Help Center

Everything you need to organize your stories and collaborate with your team.

Quick Start Guide

1

Create Your Workspace

After signing up, create a workspace for your pen name. Each workspace keeps your series, characters, and team separate.

2

Add Your First Novel

Click "Add Novel" from the dashboard. Enter title, genre, and status. You can organize novels into series later.

3

Build Your World & Timeline

Add characters with portraits, create world topics, map key timeline events, and attach research links or notes.

4

Invite Your Team

Go to Team → Invite Members. Add your editor, PA, or co-author with the right permission level.

Feature Guides

Novels & Series

Organize books, track word counts, group into series

Creating a Novel

  1. From the Dashboard, click Add Novel
  2. Enter title, genre, and current status (Drafting, Editing, Published)
  3. Add a blurb and synopsis for your reference
  4. Upload a cover image from the Media Library
  5. Set word count goal and track progress

Organizing into Series

  1. Go to Series in the navigation
  2. Click Create Series and name it
  3. Add themes and tropes that define the series
  4. Edit any novel and select the series from the dropdown
Tip: Use the series page to see all novels at a glance with their reading order and publication status.

Characters

Build detailed profiles with custom fields

Creating a Character

  1. Navigate to your novel and click Characters
  2. Click Add Character
  3. Fill in Quick Facts: role, age, occupation, etc.
  4. Upload a portrait image
  5. Use the rich text editor for detailed backstory

Custom Fields

  1. Scroll to the Custom Fields section
  2. Click Add Field
  3. Enter field name (e.g., "MBTI", "Magic Ability", "Secret")
  4. Add the value for this character
Tip: Custom fields are great for tracking romance-specific details like "Meet Cute Scene" or "Conflict Points."

Character Relationships

Track directional relationships with presets and graph view

Creating Relationships

  1. Open your novel and click Relationships
  2. Click Add Relationship
  3. Select the source and target characters
  4. Choose a role preset (Family, Romantic, Ally, Enemy, etc.)
  5. Add notes for context and save

Graph View

  • Filter the graph by relationship category
  • Click a node to jump to the character page
Tip: Use Manage Presets to add custom roles. Relationships are directional, so add the reverse if you need it.

Worldbuilding

Document magic systems, locations, cultures

Creating World Topics

  1. Navigate to your novel and click World
  2. Click Add Topic
  3. Name your topic (e.g., "Magic System", "Kingdom of Eldara")
  4. Use the rich text editor with tables and code blocks
  5. Link to related characters or other topics

Suggested Topics

  • Magic/Technology: Rules, limitations, costs
  • Geography: Maps, regions, climate
  • Politics: Factions, rulers, conflicts
  • Culture: Customs, religions, holidays
  • History: Timeline, wars, founding myths
Tip: Upload maps and reference images to the Media Library and link them in your world topics.

Story Chronology

Fictional timeline with eras, lanes, and filters

Creating Timeline Events

  1. Open a novel or series and click Timeline
  2. Click Add Event
  3. Set start year/sequence and optional end year for spans
  4. Add a display date for custom calendars (e.g., "500 BC")
  5. Assign an era or lane and link related characters/world topics

Views & Filters

  • Use Canvas for the visual timeline with zoom controls
  • Switch to List for quick edits and search
  • Filter by lane, era, or character
Tip: Use Manage Eras and Manage Lanes to set up bands and POV tracks before adding events.

Research Library

Collect links, files, and notes for each novel

Adding Items

  1. From a novel, open Research
  2. Click New Item
  3. Choose a type: Link, File, or Note
  4. Add tags and assign a folder (optional)
  5. Save, then open the card to view details

Organizing

  • Filter by type or tag chips
  • Search titles, URLs, and note text
  • Use Manage Folders for long-term organization
Tip: File uploads count toward your workspace storage limit.

Production Notes

Structured notes with status, visibility, and links

Creating Notes

  1. Open a novel and click Production Notes
  2. Click Add Note
  3. Set category, status, and visibility
  4. Write content, add tags, and pin key notes

Linking Context

  • Save the note, then use Add Link to connect it to characters, world topics, timeline events, research items, or media
  • Private notes are visible only to the creator
Tip: Use Save Draft for work-in-progress notes and pin the ones you revisit often.

Planning & Calendar

Kanban boards, deadlines, Google Calendar sync

Using the Task Board

  1. Click Board in the navigation
  2. Click Add Task to create a new task
  3. Set priority, assignee, and due date
  4. Drag tasks between columns: Backlog → To Do → In Progress → Review → Done
  5. Use Manage Labels to create tags like "Marketing" or "Editing"

Calendar Events

  1. Click Calendar in the navigation
  2. Click any date to add an event
  3. Choose event type: Release, Deadline, Editing, Marketing
  4. Link events to specific novels

Google Calendar Sync

  1. On the Calendar page, click Connect Google Calendar
  2. Authorize Story Signal to access your calendar
  3. Check "Sync to Google Calendar" when creating events
  4. Tasks with due dates automatically sync when connected
Tip: Task due dates create calendar events at 5pm local time so they appear on your schedule.

Team Collaboration

Invite editors, PAs, and co-authors

Inviting Team Members

  1. Click Team in the navigation
  2. Click Invite Member
  3. Enter their email address
  4. Select a role:
    • Viewer: Can see everything, edit nothing
    • Collaborator: Can edit content, manage tasks
    • Owner: Full access including team management
  5. They'll receive an email invitation to join

Managing Team Members

  1. View all members on the Team page
  2. Change roles by clicking the role dropdown
  3. Remove members by clicking the remove button
Tip: Give your PA "Collaborator" access so they can update social media tasks and calendar events.

Import & Export

Bring in existing content, export PDF bibles

Importing Markdown

  1. Navigate to your novel
  2. Click Import
  3. Select "Markdown" as the format
  4. Paste your content or upload a .md file
  5. Preview the import and confirm

Markdown Format Tips

  • Use YAML frontmatter for metadata: ---\ntitle: Character Name\nrole: Protagonist\n---
  • Use # Heading for sections
  • Use **bold** and *italic* for emphasis

Exporting PDF Series Bible

  1. Navigate to your novel or series
  2. Click Export
  3. Select "PDF Series Bible"
  4. Choose what to include: characters, world topics, etc.
  5. Download the generated PDF
Tip: Export a PDF before sending to editors so they have a complete reference document.

Social Media

Content scheduling, approval workflows, hashtag groups

Piracy Shield

DMCA monitoring, piracy scanning, takedown notices

Keyboard Shortcuts

Action Shortcut Where
Bold text Ctrl + B Rich text editor
Italic text Ctrl + I Rich text editor
Underline text Ctrl + U Rich text editor
Create link Ctrl + K Rich text editor
Undo Ctrl + Z Everywhere
Redo Ctrl + Shift + Z Everywhere
Save form Ctrl + Enter Any form

On Mac, use ⌘ Cmd instead of Ctrl

Troubleshooting

Google Calendar not syncing
Solution: Go to Calendar → click "Disconnect" then "Connect Google Calendar" again. Make sure you're authorizing the correct Google account. Events created before connecting won't sync automatically—edit them and check "Sync to Google Calendar."
Import not working correctly
Solution: Check that your Markdown file uses proper formatting. YAML frontmatter must start and end with --- on its own line. Make sure the file encoding is UTF-8. Try pasting content directly instead of uploading.
Team member can't access workspace
Solution: Check that their invite status shows "Accepted" on the Team page. If it shows "Pending," ask them to check their email (including spam). You can resend the invite or delete and re-invite.
Images not uploading
Solution: Check file size (max 10MB per image). Supported formats: JPG, PNG, GIF, WebP. If you're hitting storage limits, delete unused images from the Media Library. Contact support if the problem persists.

Frequently Asked Questions

Is my data safe from AI training?
Absolutely. Story Signal has a strict "No-Train" policy. We do not use your content to train AI models, and we employ technical measures to block AI crawlers. Your stories remain yours. See our Data Promise for details.
Can I use Story Signal for multiple pen names?
Yes! Create a separate workspace for each pen name. Each workspace has its own novels, characters, team members, and settings. You can switch between workspaces from the dropdown in the navigation.
What file formats can I import?
Currently we support Markdown files (.md) with optional YAML frontmatter, and Scrivener projects exported as Markdown. Direct Word (.docx) import is on our roadmap.
How do I export my data?
You can export individual novels as PDF Series Bibles, which include all characters, world topics, and metadata in a beautifully formatted document. Full workspace export (all data as JSON/Markdown) is coming soon.
How is Story Chronology different from the Calendar?
Story Chronology is your in-world timeline (fictional years, eras, and lanes). The Calendar is for real-world production dates and Google Calendar sync.
Can I keep notes private from collaborators?
Yes. Set the note visibility to Private and only the creator will see it. Team notes are visible to everyone in the workspace.
What's the storage limit?
Each workspace has 5GB of storage for uploads. This includes character portraits, cover art, media library items, research files, social media uploads, and task attachments. Text content (notes, timelines, characters, world topics) doesn't count against this limit.

Glossary

Workspace
A container for all your content under one pen name. Each workspace has its own novels, characters, team, and settings.
Series
A collection of related novels. Use series to group books in a reading order with shared themes and tropes.
Series Bible
A reference document containing all the details of your fictional world: characters, locations, timelines, and rules. Story Signal helps you build and export these.
World Topic
A page documenting an aspect of your world: magic systems, cultures, geography, politics, or history.
Story Chronology
A fictional timeline for in-world events, with eras and lanes. Separate from the production calendar.
Research Item
A link, file, or note attached to a novel, organized with tags and folders.
Production Note
A structured note with category, status, visibility, and links to related entities.
Character Relationship
A directional link between two characters with a role preset, shown in the relationships graph.
Quick Facts
Structured character data like age, occupation, and physical traits. These appear in a scannable format on character profiles.
Custom Fields
User-defined fields on characters for tracking anything: MBTI, magical abilities, relationship status, or book-specific details.
Collaborator
A team member who can edit content, manage tasks, and upload files, but cannot manage team membership or workspace settings.
Viewer
A team member with read-only access. Perfect for marketing team members or contractors who need reference but shouldn't edit.

Still need help?

We're in Beta and actively improving based on your feedback. Bug reports, feature requests, and questions are all welcome.

Contact Support