Carnelian

Carnelian is a calm, distraction-free writing app for people who need to get words on the page before they get lost in revision. It was developed due to my own experiences as an ADHD writer, prone to procrastination and distraction.

Most of the biggest writing tools on the market tie you in to an account, a particular workflow, or a monthly subscription — I wanted to create a focused editor that can be used anywhere, as part of any workflow.

Carnelian is…

Flexible. Write each chapter in plain markdown files, saved to your Mac/Windows/Linux PC — or even synced with the cloud provider of your choice. When it's time to pull it all together, compile and export the whole thing as a single Markdown,  docx, or PDF document to share anywhere.

Focused. Minimal UI, no clutter. Typewriter mode locks you into forward-only writing. Focus mode dims everything except the sentence or paragraph you're working on. Get your words down first, and edit later.

Yours. Four font choices, six built-in themes, and a full theme editor so you can build your own writing space. No account required. No data leaves your machine.

Free. Everybody should be able to create their best work. Donations are optional, supporting ongoing development and new features. Making money from writing isn't exactly easy these days, so no pressure.

I built Carnelian for long-form writing, but folder hierarchies mean that it's a really nice space for notetaking and journaling, too.

If you have any feedback or additional features that would help you finish your draft, I would love to hear it. Thanks for trying it out.

Note: I am currently working on getting a Code Signing Certificate, which has turned out to be quite an expensive undertaking. Apologies for any Windows/Mac security pop-ups in the meantime!