Frequently Asked Questions

What is the difference between the desktop app and the online version?

The Desktop App is the full, recommended version of Calmly Writer. The online version is a lightweight preview with a limited subset of features, intended for quick edits in the browser.

The Desktop App runs offline, works directly on your local files, and lets you keep several documents open at the same time in tabs. Its editor has also been redesigned from the ground up, offering a noticeably smoother and more responsive writing experience.

Many key features are only available in the Desktop App, including permanent backup copies, previous versions, writing targets, focus mode improvements, comments, more color themes, deeper customization, and PDF export — among others.

For serious writing, we strongly recommend the Desktop App. It's a one-time purchase.

Is there a free trial?

Yes. The Desktop App can be used for free for 14 days with all features enabled. Once the trial ends, you can still open, view and export your documents, but editing is disabled until you enter a valid license key.

What formats are supported?

Calmly Writer can open and save HTML (.html, .htm), plain text (.txt), Markdown (.md) and Calmly's own format (.calmly).

It can also import Microsoft Word™ (.docx) documents, and export your work to .docx and PDF (only the Desktop App can export to PDF).

You can choose the default save format from Settings → Saving and backups → Default save settings.

What is the .calmly file format?

.calmly is Calmly Writer's native format. It is a plain text file that stores your document along with extra information that other formats cannot keep, such as comments, embedded images encoded inside the file, the text writing direction, or the writing target.

That said, Calmly Writer is fully compatible with Markdown, so if you prefer it, you can set .md as your default save format without losing functionality. You can change it from Settings → Saving and backups → Default save settings.

Can I work with several documents at the same time?

Yes. The Desktop App supports tabs: use the + button on the top bar to open a new document, or drag a tab to reorder it. Ctrl + Tab (⌘ + Tab on Mac) cycles through open tabs. Each tab is saved independently and gets its own automatic backups.

What keyboard shortcuts can I use?

Ctrl N ⌘ N	New document (in a new tab)
Ctrl O ⌘ O	Open document
Ctrl S ⌘ S	Save
Ctrl P ⌘ P	Print
Ctrl , ⌘ ,	Open Settings
Ctrl Tab ⌘ Tab	Switch between open tabs
Ctrl F ⌘ F	Search and replace within your document
F11 ⌘ ⌃ F	Turn full screen on/off
Ctrl M ⌘ ⇧ M	Turn Focus Mode on/off
Ctrl Shift C ⌘ ⇧ C	Show or hide the word counter
Ctrl L ⌘ L	Choose spell-check languages (Windows/Linux)
Ctrl - ⌘ -	Decrease font size
Ctrl + ⌘ +	Increase font size
Ctrl B ⌘ B	Make text bold or remove bold formatting
Ctrl I ⌘ I	Make text italic or remove italic formatting
Ctrl U ⌘ U	Toggle underline on/off
Ctrl D ⌘ D	Strikethrough
Ctrl K ⌘ K	Create a link from the current selection
Ctrl 1 … 6 ⌘ 1 … 6	Insert a header (levels 1 to 6)
Ctrl Shift B ⌘ ⇧ B	Blockquote
Ctrl Alt C ⌘ ⌥ C	Insert a comment on the selected text
Ctrl Z ⌘ Z	Undo
Ctrl Y ⌘ Y	Redo
Ctrl V ⌘ V	Paste
Ctrl Shift V ⌘ ⌥ ⇧ V	Paste without formatting

Holding Ctrl (or ⌘ on Mac) without pressing any other key briefly displays a quick reference of the most common formatting shortcuts.

How do I apply formatting with markdown?

#type your headline (insert a level 1 header)

##type your headline (insert a level 2 header)

###type your headline (insert a level 3 header)

*italic text*

**bold text**

***italics and bold together***

> blockquote text

* bulleted list item

1.ordered list item

~~Strikethrough~~

Some of these patterns can be turned off individually in Settings → Formatting if you prefer to type the characters literally.

See how Calmly Writer works as a WYSIWYG markdown editor for the full list of supported syntax and how it differs from other markdown editors.

What is the slash command menu?

Type / at the beginning of an empty line to open a popover with insertable blocks: tables, code blocks, images (from file or from URL) and quotes. Use the arrow keys and Enter to choose, or Esc to dismiss.

How do I insert images?

You can insert images in several ways:

• Right-click in the document and choose Insert picture from file or Link picture from URL.
• Open the slash menu with / and pick Image or Image URL.
• Drag an image file directly into the document.
• Paste an image from the clipboard (Ctrl V).

When you insert from a file the image is embedded inside the document; when you link from a URL the image stays remote and the document only stores the address.

How do I insert tables, code blocks or quotes?

Open the slash menu by typing / on an empty line and pick the corresponding item. Tables are inserted with a header row and can be edited inline. Code blocks use a monospaced font and are exported correctly to Markdown and HTML.

Can I create to-do lists?

You can enter checkboxes by typing [ ] or [x]. Click them to toggle the checked state.

Can I create nested lists?

Yes. To turn a list item into a deeper level, place the cursor on that item and press Tab. To move it back up one level, press Shift + Tab.

What is Focus Mode?

Focus Mode dims everything except the paragraph you are currently writing, helping you concentrate on one idea at a time. You can toggle it with Ctrl + M (⌘ ⇧ M on Mac) or from Settings → Distraction free, where you can also adjust how much the surrounding text is dimmed, hide the caret while typing, hide the tab bar, or hide the table of contents icon.

Can I set a word or character target?

Yes. Click the target icon (shaped like a bullseye) next to the word counter, and choose a goal in words or characters. Calmly Writer shows your progress as you write and notifies you when the target is reached.

How do I change the word counter, reading time and reading speed?

Click the gear icon next to the word counter to choose what to display (words, characters, reading time), whether to include spaces in the character count, and the reading speed in words per minute (default: 270).

Can I customize the appearance?

From Settings you can adjust:

• Themes: Light, Dark, Black, Sea, Dune and Old School.
• Page width: from narrow to full screen.
• Font: built-in serif, monospaced or sans-serif, plus any font installed on your system.
• Font size and line spacing.
• Caret color and font color.
• Margin between paragraphs.

What is OpenDyslexic Mode?

It is an option to use the OpenDyslexic font in Calmly Writer, which improves readability for users with dyslexia. You can enable it in Settings → Customization → OpenDyslexic mode.

Can I disable smart punctuation (smart quotes, dashes, ellipses…)?

Yes. From Settings → Spelling and punctuation you can independently turn on or off smart quotes, en/em dashes, ellipses, arrows and the spell checker. You can also pick the style of quotation marks you prefer.

How can I change the spell-check language?

On Windows and Linux, press Ctrl + L or open Settings → Spell checker and click the language icon to choose one or more languages. On macOS, the spell checker uses the language configured at the operating system level.

How can I change the writing direction?

Use the right-click context menu to set the current document to left-to-right or right-to-left. From Settings → Default text direction you can also choose the default direction for new documents.

What are the typing sounds?

Calmly Writer can play a discrete sound on every keystroke. You can choose between Typewriter, Keyboard or Taps from Settings → Customization → Type sound, and adjust the volume with the slider.

How do automatic backups work?

While you write, Calmly Writer keeps several automatic backup copies of every open tab. These copies are stored locally on your computer, in the application data folder — they never leave your machine.

If the application closes unexpectedly, or if you close a document without saving your changes, the backup will be loaded automatically the next time you open the app, so you can carry on where you left off.

On top of that, you have two manual recovery options:

• Recover closed or discarded documents: open Settings → Saving and backups → Recover backups from closed documents to restore documents you previously closed without saving.
• Restore a previous version of the document you are editing: as long as you haven't closed its tab, you can browse earlier states of the current document and roll back to any of them from Settings → Saving and backups → Restore a previous version of this document.

How do I add comments?

Select a piece of text and press Ctrl + Alt + C (⌘ + ⌥ + C on Mac), or use the popup toolbar. You can change the default comment color from Settings. Comments are preserved when saving in .calmly format.

Is there a Table of Contents?

Yes. As soon as your document contains headings, an icon appears in the top-right corner that opens a clickable Table of Contents.

How can I export to PDF or Microsoft Word?

From the main menu choose Export and select PDF or .docx as the destination format. PDF export uses the same layout as the on-screen document.

Is it possible to open and save documents in the cloud?

Since the Desktop App works directly on local files, you only need to save the documents inside your Google Drive, Dropbox or OneDrive folder (if you have one of these apps installed) and they will sync automatically.

Are my documents sent anywhere?

No. The Desktop App works fully offline. Your documents, backups and previous versions are stored only on your computer. See the privacy policy for details.

How do updates work?

On Windows, Mac and Linux, when you open the application, if there is an update available it will be downloaded automatically in the background and installed when you close the application (provided the download has finished). You don't need to do anything — the next time you launch Calmly Writer, you'll already be on the latest version.

Alternatively, you can also force an update at any time by downloading the latest version from the download page and installing it over your current version.

Is it possible to install Calmly Writer on Chromebooks?

Chromebooks are not officially supported, so we cannot offer assistance for issues specific to this platform. However, on Chromebooks that support Linux applications, you can try installing the Linux version of Calmly Writer by following these steps.

How can I support the development of Calmly Writer?

Calmly Writer is an independent project, made and maintained by a small team without any investors or big company behind it. Every license purchase directly funds new features, improvements and bug fixes — so just by buying the app you're already helping a lot.

Beyond that, the most valuable thing you can do is simply spread the word: tell a friend who likes writing, mention Calmly in a blog post, share a screenshot on social media, leave a review somewhere, or recommend it to your writing group. Word of mouth is what keeps a small, independent app like this alive, and any bit of it is hugely appreciated. Thank you!

Suggestions or bugs?

We appreciate user suggestions and requests for improvements. If you have features you would like to see added, or have a bug to report, please send us a message at hola@yusef.es, bluesky or reddit. Thank you!