Quick Guide

Flow is a minimalist writing app for long-form work. Your projects stay on your device — no account required. Use Flow at flowfocuswriter.app.

Getting started

We recommend Chrome or Edge for the best experience: Flow links a .flow file on your device and autosaves as you write. Safari and Firefox work too, but you download a .flow copy when you save — see below.

When you first open Flow, choose Create a new project to start a project, or Open existing project to continue work. You can also choose Not now and write in the browser; Flow will remind you to save a project file when you are ready.

A .flow file is your portable project. It holds your draft, notes, preferences, writing stats, and checkpoints. Keep a current copy on your device — browser storage alone is not a permanent backup.

Writing

Click the main area and start typing. The footer shows word count, character count, session speed (WPM), and today’s goal progress.

• Select text to show the formatting toolbar for bold and italic.
• Move the mouse to the top or bottom of the screen to reveal the toolbar and stats bar.
• Pin the stats bar from the chart icon in the top bar if you want counts always visible.

Saving your work

In Chrome or Edge, Flow can link a .flow file on your device and autosave as you write (about every 30 seconds when there are changes).

• Ctrl+S (or Cmd+S on Mac) saves the linked project file.
• The Save icon in the top bar opens save options if you need to create, open, or download a project.
• Until you save a project, Flow keeps a temporary browser copy of your active draft so a refresh does not lose recent work. Once linked (Chrome/Edge) or saved to the vault (Safari/Firefox), your full project persists in Flow and on your device when you download.

Saving on Safari and Firefox

These browsers cannot link directly to a file on your device the way Chrome and Edge do. Flow uses a two-step model instead:

• Autosave in Flow — your full project (draft, notes, chapters, checkpoints, stats) saves automatically in the browser as you write.
• Save to device — use Save or Cmd+S to download an updated .flow copy. Replace the previous file in Files or Downloads to keep one up-to-date copy on your device.
• Use Open existing project to import a .flow file from your device into Flow.
• When you return later, Flow restores your last project from browser storage — you do not need to reopen the file unless you want to sync from a copy on your device.
• Status Saved in Flow means your latest work is in the browser vault. If the status says to click Save or use your keyboard shortcut, your device copy is older than your latest edits — save to refresh the .flow file on your device.
• Flow warns you before you close the tab or switch projects if your device does not have an up-to-date .flow file. Save before leaving so you are not relying on browser storage alone.
• Avoid Safari Private Browsing for long projects — browser storage (including the vault) may not persist.

Chapters

Every project starts as Chapter 1. Open the Chapters panel from the top bar when you want to split your manuscript into parts.

• Click + Add chapter, then click a chapter in the list to switch what you are editing.
• Word counts and daily goals use your full manuscript, not just the active chapter.
• Export always includes all chapters in order.

Notes

Open Notes from the top bar or the Writing panel. Organize ideas by category (Character, World, Plot, Misc).

• Create, edit, and delete notes in the left panel.
• Use Pin to screen to keep a note visible while you write; drag the card by its header to reposition it.
• Notes are saved inside your .flow project file.

Checkpoints (draft snapshots)

Open the Writing panel (left side) for version history. Checkpoints are kept per chapter — up to 20 for the chapter you are editing.

• Save checkpoint stores the current chapter, autosaves in Flow, and downloads an updated device copy on Safari/Firefox.
• Flow also saves automatic checkpoints every 5 minutes (and when you leave the tab) if the text changed.
• Use Restore to roll back the active chapter, or Copy to copy an older version to the clipboard.

Ctrl+S saves your project file but does not create a new checkpoint.

Daily goals & writing pace

Click the goal ring in the footer to set how many words you want to write today. Progress tracks words added today across your whole project.

The Writing panel shows today’s pace, a 7-day average, and Goal history for past days.

Appearance

Open the Appearance panel (right side or top bar) to change theme, font, and text size. Settings are saved in your project and browser preferences.

Export

Use Export in the top bar to download your work as plain text, Markdown, HTML, or Word (.docx). Export is separate from saving your editable .flow project — it is meant for sharing or submitting a finished copy.

Keyboard shortcuts

• Ctrl/Cmd+S — save project (linked file on Chrome/Edge; download device copy on Safari/Firefox)
• Ctrl/Cmd+B — bold
• Ctrl/Cmd+I — italic
• Ctrl/Cmd+Shift+F — fullscreen

Tips

• Chrome/Edge (recommended): Your linked .flow file is the main copy on your device — autosave keeps it current.
• Safari/Firefox: Flow autosaves in the browser, but download a .flow file regularly. Flow warns you when you close the tab or switch projects without an up-to-date device copy.
• For backup across devices, save your .flow file to a synced folder such as OneDrive or Google Drive.
• Opening a different project replaces the current draft, notes, chapters, stats, and checkpoints in the app — save or export first if you need to keep something.

Need more help?

Email support@flowfocuswriter.com. See also the Privacy Policy and Terms of Use.

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