A better place to write.
I built this text editor for my own writing. It keeps a record of how the work was made, backs it up, and gives me a place I actually like writing in. You can use it too.
From the creator
A short letter.
Recently an author lost a multimillion-dollar publishing deal when questions were raised about whether his novel had been written with AI.
It happened just as I was beginning to lose some of my own enthusiasm for writing. The marketplace had grown increasingly crowded with machine-made work. And what if suspicion was turned on something I had spent years writing myself?
That got me thinking.
I needed provenance.
What if I could store every keypress I made, record which millisecond it was pressed, and build a timeline of my novel as it took shape? And what if, on top of that record, I could build a system that could distinguish the messy, gradual process of writing from simply reproducing text that already existed somewhere else?
That is provenance. That is Novelmetrics.
Christian Hyde Smith · Author
I wanted an editor that stays out of the way until it's needed and produces text that looks beautiful from the start. No weird behaviours or strange font changes, notes that stay where I want them, safe automated backups, easily shareable snippets, and generally hassle-free.
I use Novelmetrics to write daily now. If something annoys me, I change it. If I need something that isn't there, I build it.
How Provenance Works
As you write, every keystroke and every change is timed and stored. From that, Novelmetrics builds a timeline of the novel as it takes shape. You can scroll to any point during the process. Every keystroke.
The software, based on academic research into how genuine writing unfolds over time, is meant to separate true writing from copywork.
The record is detailed, and it stays private unless you choose to share it. Algorithms look at the timed writing history and produce a report.
I made Novelmetrics for myself, but there's no good reason to keep it to myself.
Create an account and use it for your own writing, if you'd like.
Now, it can be a little bit daunting to jump on an online text editor. What if it goes down? What if it gets paywalled? I get that. Here are three good counter-points and a bonus one:
- I (and others) write here every day and I'll let you know if that is about to change.
- Automated backups make sure you don't lose anything.
- I solemnly promise to never block anyone from their work. You'll always be able to login and reach your work.
- Seriously, turn on automated backups!