The Novel Goggles Story Planning and Writing Web App
Novel Goggles is here to help you to write better stories, faster. Its extensive story planning and analysis features aim to give you the tools you need to harness your creative talents. Whether you're starting from scratch or struggling with an existing story that is getting out of hand, use Novel Goggles to shape your writing into a cohesive manuscript with dynamic characters, engaging pace and tension, and well-timed inflection points and climaxes. Write your stories in the context-rich editor or if you prefer to write in a different application, use Novel Goggles for planning and context.
Story Planning: Plot Outline, Story Structure and Plot Progression
- Create a Story Structure using pre-defined templates with helpful prompts or create the structure yourself
- Plan ahead or Define it as you write
- Re-organise by Dragging and Dropping Chapters and Scenes
- Plan and analyse story pace, tension and the timing of climaxes
- Visualise Story Arcs and traverse your Manuscript by Structure Order or Story Arc order
Characters Sketches, Character Arcs and Character Development
- Create detailed character sketches
- Use images and/or descriptions for character appearance
- Add characters to scenes to create character arcs and plot character development over the course of the story
- Easily jump between scenes that a character appears in while writing
World Building & Locations
- Upload your hand-drawn maps and add locations to them
- Link scene settings to locations in your world maps
- Easily move between scenes that take place at the same location
Write in Novel Goggles with story planning context immediately available
- See detailed scene and location information while in the Writing Context
- Easily create Characters and see Character details
- Create Chapters and Scenes while you're writing
Hide context information and dim menus to Focus on Creativity
- Easily change the Writing context to suit your needs using the Focus Slider
- Choose between:
- Showing all relevent contextual information
- Hiding side panels
- Hiding side panels AND dimming all menus
Manage Projects
Manage Multiple Projects, each with their own manuscripts, characters, locations, and world maps.
Manage Assets and Manuscripts in a Project
In the Project Dashboard, manage multiple manuscripts and associate Characters, Locations and World Maps with the project. Characters, Locations and World Maps created within a project are automatically associtated but additional assets can be linked from other projects as well.
Manage Story Structure
Define your Manuscript Story Structure using Acts and Sequences: Use the provided templates of commonly used novel structures or create your own structure from scratch.
Create Character Sketches and Manage Character Arcs and Development
Select a set of character traits for each character (divided into strengths and weaknesses), link characters to scenes to create character arcs, and configure the weight of each character trait on a scene-by-scene basis to visualise character arcs. See a plot of character trait dominance for each scene or view the changes to traits over the course of the story. (see more on youtube)
World Building with World Maps and Locations
Manage locations, settings and world maps. Upload images to use as maps and define locations anywhere on the map. Link locations to scenes to see setting information displayed on the map. (see more on youtube)
Detailed Plot Outlines with Chapter Summaries and Scene Sketches
Create a detailed plot structure ahead of time or while you write. The Plot Structure context allows you to create, see, and edit Chapter and Scene information. This information is available in the Writing context and can be edited there too. Create a timeline and assign dates to scenes. Traverse scenes by structure, character, location or chronological order. Re-organise by Dragging and Dropping Chapters and Scenes
Visualise Story Pace and Tension
Plan and Evaluate Story Pace, Tension and Climaxes on a scene-by-scene basis. See your target and perceived story pace and tension plotted against each other over the progression of the story structure. See where climaxes fall against Acts and Sequences and move them around to achieve optimal impact. (see more on youtube)
Create, Visualise and Traverse Story Arcs
Place scenes anywhere in the Story Arc Grid and link them into Story Arcs using the context menu. Story Arcs can branch and merge, scene and setting information can be displayed and Story Arc colours and summaries can be edited as desired. (see more on youtube)
Reference your Plot Outline with its Scene, setting, location and character sketches
See and Edit context-sensitive scene, location and setting information while you write. Show Character details by simply highlighting the Character name in your manuscript and right-clicking. Create new Chapters and Scenes within the Writing context via the context menu. View snapshots of previous manuscript versions. Traverse scenes by structure, character, location or chronological order.
Focussed Writing
Hide Panels and Dim Menus to write without distraction. Easily enable context-sensitive information panels when required and then switch back to focus mode when you're ready to let your imagination take over.
Free Trial
Free
for a limited amount of time
- No payment details required
- Feature Parity with the Hobbyist Tier
- 7 Days of free use
- Only days that you log in are counted
Novel Goggles Hobbyist
US $4 (excl. taxes)
per month
- up to 2 Projects and 6 Manuscripts
- up to 3 Manuscript Snapshots (rolling window)
- up to 3 Scene Prose Snapshots (rolling window)
- up to 25 Characters and Character Images
- up to 25 Locations and Location Images
- up to 6 World Maps
- up to 10 Fictional Calendars
Coming 2023
Novel Goggles Pioneer
US $5 US $3 (excl. taxes)
per month
- Feature Parity with the Professional Tier
- Join the Novel Goggles Pioneer Program
- Early Access to New Features
Approximately 198 available
Novel Goggles Professional
US $7 (excl. taxes)
per month
- up to 20 Projects and 100 Manuscripts
- up to 30 Manuscript Snapshots (rolling window)
- up to 30 Scene Prose Snapshots (rolling window)
- up to 250 Characters and Character Images
- up to 250 Locations and Location Images
- up to 60 World Maps
- up to 100 Fictional Calendars
Coming 2023
You can subscribe to paid tiers within the application
Novel Goggles 1.0.44 is in Beta
Novel Goggles 1.0.44 is currently in beta testing. What does this mean? This version of Novel Goggles is an early release that we feel is almost ready for wider adoption. While we try to test everything before a release, a more diverse user base will inevitably bring to light undiscovered issues. Some of the issues that may come to light are:
- Problems with Novel Goggles features being used in ways that we did not foresee.
- Problems with Novel Goggles views, styles and usability.
- Problems on specific browsers.
- Problems with certain internet connection parameters such as bandwidth and latency.
- Problems with maintaining an acceptable user experience as the Novel Goggles user base grows.
Out of an abundance of caution, we recommend that you only use a Novel Goggles Beta version if you accept that there may be occasional interruptions in service or feature stability and usability issues. To ensure that beta users get acceptable value from using Novel Goggles and to limit the support burden on the Novel Goggles staff (and therefore ensure timeous feedback to support queries), we will take the following steps during the beta testing period:
- We will be limiting paid subscriptions to the Pioneer Subscription Tier during the initial beta. The Pioneer Subscription Tier has a limited number of available seats.
- To thank the Pioneers who are willing to help us with these beta testing periods, Pioneer Subscribers get the features of Professional Subscribers but at a discounted price. These benefits persist even during non-beta periods. Early access to future releases that enter beta testing will also become available to Pioneer Subscribers from time to time.
- We may disable new sign-ups from time to time if we feel that we need to improve the scaling of Novel Goggles to accomodate larger audiences without impacting the user experience of all Novel Goggles users.
For all users, even those who are just exploring the Free Trial to see what Novel Goggles is about:
- We appreciate any feedback that you can provide. We want Novel Goggles to grow and improve and user feedback is invaluable.
- You can report bugs and request features - Click the Cog icon at the top right of the screen, then click either the Suggest A Feature or Report a Bug button.
- You can also send us an e-mail. Find our contact details here: Support
- If you are interested in using Novel Goggles but are not comfortable committing while Novel Goggles is in Beta, please sign up to the Mailing list on the Novel Goggles Home Page and we'll let you know when the Novel Goggles Beta period is over.
Novel Goggles Pioneer Program
Pros:
- Access to all Professional Subscription Tier functionality at a discounted price
- The same account limitations as the Professional Subscription Tier
- Early Access to new features and versions
Cons:
- New features and versions may be more prone to bugs and instability, potentially negatively impacting the user experience from time to time
- Not always available to new subscribers: Limited seats
The Novel Goggles Pioneer Program is an early-access program that provides a limited number of Pioneer Subscription seats to interested users. The Novel Goggles Pioneer program will provide Pioneer subscribers with all of the features of the Professional subscription tier at a discounted price with the added bonus of allowing the user early access to new application features and new Novel Goggles web application versions. In exchange for these features at the discounted price, the user will be required to accept that from time-to-time they may be served newer versions of the Novel Goggles web application and features of the software that are not as well tested and that may be less stable and more prone to outages.
A user that signs up for the Pioneer subscription tier will maintain the above benefits while their subscription remains active. If at any time their subscription becomes inactive (due to cancellation or non-payment), the user will have to re-subscribe to the Novel Goggles SaaS and will only be able to join the Pioneer program if the currently active number of Pioneer subscribers falls under the limit, otherwise they will have to re-subscribe in one of the other subscription tiers (Hobbyist or Professional)
The number of available Pioneer subscription seats will determine if the Pioneer Subscription option is available. If the current number of active Pioneer subscribers is equal to or higher than the limit set by Novel Goggles, no new Pioneer subscriptions will be available until either the limit is increased or users leave the Pioneer subscription program by cancelling their Pioneer subscription, failing to pay for their Pioneer subscription or changing their subscription tier.
The number of Pioneer subscriptions available might be changed to increase it or decrease it at any time. If the limit is decreased and the number of active Pioneer subscribers is higher than the new limit, Pioneer subscribers will continue to be a part of the Pioneer program until their subscription becomes inactive, i.e., users will not be removed from the program even though there are technically more users than the limit allows. The limit will just prevent new Pioneer subscriptions.
Frequently Asked Questions
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Which Browsers are supported by Novel Goggles?
Novel Goggles has been tested on Edge, Chrome and Firefox. Other browsers may work. If you experience strange behaviour or sluggish application response, try switching to Edge or Chrome.
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What can I do if Novel Goggles seems sluggish?
If the round-trip latency values displayed at the top right of the Novel Goggles window are greater than 500-1000ms, Novel Goggles may seem sluggish. Ensure that you have a stable broadband internet connection. If you are connected via Wi-Fi, try connecting using an ethernet cable.
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Does Novel Goggles work off-line?
Unfortunately, Novel Goggles does not yet support an off-line mode. This feature is planned for a future release.
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Does Novel Goggles work on mobile devices?
Novel Goggles has not yet been optimised for use on mobile devices. It is recommended that you use Novel Goggles on a computer with a screen resolution of at least 1920 by 1080 until mobile optimisation has been completed.
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I have a Full-HD display but Novel Goggles doesn't seem to display correctly in the browser.
This could be caused by a browser zoom level setting or a display scaling setting in your operating system settings. Try changing the browser zoom or operating system scaling settings to see if this resolves the problem. In future, Novel Goggles will be updated to handle these scenarios correctly.
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Can I import my work from other apps or services?
Not at this time but importing functionality is planned for a future release. Although time-consuming, existing manuscripts can be copy-pasted into your Novel Goggles Manuscripts. We recommend doing this scene-by-scene once you have created your Novel Structure.
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Who owns the copyright to the content that I upload?
Novel Goggles makes no claim to any copyright of user-uploaded content. If you generate content and upload it, the copyright remains yours. Note: It is against the terms of service to upload content that you do not own the copyright to.
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Is my content backed up on Novel Goggles?
The databases containing your submitted content are backed up once every 24 hours. Each daily backup is stored for 8 days. While we do aim to keep your data safe, these backups are insurance in the event that something goes wrong on our end.
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Can I create my own backups of the content I have uploaded?
Yes. Novel Goggles provides export functionality for all user-uploaded content, except for images. Backups are exported in .ngog files, which are simply JSON formatted files with the extension renamed. By default, Novel Goggles will remind you to download a backup of your data once a week.
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What happens to my work if my subscription ends?
Your work will remain accessible in a read-only format for at least 3 months after your subscription has expired or been cancelled. After this, your content will be deleted. The Novel Goggles team will remind you via e-mail to export your data before deletion occurs. If you resume your subscription before three months have elapsed, your data will still be accessible to you.
Updates and Features Planned For Future Releases
The Novel Goggles Team has the following in store for the future of Novel Goggles. You can suggest additional features from within the Novel Goggles App, in the Settings Menu.
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Scene content history
Snapshots of the manuscript content for each scene are already created and stored. We will provide tools to make these snapshots available, similarly to the Manuscript Snapshots already available.
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Performance Optimisations for Seemless context switching and reduced data usage
The Novel Goggles Team are continuously working to improve the user experience. One of our focuses during the beta period and initial wider public release will be on page rendering and data synchronisation performance, aiming to minimise distracting loading screens and waiting times.
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Mobile Device Optimisation & general responsiveness
Novel Goggles has been developed with a focus on providing abundant contextual data for each Scene, Character and Location. While some functionality is usable on smaller devices such as phones and tablets, full feature access will require additional improvements and updates to content layout and responsiveness.
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Backup Importing
The data backups that you export from Novel Goggles cannot currently be re-imported into Novel Goggles. This functionality will be added in a future release of Novel Goggles.
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Spell-checking and Dictionary Tools
While your browser probably already does spell-checking and suggestions for you, we plan on integrating some tools to give you more control over how and when suggestions are made.
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Offline Mode
While your uploaded content is already stored in local browser storage as well as being synchronised with our remote servers, full offline functionality will allow you to edit local content and synchronise with the remote servers when you have access to the internet again.
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Manuscript Exporting & Publishing Functionality
Currently, Novel Goggles only provides printing functionality for your Manuscript, with fixed formatting rules. While this does allow you to use Print-to-PDF functionality to export your manuscript to PDF, we do plan on adding additional formatting and exporting options to support e-book creation and preparation for publishing your manuscripts.
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Project Planning
We plan to add some project planning functionality to Novel Goggles, where you will be able to set targets and deadlines, and monitor your progress as you work on your various creative ideas.
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Data Import from other formats
We plan on adding tools to assist with importing your existing data from other formats. Let us know what you would like us to support using the Suggest A Feature button in the Novel Goggles App.
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Collaboration with other users
We envision Novel Goggles providing a place where you can ask other users to help you beta-read or edit your manuscripts. The Scene-Specific Notes sections for Scenes, Characters and Locations will provide space for their feedback and the Pace, Tension and Climax progression tools already available will become even more useful with input from other users.
Novel Goggles Blog
The Novel Goggles Blog covers topics related to planning and writing stories. You'll be able to find posts on the following:
- Writing Stories
- Planning Stories
- Narrative Structure
- Plot Outlines, Scene Sketches, Character Sketches, Locations Sketche and Setting Sketches
- Story Arcs
- Character Arcs
- World Building
- General Tips and Tricks
- Tips about using Novel Goggles
Go to the blog now: Blog
Blog Posts
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30 January 2023 15:00:
Story Planning: Creating Character Sketches -
19 January 2023 08:00:
How to Find Motivation to Plan or Write your Stories -
13 December 2022 16:00:
Five Ideas for when you’re stuck with your novel -
6 December 2022 13:00:
Premise, Narrative Structure and Plot Outline with Novel Goggles: Fantastic pantsing, perfect plotting or anything in-between -
7 November 2022 13:00:
Getting Started with Novel Goggles -
7 November 2022 08:00:
The First Novel Goggles Beta Release is Now Available
Plan, Write and Analyse your Stories using Novel Goggles
Story Structure Templates help you to get started or re-organise your existing novel.
Character Progression Tools help you to populate worlds with believable Characters.
Maps and Locations facilitate World Building and imagining journeys.
Story Arc visualisation helps you create and present complex tales easily.
Manage your Story Timeline by setting dates for Scenes on the Custom Story Calendar.
Easily Traverse your manuscripts by plot or chronological order, character arcs, story arcs or locations and ensure continuity throughout.
Write with all of your scene, character and location planning visible for context.
When you need to Focus and let creativity take control, hide panels and dim menus.