Working with Notes

Notes are the core of the Notebook: freeform spaces for capturing ideas, dialogue snippets, worldbuilding details, or anything else you want to remember. In a series, your notes are shared across the whole series: one Notebook for every Book.

Creating a Note

Click the Note button in the toolbar at the top of the Notebook. A new note is created instantly and opens in the editor on the right side, ready for you to start writing. You can also right-click (or Ctrl+click on Mac) any empty space and choose New Note.

Note Editor

Click any note to open it in the editor on the right side of the Notebook. The editor has three parts:

• Title: An optional heading at the top (up to 50 characters). Click the title area and start typing to add one.
• Writing area: The main space below the title, which supports rich text formatting (see below).
• Color and Tags bar: A row at the bottom of the editor for setting the note's color and tags.

Changes save automatically as you type; no save button needed. Click the Close button in the top-right corner of the editor to close it when you're done.

Rich Text Formatting

The writing area includes a formatting toolbar with these options:

• Text styles: Bold, italic, underline, and strikethrough
• Headings: Three heading levels via the Style dropdown in the formatting toolbar above your note
• Lists: Bullet lists, numbered lists, and checkbox lists
• Block quotes: For indented, highlighted passages (useful for letters, excerpts, or quoted text)
• Links: Insert clickable web links
• Indent / Decrease indent: Adjust paragraph indentation
• Images: Insert images from your computer into the note
• Tables: Insert a table for structured information (magic systems, character stats, comparisons)
• Horizontal line: Drop a divider across the page to separate sections
• Undo / Redo: Step back or forward through your edits

You can also type @ followed by a name to mention characters, locations, or items from your book. A list of matching names appears as you type; click one to insert the link. Mentions appear as clickable links inside your note, so you can jump straight to that character, location, or item. See @Mentions for the full guide.

For a full guide to inserting and working with tables, see Tables.

Checkbox Lists

Use the checkbox list button in the formatting toolbar to add a task list to your note. Check boxes off as you go; notes with checkboxes show how many you've completed on the card (e.g., "2/5 completed"). Great for revision checklists, plot point tracking, or to-do lists.

Color

Click the Color button at the bottom of the editor to open a color picker. Choose a color to add a visual accent: a thick left border and a small square in the top-right corner of the card. Use colors to categorize notes at a glance: purple for worldbuilding, pink for character ideas, blue for plot points. Click the same color again to remove it.

Tags

Click the Tags button at the bottom of the editor to see a list of your book's tags. Click any tag to add it to the note; you can assign multiple tags. Tags you've already added to this note are highlighted in the list. Click a highlighted tag again to remove it. Tags appear at the bottom of the note with their color indicator.

Tags are managed in Settings > Tags (look for the gear icon at the bottom of the left sidebar).

Managing Notes

Right-click a note to see its options:

• Rename: Edit the note title right where it appears (also triggered by pressing F2; you may need to hold Fn on some Mac keyboards)
• Change Color: Pick a color accent from a submenu
• Move to Folder...: Move the note to a different folder
• Duplicate: Create a copy of the note
• Save as Template: Save a copy of this note's title, content, and color to your library, so you can reuse it in any book
• Archive: Hide the note from view without deleting it. Your note is still safely stored and can be restored at any time.
• Delete: You'll be asked to confirm first. Once deleted, the note is gone for good (if you're not sure, use Archive instead; you can always delete an archived note later).

For more on archiving and restoring notes, see Archiving Notes. For reusable note starting points, see Note Templates.

Pinning Notes to Your Manuscript

While writing in Manuscript Mode (the prose-writing side of Penpoint), you can pin a note to a specific line of text. The note appears in the page margin beside that line, and the note itself gains a Pinned in manuscript list that jumps back to the spot. See Comments & Pinned Notes.