a strand?
A thread through the book: the main plot, a subplot, a character's arc, a relationship, a theme, a setting, the weather, a mystery, a structure or a custom one. Events belong to strands, so you see which threads carry each chapter and which go quiet.
How far can the timeline zoom?
Five levels: year, month, day, hour and minute. Empty stretches of story time are folded away. You can also order by reading position instead of story time.
Which outline templates are there?
Six: three-act structure, the hero's journey, Save the Cat, seven-point structure, Freytag's pyramid and kishōtenketsu. Applying one adds a structure strand with a beat event per beat.