I. Privacy
Your drafts stay yours
Chapters are encrypted on your device with a key only you hold. We store them — we can't read them.
The writing suite for novelists
Your sanctuary for storytelling.
AethelWrite unites a distraction-free editor, a living Story Bible and an AI Ghostwriter — in an interface as quiet as a blank page.
Start for free — no credit card required.
Built for novelists
21languages
53print designs
E2Eencrypted
EPUB · DOCX · PDFexport
Crafted for the serious author.
Four promises every feature has to keep — or it doesn't ship.
II. Focus
Nothing between you and the page
Focus mode clears panels and menus away until only your sentence is left.
III. Autonomy
No lock-in, ever
Export to EPUB, DOCX or PDF at any moment. The AI runs on your own key — your text goes straight to the provider you chose, never through us.
IV. Craft
Built for whole series
Publication-grade typography and a Story Bible that keeps every volume of a saga consistent.
Features
Everything a story needs.
Sanctuary
Chapter IV
The Lantern Room
1,284 · Words
The Sanctuary Editor
A calm, elegant writing space with a chapter tree, live preview and a focus mode that hides everything — except your words. Themes in midnight and parchment.
Warren CobbProtagonist
The Story Bible
Characters, settings and plot threads in one place — kept in sync across whole series. The Chronicle Nexus links your volumes so no detail is ever lost.
“Continue the scene — she reaches for the door…”
Ghostwriter
InsertThe AI Ghostwriter
A writing partner that extends scenes, sharpens dialogue and breaks through blocks — with your own API key (BYOK). Your text goes straight from your browser to the provider you choose — never through AethelWrite.
103,520Words
36Chapters
7h 34mReading time
The score of your book
Manuscript Analysis
Story Pulse X-rays pacing, repetition and readability. Word Radar catches your favourite words before your editor does.
EPUBDOCXPDF
Book Formatter & Export
Import from DOCX; export to EPUB, DOCX and print-ready PDF in more than 50 professional layouts. Before every export, AethelWrite checks the finished file against its layout and the requirements of Amazon KDP and Apple Books.
Aethel voice
Dictation & Read-Aloud
Dictate your first chapter, or let the Aethel voice read your prose back to you — proofreading with your ears.
Zero-knowledge
Your manuscripts belong to you alone.
AethelWrite encrypts your chapters end-to-end — on your device, with a key only you hold. Not even AethelWrite can read your synced writing.
- True end-to-end encryptionEncrypted before your chapters leave your device to sync.
- Encrypted metadataTitles and structure stay private too.
- Recovery vault12 recovery words restore your key on any new device.
- Local-first storageYour work lives on your device — cloud sync is optional.
How it works
Three steps to a finished book.
1
Sign up
Create an account in seconds — with Google, Microsoft or email.
2
Write
Create a manuscript, open a chapter and slip into focus mode.
3
Publish
Print-ready at the push of a button — with an inspection report for PDF, EPUB and DOCX.
Proven in printWritten, kept and set
Written, kept and set
in AethelWrite.
AethelWrite was built by a working novelist. These books were drafted, tracked and formatted in it.
Every series and every edition shares one Story Bible — characters, places and timelines stay consistent from volume to volume.
Pricing
A plan for every story.
Starter
For new authors testing the waters.
Free
No time limit
- Up to 35,000 words per book
- End-to-end encrypted cloud sync for up to 2 books
- Version history: 10 versions, the latest 3 on all your devices
- 4 of 53 book designs, including Standard Manuscript
- All export formats
- Upload your own cover and embed it in the e-book
- AI Ghostwriter with your own key (BYOK)
- Read-aloud with your device voice or your own key
Author
For working novelists who ship.
$11/month
or $99/year
- Everything in Starter
- No word limit
- End-to-end encrypted cloud sync for all your books
- 18 of 53 book designs
- Dictation with your own speech recognition (BYOK) or the browser's
- Series Bible for book series
- Cover workshop: print cover, spine, barcode, mockups
Writing Studio
For series authors building sagas.
$28/month
or $252/year
- Everything in Author
- All 53 book designs, with Imprint Editions and house styles
- Story-Pulse: detect characters, places and factions automatically
- Chronicle Nexus: characters and places across every volume of a series
Annual billing saves about 25% compared with twelve monthly payments. Cancel any time, effective at the end of the paid period.
AI features use your own key with the provider of your choice. Whether that provider stores inputs or uses them for training is governed by its terms — AethelWrite has no influence on that. AethelWrite itself never trains AI models on your writing.
Final prices — no VAT is added (small business under § 19 German VAT Act). Europe pays in euros, all other countries in US dollars.
See full pricing, currency & billing