Fast answers for authors
Frequently Asked Questions
Short answers to common author questions about saving, backups, privacy, multiple projects, pen names, chapters, scenes, AI characters, dates, themes and translation.
Fast answers first. Links throughout this FAQ point to longer explanations when you want the technical detail.
Saving, backups and privacy
Where is my project saved?
Your main .fictionproject file is saved where you choose when the browser supports a file picker. On browsers that fall back to downloading a copy, the browser controls the download destination. Storage & Backups explains the difference.
Does WRS receive or keep my writing?
FictionTools is designed without a WRS project database. Your project contents are processed in your browser and stored on your side. WRS does not keep a project copy or provide data recovery. See Tech Details.
What is browser recovery?
A fast emergency copy kept in browser storage on this device after changes. It can help after a crash or power interruption, but it can disappear if browser data is cleared. It is not permanent backup storage.
What is an AutoBackup?
A rolling file copy written to the AutoBackups subfolder when the browser supports folder access and you have granted permission. AutoBackups are a short-term safety net and older ones may be removed under your retention setting.
Are manual backups limited?
No. Manual backups are unlimited and FictionTools never automatically deletes them. Named backups can be used as meaningful checkpoints. If your browser cannot grant FictionTools a backup folder, a manual backup is downloaded instead and the browser controls where that download is saved.
What happens in Firefox?
Firefox currently does not expose the file/directory picker features FictionTools uses for direct Save As and chosen automatic-backup folders. Browser recovery still works, and manual backups still work as downloads. In Firefox, the FictionTools buttons are labelled Download Manual Backup and Download Named Backup so the behaviour is explicit. Firefox—not FictionTools—controls the download destination. You can use Firefox’s own download settings if you prefer to be asked where to save downloaded files. See Browser Compatibility.
Will FictionTools remind me to back up?
Yes. The default manual-backup reminder is one hour after changed work has gone without a manual backup. The interval can be changed or turned off.
Does the Save button really mean it saved?
FictionTools v2 reports a successful save only after the file write completes. If it cannot write the previous file, it reports a failure and directs you to Save As rather than pretending the save worked.
Can I put my name and contact information in the project file?
Yes, optionally. Real name, copyright name, pen names, address, email, phone, website and a private ownership note can be stored in the local project file. Every field is optional. FictionTools/WRS does not receive or keep those fields.
What if I am halfway through typing a character or scene when something goes wrong?
FictionTools keeps unfinished form drafts in local browser recovery storage. It also prevents the main Save button from reporting the project as fully saved while a form still contains uncommitted edits. Save the individual record to commit it to the project file and normal backups.
Can somebody who gets my file read it?
Standard v2 project files are JSON-based and are not encrypted. Anyone who obtains a copy may be able to read its contents. Protect the folders, devices and cloud accounts where you store projects and backups.
Projects, authors and pen names
Can one author have many projects?
Yes. Each substantial project, series or fictional universe can be its own .fictionproject file. This avoids putting an author’s entire lifetime body of work into one file.
Can an author have multiple pen names?
Yes. A project can contain multiple author records and multiple pen names/author identities. Books and series can reference the appropriate byline.
Can a project have co-authors?
Yes. Multiple author records can be stored. All identification fields remain optional.
Can one project contain many books?
Yes. A project may be a standalone novel, a series, or a shared universe with multiple series and books.
Chapters, scenes and chronology
Do I have to write chapters in order?
No. Chapter numbers, working labels and narrative order are separate. The internal chapter ID stays stable when you renumber or move it.
What if I write a scene before I know its chapter?
Use a Scene record and leave the chapter unassigned. You can later place the same scene into its final book/chapter without losing its identity.
Can FictionTools handle flashbacks or time travel?
Events can be marked Normal, Flashback, Flash-forward, Time travel, Alternate timeline, Dream/vision or Other. The schema also allows a separate character-experienced order so narrative order and fictional chronology do not have to be the same.
Characters and entities
Are pets characters?
They can be. Character types include Human, Animal/Pet, Artificial Intelligence, Robot/Android, Alien/Non-human biological, Supernatural/Fantasy and Other.
Can I track AI characters?
Yes. An AI can use Creation or Activation as its origin, with optional platform/model/version and instance/copy notes.
Appearance, language and dates
Does FictionTools have dark mode?
Yes. Projects can use Day, Night or Automatic-by-device-clock mode. Automatic mode is evaluated when a project opens so the interface does not unexpectedly flip in the middle of a writing session.
Can I choose my own colours?
Yes. Day and Night each have presets, including a Retro 1980s option, plus custom background, panel, text, accent and sidebar colours. FictionTools warns about very low contrast but does not force everyone into the same palette.
Does a project store language and regional preferences?
Yes. Display/interface-language preference, project/writing language, region, date display, time display, timezone choice, first day of week and measurement preference are stored with the project. In v2, the language preference is used for locale-sensitive display such as month names; workspace labels remain English while the data structure is ready for future native localization.
How are ambiguous dates avoided?
Date parts are stored unambiguously as year, month and day values. Display is separate. You can choose long dates such as “13 August 2026,” “August 13, 2026,” ISO “2026-08-13,” or numeric formats. Backup filenames use sortable year-month-day ordering.
Can I translate the website?
Public pages include a Google Translate control with clearly labelled regional choices such as French (Canada), French (France), Chinese (Simplified), Chinese (Traditional) and Japanese. It sends only the public page URL to Google Translate. The private workspace does not load that control and FictionTools does not send project contents for translation. Because Google Translate is a third-party service, a particular page or language may occasionally be unavailable; browser-built-in page translation is a separate fallback.
Technical questions
Does a large project use WRS server memory?
Mostly no. The server serves the application files. The open project is processed in the author’s browser using the author’s device memory. See the plain-English technical explanation.
What version is this?
The application displays its version in the workspace and public footer. FictionTools v2.1 uses project-file schema version 3. Application versions and project-schema versions are tracked separately.
Can FictionTools 2.1 open older project files?
Yes. Schema-1 and schema-2 projects are migrated forward to schema 3. FictionTools creates a pre-migration safety download and requires the upgraded project to be saved as a new/current-format file rather than silently overwriting the older original.
Families, Houses, organizations and worlds
Can I browse characters by family?
Yes. FictionTools 2.1 adds a scrollable character browser and a family view built from recorded parent, child, sibling and partner links. Biological, adoptive, step, foster, guardian and custom family relationships can be distinguished.
What if a claimed family relationship is not proven?
Store its truth/evidence status instead of forcing it to be canon. A relationship can be confirmed, claimed, implied, suspected, rumoured, disputed, explicitly ruled out, or left undecided by the author.
Can I track Houses, empires and councils?
Yes. Houses are handled through a generic Organizations system that can also represent merchant Houses, dynasties, empires, Great Councils, Inner Councils, governments, factions, companies and custom bodies. Character roles such as Head of House are dated history records, so leadership can change over time.
What if a House is dissolved and recreated later with the same name?
Create a new organization record with a new permanent ID and optionally link it to the earlier incarnation as a revival or successor. A reused name never has to imply that the institution is literally the same record.
Can an empire claim a planet without actually governing it?
Yes. Territorial records separate formal/de-jure status from actual/de-facto control and can carry special designations such as preserve, autonomous territory or non-interference world.
Can one character belong to several Houses, militaries or intelligence services at the same time?
Yes. Organization roles are independent history records and may overlap. Each role can carry its own era, place, timeline/branch context, character-personal chronology, visibility or secrecy status, and certainty. FictionTools does not assume overlapping affiliations are a continuity error.
Do I have to enter exact company ownership or accounting details?
No. FictionTools is for story continuity, not bookkeeping. Company ownership and control may be exact, approximate, unknown or intentionally vague, such as “Frank and associates; exact structure unspecified.”