Draftline

Draftline is a free, open source novel editor built for writers who want everything in one place without paywalls, subscriptions, or an internet connection. It's local-first, so your manuscripts live on your own machine and the app works fully offline, whether you're on a plane or at a cabin with no Wi-Fi.

Writing and planning live side by side. Draftline builds a character codex automatically as you write, so you can reference relationships and character details without maintaining a story bible by hand. Continuity checks help catch plot problems, and you get manuscript search, character relationship views, planning timelines, plotline cards, and a scratchpad that's visible from both the planner and the writing editor.

Prose analysis covers chapter length, reading complexity, and sentence variation, plus a built-in grammar and spell check that learns your character names and invented terms. All detection and analysis runs locally on your machine and is deterministic rather than generative.

Export includes full typesetting with artwork support. Optional plugins extend the editor, including an offline read-aloud plugin that reads your book back like an audiobook, with optional voice casting for characters. An optional AI editing studio is available for line and copy edits using your own provider (ChatGPT, Claude, API keys, or local models), and it stays hidden unless you turn it on.

Cloud sync is bring-your-own. Point Dropbox, iCloud, Google Drive, Proton Drive, Mega, or any sync folder at your Draftline documents folder, and a book lock prevents accidentally opening a manuscript in two places and overwriting work.