Research
How Quill SI compares
What each product is, in its own words where we could find them (sourced below), and what Quill SI adds on top. No scores, no rankings — just what's true today.
| Product | What it is | What Quill SI adds |
|---|---|---|
| Scrivener | Desktop novel-writing and outlining software, available for macOS, Windows and iOS.Source: literatureandlatte.com/scrivener/overview — checked 2026-09-29: lists macOS, Windows and iOS; no Android build listed. | Quill runs in a browser and installs on iOS and Android from the same account, so one book opens on any device with no manual transfer. |
| Word | General-purpose word processor. | Quill adds chapter/scene structure, a character bible, and a continuity pass built around one manuscript, in the same kind of page. |
| Google Docs | Free, real-time collaborative word processor. | Quill keeps that live-editing feel and adds outline, character and continuity screens around one manuscript, plus one-click EPUB/Word/print export. |
| Atticus | Book formatting and writing software, used in a browser. | Quill adds scene snapshots, undo, and a continuity pass alongside outline and export in the same workspace. |
| Vellum | Ebook and print formatting software. “Vellum is only available for Mac.”Source: vellum.pub/faq — checked 2026-09-29, quoted directly. | Quill runs on web, iOS and Android from one account and exports EPUB, Word and print-ready files with no per-book cost. |
| ProWritingAid | A grammar and style editing toolkit. Markets itself as “The Complete Toolkit for Storytellers.”Source: prowritingaid.com — checked 2026-09-29, page <title> quoted directly. | Quill's continuity pass checks structural things a style checker doesn't — name collisions, unresolved setups, timeline gaps, POV balance — inside the same manuscript. |
| Plottr | Story-outlining and plotting software. | Quill's outline stays inside the same book as the draft, and adds a relationship map between characters. |
| Novelcrafter | AI-assisted novel-writing software, used in a browser. | Quill adds native phone and tablet apps plus EPUB/Word/print export from the same manuscript. |
| Sudowrite | AI drafting and brainstorming tool for fiction. | Quill pairs its own assistant with outline, character, continuity and publishing tools, so the draft it helps write has somewhere to go next. |
What we do that they don’t
Each row is a skill. It has to beat the thing it resembles, not photocopy it.
Write
Write
Typewriter page, snapshots, find/replace, focus, sprint, bold/italic, undo that restores the last real change — not a blank page.
The gap: A dedicated drafting tool doesn't always keep continuity, snapshots and structure in the same place as the page.
Outline
Outline
Cards, list, and plot grid on the same manuscript. Drag a scene, the draft follows. Structure templates keep existing written scenes.
The gap: An outline tool is often a separate app from the manuscript, so the plan and the draft live in two places.
Parts
Outline / Chapters
Optional book parts for serials and TOC. Export (EPUB included) keeps the part titles.
The gap: A serial or multi-part table of contents doesn't always carry through to export.
Characters
Characters
People, places, rules, timeline, research. Mentioned names become stubs. Name ideas that do not collide.
The gap: A general word processor has no character bible built in, and some codex-style tools keep it apart from the draft.
Relationship map
Characters → Map
Structured links between people, drawn on the page, not a third-party mindmap.
The gap: A relationship map between characters isn't standard in outlining or codex tools.
Quick capture
Inbox
Dump an idea, a line, a name. File it into the current scene, research, or a new character. Not a junk drawer.
The gap: A general word processor has no built-in place to drop a stray idea without leaving the page.
Review
Review
Honest goals (words you actually wrote). Continuity, leftover setups, crutches, who-knows.
The gap: Everyone tracks a goal. Almost nobody tracks whether the book still makes sense.
Continuity
Review
Names, places, timeline, and contradicted facts, each with the chapter and the line. Also collisions, open promises, and crutches.
The gap: A continuity pass is usually done by hand, by the writer or an editor, after the draft is finished.
Export
Export
One click: Markdown, HTML, text, Word, EPUB, print-ready PDF. Parts in the TOC. Scenes can be left out.
The gap: A word processor exports a document, not an EPUB, and ebook formatting can carry a per-book cost elsewhere.
Where to sell
Export → Where to sell
Amazon, everywhere, bookstores, direct, query an agent, serial, audio. Royalty math, ISBN, A–Z checklist, query letter. Does not upload for you — tells you which file goes where.
The gap: Formatting tools generally stop at the file; KDP Select, free ISBNs and vanity-press risk are usually explained somewhere else entirely.
Undo
Write
Undo and redo the last book change, including typing bursts, not just the last letter.
The gap: Scene-level undo isn't standard — most tools restore the last keystroke, not the last real change.
Accounts
Sign in
Cloud books on an account. Not a Dropbox folder. Same book on phone and desk.
The gap: Folder-based sync and single-platform apps are common in this category.
Phone and tablet
Install
The same app as the web. Install from the browser, Play, or the App Store kit.
The gap: Phone support varies across this category — some tools are one platform only, some are web-only.
Command parity
Assistant
Every action a human can take, the assistant and Command Center can take. Spoken twins. Usage meter.
The gap: AI features that only the human interface can trigger, or that write for you instead of with you.
How to
How to
First-run tour, unique photos per screen, two different videos, labels that are the real words.
The gap: A learning curve is common in feature-rich writing software.
Import
My books
Paste Markdown, pick a .md/.txt, open a Word .docx, or restore a backup JSON. Headings become chapters.
The gap: Most drafts start in a general word processor, with no book structure once they're there.
Backup
Export → Files
Download the whole book as JSON. Restore it later. Scene snapshots sit next to the page.
The gap: A manuscript backup is only useful if the tool held the whole manuscript in the first place.