Questions & answers

The things
people ask.

Short answers, in plain language. Where a question is really about the contract, the binding versions are the terms, the privacy policy and the refund policy.

The basics

What is Minimal Writer?
A place to write long text with none of the rest of a word processor in the way: one page, your words, and the few tools that help you finish a draft — an outline you can drag sections around in, focus modes that dim everything but the line you are on, spellchecking, version history and export. The features page goes through each one.
Do I have to install anything?
No. It runs in the browser, and a current version of Chrome, Edge, Firefox or Safari is all it needs. If you would rather have it in its own window, most browsers will install it from the address bar — it then opens like any other app, with no tabs and no address bar, and behaves the same either way.
Does it work on a phone?
Yes. The layout folds down to a single bar over the page, and the panels slide in over the text rather than beside it. It is a real writing surface rather than a viewer, though most people draft on a laptop and edit on the phone.
Does it work offline?
Yes, and this is the part worth knowing: what you type is written to your browser’s own database first, and only then sent to the server. A flight, a tunnel or a dead router changes nothing about writing. The sync catches up on its own when the connection comes back.
Are there AI features?
No. Nothing here writes for you, rewrites you or suggests what comes next, and your text is never used to train anything, by us or by anyone else. That is a decision rather than a gap in the roadmap.

Your writing

Where is my writing actually stored?
In two places at once: on your device, and — while you are signed in — in our database, which is hosted in the EU (Ireland). The copy on your device is written first and is the one the app reads from, so you are never waiting on a server to see your own text.
Can I write on more than one computer?
Yes. Sign in on both and your documents follow you. A change made on one appears on the other within seconds while both are open, and on the next load otherwise.
What if I edit the same document in two places at once?
Nothing is overwritten. When two devices have both written since they last agreed, the app keeps both texts: the one you are typing in stays where it is, and the other version is saved beside it as a second document named “… (from another device)”, yours to compare and merge by hand. Two documents beat a quietly lost paragraph.
Can I get my writing out again?
Always. Markdown export is free on every account, including one whose trial has ended. Getting your own words out is a promise rather than a feature, so it is never behind a plan. Rich text (.rtf) is included on every plan as well; PDF and Word (.docx) come with Pro.
Can I bring existing writing in?
Yes: Markdown (.md), plain text (.txt), rich text (.rtf) and Word (.docx). Headings, emphasis, lists and links come across. Page layout does not, because there is no page layout here to put it in.
Does anything get deleted without me?
Documents, never — they stay until you delete them or delete your account. Version-history snapshots do thin out on their own: recent ones are kept in full, older ones are reduced to about one a day, and each document keeps a capped number in total. That is housekeeping on the trail behind a document, never on the document itself.

Writing in it

What are the writing modes?
Four, and you choose one per document. Document keeps the whole page lit. Paragraph and Sentence hold the line you are on in the middle of the screen and dim the rest — one down to the paragraph, the other to the single sentence. Markdown swaps the page for its own source.
Do I have to write in Markdown?
No. The page is an ordinary rich-text editor, and Markdown shortcuts work in it if you know them. Markdown mode is a way of looking at a document, not a separate kind of document.
Does it check spelling?
Yes, in 42 languages, and entirely on your device. We ship our own checker instead of using the browser’s, so that words you add to your personal dictionary follow you to your other machines — and so that nothing you type is sent anywhere to be checked.
Can two of us write in the same document?
Not today. Sync is between your devices; there is no sharing, no comment threads and no second cursor. Sharing a draft means exporting it.
How long a piece of writing can it hold?
Long. For book-length work, Pro’s master documents let each chapter stay its own document and be nested into one — the outline then shows the whole project, and an export flattens it back into a single file.

Plans and payment

What does the trial include?
60 days of full Pro on every new account, with no card asked for and nothing that turns into a subscription on its own. When it ends, it ends — nobody is charged for a trial they forgot about.
What happens when the trial ends?
The account becomes read-only. Everything you wrote is still there, still yours and still exportable to Markdown; you simply cannot edit or add until you subscribe. Nothing is deleted, and subscribing later picks up exactly where you left off.
What is the difference between Standard and Pro?
Standard is the whole writing app: unlimited documents and folders, the writing modes, spellchecking and Markdown export. Pro adds the tools for longer work — the Structure panel, master documents, alternative takes of a paragraph, version history with restore, and PDF and Word export. The pricing page puts the two side by side.
What does it cost?
Both plans are monthly: Standard is $4.99 and Pro is $9.99, before the launch discount on the pricing page. Your own currency and any VAT are shown at checkout. There is no annual lock-in and no per-seat pricing.
Who am I actually paying?
Paddle, our Merchant of Record: they sell the subscription, take the payment, issue the invoice and handle the sales tax. Your card details go to Paddle and never reach us, and the charge on your statement will name Paddle.
How do I cancel?
From Billing in the app, at any time, in a couple of clicks — nobody has to be emailed and nothing has to be argued about. Cancelling stops the next renewal immediately, and you keep full access until the end of the period you already paid for.
Can I get a refund?
The first payment of a new subscription is refundable in full within 14 days, no reasons asked. Renewals are not automatically covered — but if one caught you by surprise and you have not used the app since, write to us and we will refund it anyway. The refund policy is the full version.

Privacy

Can you read what I write?
Your documents live in our database so they can reach your other devices, so they are not end-to-end encrypted and we could technically open them. We don’t. Nobody here reads your writing, it is never used to train anything, it is never sold and it never reaches an advertiser. The privacy policy lists everything we hold and why.
Do you track me? Are there cookies?
Not in the app: it sets no advertising or analytics cookies. We count anonymous events — that an export happened, that a document was started — with no account attached and nothing that follows you between visits, and even that can be switched off inside the app. This website is the one exception, and it asks first: we advertise on Google, and if you allow it, Google sets a cookie so we can tell whether an ad brought you here. Say no, or have your browser send Global Privacy Control, and Google’s script never loads. You can change your answer under “Cookie settings” at the bottom of any page.
Do I get marketing email?
No. Confirmation, one welcome message, password resets, and anything urgent about your own account. There is no mailing list to unsubscribe from, because you were never put on one.
Can I delete my account?
Yes — from Account settings, yourself, immediately. It removes your documents, folders, snapshots, dictionary and profile from our servers, and it is permanent, so export anything you want to keep first.

When something goes wrong

How do I reset my password?
Use “Forgot your password?” on the sign-in screen and a reset link is emailed to you. If you signed up with Google there is no password to reset — sign in with Google again.
What do I do if something is broken or I have lost work?
Before anything else: your text is written to your own browser first, so it is usually still on the machine you wrote it on even when a screen says otherwise — open the same browser, on the same profile, before assuming it is gone. Then write to support@minimalwriter.app and say what you were doing when it happened.
Who is behind Minimal Writer?
It is made by Granularitylabs in Norway — a small operation, which is why the support address reaches a person rather than a queue. The terms name the company in full.

Last updated

Still wondering?

Write to support@minimalwriter.app. A person answers, usually the one who built the thing you are asking about.

Start writing