Writing & the editor: formatting & focus mode

Pageless and page view #

The toggle beside the word count switches between the two. Pageless is one continuous column with no page edges — the view most people draft in. Page shows discrete pages with their real margins, headers and page numbers.

Page view runs the same pagination as the PDF export, so the page you are looking at is the page you will get. Facing pages (page view) in Preferences shows two pages side by side while you write; it is a view setting only. Making the book double-sided is a separate checkbox in Project settings — see Document settings and your view.

The zoom control beside the toggle scales the manuscript on screen. It is separate from the type size you write in, which lives in your book's format.

The same manuscript in both view modes: pageless as one continuous column of prose, and page view as discrete pages with margins and a running head. — The same words either way. Page view uses the same pagination as the PDF.

Formatting text #

The toolbar above the editor carries the usual controls: undo and redo, typeface, size, bold, italic, underline, strikethrough, color, highlight and alignment.

The less common typographic controls sit under Fmt — subscript, superscript, small caps, drop caps, line spacing and letter tracking.

Font and size here are editor settings. What your exported book uses is set separately, in Project settings, so drafting in a comfortable size never changes the finished page.

The toolbar, left to right: history, typography, formatting, then color, alignment and what you can insert.

Focus mode #

Focus mode hides everything except the manuscript and a small floating toolbar. Press Escape to leave it.

How much of the surrounding text dims, and whether the page scrolls to keep your cursor centered, are both in Preferences.

Focus mode: the manuscript alone on the page with a small floating toolbar above it, everything else hidden. — Everything goes except the words and a small floating toolbar.

Autosave and the save indicator #

Charc saves as you type. The indicator beside the word count tells you where you stand: saving, saved, or a red state if a save failed.

It fails loudly on purpose. A save that cannot reach the server turns the indicator red rather than passing quietly, and your work stays on the device until it can sync.

The save indicator in the toolbar reading Saving, with a blue dot beside it. — The indicator sits beside the word count.

Undo, snapshots and history #

Undo covers the current session. Beyond that, the Drafting sidebar holds your working draft, any collaborator copies, and automatic saves taken as you write.

Automatic saves are thinned on a schedule — everything recent, then daily, then weekly — so the list stays useful rather than endless.

The Drafting sidebar listing the Working Draft, a collaborator copy, and an automatic save marked with a diamond. — The Drafting sidebar: your working draft, collaborator copies, and automatic saves beneath.