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✍️ Do you need a(nother) writing app?

by Thomas Malicet

I always wrote short stories or articles as a hobby. But one day I decided to aim higher and I started a novel. I realized that compared to programming, the available tools were quite antic or not appealing at all.

That's how I started building Colofon.

After a deep analysis of the existing market, I wrote up what I precisely wanted and what was obviously lacking. Aiming at simplifying the workflow and limit technical problems (data loss, formatting, cross-platform ...)

Now, I'm opening for Beta and trying to get people involved but I have doubts. Do people really need a new tool dedicated to writing books, scripts, screenplays, etc.?

Is taking all the best features dedicated to writers considered disruptive and it’s frightening people who do not want to change their habits?

Please help me here as I need more feedback on my product. => https://colofon.io

Cheers

Thomas Malicet's avatarThomas Malicet
on January 29, 2020
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  1. 1

    There are a lot of writing apps. From your landing page, I can't see how yours is differentiated. Please show me more than one screenshot! I especially want to see the Story Maps -- I know what a word processor is supposed to look like, and congrats, your word processor looks like a word processor :P But show me your unique features, that's the only reason I'd buy!

    Writing is such a personal thing that I think there IS room for another writing app, but it will have to have a niche feature that speaks strongly to some subset of writers. Maybe your story maps is that feature, but since there's no way on the site to see how they work and look I'll never know.

    Best of luck!!

    bkanber's avatar bkanber
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    7 years ago
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    1. 1

      Thanks for your feedback.
      It's funny because I like watching lots of screencaps before trying something new and yet I could not get enough content to put there. But it's definitely my new priority.

      Why didn't you tried it by the way? You just need an email to start using Colofon.
      Is the website not appealing at all? Or you could not find the button? Or you just didn't want to leave your email?
      I'm curious about this because I see lots of people coming to the website but not much switch to the app.

      Thomas Malicet's avatar Thomas Malicet
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      7 years ago
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  2. 1

    I really like the idea. The product looks nice and efficient. I’m going to try it and I will tell you what is missing according to me!

    Diane2109's avatar Diane2109
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    7 years ago
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    1. 1

      Thanks! You just need an email to register and you can start using Colofon right away.

      Thomas Malicet's avatar Thomas Malicet
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      7 years ago
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  3. 1

    This comment was deleted 6 years ago

    DeletedUser's avatar DeletedUser
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    7 years ago
    1. 1

      Right now it's a cloud-based app but I have plans to add an offline mode very soon.
      So to answer your questions:

      1. Yes, it does ;)
      2. Versioning is fully functional. It auto version every 5min when you are writing and you can add a version manually. It's more a snapshot actually but I plan to add a differential feature to compare versions
      3. Markdown support seems to be the most expected feature right now
      4. Pdf export: Already does. I need to fine tune the result though.
      5. Right now the only template available is Book, so you can organise in chapters. Colofon is more project based.
      6. Allowing proofreading and commenting is also high in priority in the features list
      7. I keep in mind the dark theme idea. Thanks.

      Thanks for your reply. It's much appreciated.

      Thomas Malicet's avatar Thomas Malicet
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      7 years ago
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