DreamWrite

Offline ink-and-paper screenwriting.
Script · Board · Timeline — one document, no accounts.

⬇ Download latest release · Install · Features · Develop

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One entity, three views. A scene is a script block and a board card and a timeline event.

 

Author	Nicholas Siegel (liminallyspaced)
Stack	Electron 33 · vanilla JS · esbuild · vitest
Platforms	Windows x64 (installer + portable) · macOS arm64/x64 (DMG via CI/Mac)
License	MIT

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Why DreamWrite

Screenwriters juggle format tools, boards, and timelines — three apps, three models of “what a scene is,” plus logins and subscriptions.

DreamWrite is a single offline desktop workspace:

• Industry-style pagination for screen and PDF
• Full undo (command stack — prose is never silently dropped)
• Board + timeline linked to the same script entities
• No accounts, no telemetry, no network by default

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Features

Area	What you get
Script	Courier Prime · 54 lines/page · Tab/Enter flow · CONT'D/MORE · multi-page paper stack · PDF
Pagination	One engine for layout, stats, and export
Undo	Full command history · typing merges · Ctrl/Cmd+Z
Marking wheel	Middle-mouse hold · ≤8 contextual items · flick to mark · drag to pan
Timeline	Integer ticks · bookend eras · lane packing · scene sync · jump to script
Board	Notes · scene-cards · nested boards · templates · image assets · tables
Search / Bible	Offline full-text · characters & locations from script
Projects	Fountain in/out · folder packages + content-addressed assets · atomic saves

Not included (on purpose)

Non-goal	Why
Real-time collab	Needs accounts/server — breaks the premise
Stock photos by default	Network is not the default
Web clipper as core	Separate product if ever

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Product direction

Monochrome carbon desk · clean white paper · Courier only on the page · IBM Plex / Source Serif for chrome.

Screenshots are live captures of the app (sample project The Last Signal), not concept art.

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Install

Windows

From Releases:

File	Use
DreamWrite-Portable-*.exe	Preferred: install via npm run deploy:desktop
DreamWrite-Setup-*.exe	Optional NSIS (does not auto-spam Desktop shortcuts)

Desktop update (Windows) — one launcher only

npm run deploy:desktop        # pack + install + scrub Desktop
npm run deploy:desktop:quick  # reinstall from existing dist/

What	Where
App binary	%LOCALAPPDATA%\Programs\DreamWrite\DreamWrite.exe
Desktop	Exactly one DreamWrite.lnk (nothing else)
Old builds	%LOCALAPPDATA%\DreamWrite\archive\ (never Desktop)

Deploy removes loose Desktop DreamWrite*.exe, *-FIXED.lnk, unpack folders, and old archive piles. Do not keep a second git clone on the Desktop — use SYNTH-PROJECTS\ScriptDesk only.

SmartScreen may warn on unsigned builds → More info → Run anyway if you trust the source.

macOS

Download the .dmg for your chip (arm64 or x64) from Releases (when published), or build on a Mac:

npm install && bash scripts/pack-mac.sh

First open if unsigned: right-click → Open.

Projects live in Documents/DreamWrite/.

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Develop

git clone https://github.com/liminallyspaced/dreamwrite.git
cd dreamwrite
npm install
npm start

npm test                 # unit tests
npm run test:smoke       # Electron smoke (Windows)
npm run pack:win         # Setup + Portable → dist/
npm run deploy:desktop   # pack + clean Desktop (archive older builds)

Command	Output
npm run pack:win	DreamWrite-Setup-<ver>.exe + DreamWrite-Portable-<ver>.exe in dist/
npm run pack:mac	DMG + ZIP (must run on macOS)
npm run deploy:desktop	Single Desktop shortcut → LocalAppData install; archives off-Desktop

Tag a release to trigger CI builds:

git tag v1.2.1
git push origin v1.2.1

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Architecture

src/core/      pure modules — store, pagination, board, timeline, format-v2
src/views/     script / board / timeline UI
src/app.js     renderer shell
main.js        Electron main — dialogs, atomic writes, path sandbox
docs/          ADRs + specs
website/       README images + optional static landing assets

Invariants: offline · core/ has no DOM · mutations via command stack · one pagination engine · never silently delete prose · never migrate projects in place.

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Verification

• 177 unit tests (vitest)
• Electron smoke (load · type · autosave)
• Windows NSIS installer + portable via electron-builder

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Keyboard

Shortcut	Action
Tab / Enter	Cycle element / new block
Ctrl/Cmd+1…7	Element type
Ctrl/Cmd+Z	Undo
Ctrl/Cmd+S / O / N	Save / Open / New
Ctrl/Cmd+F	Find
Ctrl/Cmd+P	Export PDF
F11	Focus mode
MMB	Wheel / mark / pan

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License

MIT — see LICENSE.

Not affiliated with Final Draft, WriterDuet, Celtx, Milanote, or Aeon Timeline.

_{DreamWrite · liminallyspaced}