Who Word Smith is for#
Fiction writers organizing a novel in Obsidian
Writers who already use Obsidian for research and world-building can keep their manuscript in the same vault. The Organizer tracks chapter word counts against targets and deadlines, and Hemingway mode enforces forward-only drafting to prevent compulsive revision. Export assembles the full manuscript into EPUB or DOCX when the draft is complete.
Skip if:
If you draft outside Obsidian or rely on Scrivener's composition mode as a core part of your workflow, migrating your existing project structure to a plain Markdown vault is a significant effort.
Researchers writing long academic papers
The Organizer's target and deadline tracking keeps writing on a schedule across multiple chapter files. Zotero citation support in the Export panel renders a reference list in APA, Chicago, Harvard, MLA, or IEEE format without a separate citation plugin. Part-of-speech highlighting helps identify passive voice and adverb overuse common in academic drafts.
Skip if:
If you require LaTeX output or work in a discipline with strict publisher submission templates, verify that Word-Smith's DOCX and PDF export meets those format requirements before committing to this workflow.
Technical writers maintaining docs in Obsidian
Documentation projects often span dozens or hundreds of files. Word-Smith's Organizer provides filterable metadata tracking across the entire vault, including progress flags for files that still need a revision pass. Export to Markdown or HTML supports documentation pipelines that process plain text.
Skip if:
If your documentation pipeline runs from a git repository with CI/CD rather than a manual export step, Word-Smith's export adds little to the publication step, though the Organizer and writing modes still add value for the drafting phase.
Writers wanting focus modes without a separate app
Zen mode, Letterbox mode, and Hemingway mode cover the main distraction-reduction patterns writers seek from dedicated focus apps. Since they are toggles within Obsidian, there is no context switch between note-taking and writing, and no separate subscription for a focus writing environment.
Skip if:
If you need full-screen focus writing with custom ambient soundscapes or session timers, a dedicated focus app may offer features beyond what Word-Smith's writing modes provide.
The problem it solves#
Long-form writing in Obsidian works until the word count climbs past a few files. Chapter order depends on filename prefixes that are tedious to change after the fact. Tracking word counts across a project means maintaining custom Dataview queries or counting manually, and exporting a full manuscript requires assembling disparate notes into a single document yourself.
Dedicated writing apps like Scrivener address this with a built-in Binder and Compile flow, but they store projects in a proprietary format that is separate from your Markdown vault. That separation forces a choice: manage notes in Obsidian, write in Scrivener, and keep the two in sync, or abandon one of them.
How it solves it#
Chapter organizer with drag-and-drop reordering
The Organizer is a filterable, sortable table that tracks every file in your vault. Drag-and-drop reordering propagates simultaneously to the file tree and the export order, removing the need for numeric filename prefixes. Metadata columns include word count, targets, deadlines, reading grade, vocabulary, pages, paragraphs, tasks, and backlinks. Bulk-edit multiple rows at once. Works with any file type, not just Markdown notes.
Five focused writing modes for drafting
Zen mode collapses the interface incrementally for distraction-free writing. Letterbox mode restricts the visible lines to a narrow band. Typewriter mode keeps the active line centered. Page mode renders the editor as a physical book page. Hemingway mode locks the Backspace key so a first draft can only go forward, preventing compulsive editing during the initial pass. Each mode is an independent toggle.
Manuscript export to PDF, EPUB, DOCX, and HTML
The Export panel lets you tick individual notes or whole folders from anywhere in the vault to include in the manuscript. Output formats include PDF, DOCX, EPUB, Markdown, and HTML, with a print preview that shows the final layout before any file is generated. Options cover title page, running header, table of contents, footnotes, and comments. Zotero citation support renders references in APA, Chicago, Harvard, MLA, or IEEE format with the bibliography appended automatically.
Offline prose checks and part-of-speech highlighting
Nouns, verbs, and adjectives are colored separately in the editor, the way a code editor highlights syntax. Filler words, passive voice, and doubled words receive an underline. No AI model, no network call, no internet required: checks run on local regex rules and a small per-language dictionary. English is built in; additional language packs are single Markdown files you drop into the Word-Smith folder in your vault.
Configurable powerline status bar
The status bar is assembled from tokens you write as plain text, with punctuation between tokens determining dividers and spacing. Available tokens include words, characters, reading time, pages, tasks, typing speed, the time, a battery indicator, and buttons for Word-Smith menus. Three preset bars ship with the plugin, and share codes let you exchange configurations with other writers. Each token can be adjusted individually.
Writing history with daily progress tracking
A history log shows each day's writing output for the full year. A daily detail view breaks down sessions within that day. The Writing Report calculates word count, characters, vocabulary size, sentences, paragraphs, pages, reading time, and reading grade for a note, a folder, or a selection. A word frequency list shows every word used, with common stop words hidden by default.
Strengths and trade-offs#
Strengths
- Plain Markdown files, no proprietary formatEvery chapter is a standard Markdown file in your Obsidian vault. Word-Smith's own data (structure, history, settings) lives in three Markdown files in a subfolder. Uninstalling Word-Smith leaves your writing exactly as it is, with no proprietary format to export from or import into another tool.
- Full desktop and mobile parityWord-Smith runs on Obsidian 1.13.7 and newer on both desktop and mobile. Writing modes, the Organizer, and the powerline bar work on mobile without feature restrictions, so writers who switch between a laptop and a phone or tablet get a consistent environment.
- MIT licensed, free for any useThe MIT license lets you run Word-Smith on your own devices with no subscription, no usage caps, and no expiration. There is no cloud tier, no API key, and no account to create. The license places no restrictions on commercial use or redistribution.
- No telemetry, no network calls, no accountWord-Smith makes no network calls and sends no data anywhere. Prose checks run on local regex rules and dictionary files. Writing history is stored as plain Markdown in your vault. There is no analytics integration, no crash reporting to a remote server, and no sign-in requirement.
- Works with any file type in the vaultThe Organizer tracks and annotates every file in the vault, including PDFs, spreadsheets, and images, not only Markdown notes. Metadata for non-Markdown files is stored in the ws-structure.md file. This is useful for managing reference libraries alongside writing projects.
Trade-offs
- -Requires an existing Obsidian installationWord-Smith is an Obsidian plugin, not a standalone application. Writers who do not use Obsidian, or who prefer a purpose-built writing tool, need to adopt Obsidian first. The plugin requires Obsidian 1.13.7 installer version or newer. Standalone apps like Scrivener may be more practical for writers who want something that works independently of a note-taking setup.
- -Young project with a short release historyWord-Smith was created in July 2026, making it a relatively new plugin with a short track record compared to established writing tools. The community is still forming: 463 stars and 8 open issues at the time of writing. Long-term maintenance depends on a single maintainer, which carries risk for workflows built heavily around the plugin.
Word Smith vs alternatives#
Word-Smith vs Scrivener
Word-Smith and Scrivener cover the same core writing workflow: an organizer that structures chapters, writing modes for distraction-free drafting, and a compile step that assembles the manuscript for output. The key difference is where the content lives.
| Feature | Word-Smith | Scrivener |
|---|---|---|
| License | MIT (free) | Proprietary (one-time fee) |
| Content format | Plain Markdown in your Obsidian vault | Proprietary .scriv project package |
| Self-hosting | Fully offline, no account | Fully offline, no account |
| Mobile | Obsidian mobile (iOS and Android) | iOS companion app (limited features) |
| Export formats | PDF, DOCX, EPUB, Markdown, HTML | PDF, DOCX, EPUB, Final Draft, RTF |
| Citation support | Zotero (APA, Chicago, Harvard, MLA, IEEE) | None built-in |
| Requires other app | Yes (Obsidian) | No (standalone) |
Word-Smith is the better choice when your writing lives alongside your notes in an Obsidian vault. Keeping chapters as plain Markdown means every file is readable in any text editor, versionable with git, and portable across tools. There is no import step, no project migration, and no format dependency. Writers who already track research and ideas in Obsidian add a manuscript organizer that fits directly into their existing setup.
Scrivener is still worth considering when you want a standalone writing application with no dependency on Obsidian. Its Compile feature is more mature, with fine-grained output styling options that Word-Smith's Export does not yet match. Writers who need production-grade layout control for print, or who work with publishers requiring specific Scrivener templates, should verify whether Word-Smith's export output meets their requirements.
What it's built on#
- Languages
- JavaScriptTypeScript
- Tooling
- esbuild
FAQ#
Is Word-Smith free to use?
Yes. Word-Smith is MIT licensed and free to install from Obsidian's community plugins browser. There is no paid tier, no subscription, and no account required.
Does Word-Smith work on iPhone or Android?
Yes. Word-Smith runs on Obsidian 1.13.7 and newer on both desktop and mobile, including iOS and Android. Writing modes, the Organizer, and the powerline bar are all available on mobile. Sync between devices relies on Obsidian Sync or any other file sync method you use for your vault.
Will my files still work if I uninstall Word-Smith?
Yes. Your Markdown files are standard Markdown and exist independently of Word-Smith. Uninstalling the plugin leaves all your writing exactly as it is. Word-Smith stores its own data in three Markdown files inside a Word-Smith folder in your vault; you can delete that folder at any time without affecting your content.
How is Word-Smith different from Scrivener?
Scrivener is a standalone paid writing app with a proprietary .scriv project format. Word-Smith is a free Obsidian plugin that uses plain Markdown files stored in your vault. The core feature sets are comparable: an organizer analogous to Scrivener's Binder, writing modes, and a compile/export step. The trade-off is that Word-Smith requires Obsidian, while Scrivener works independently. Writers who prefer staying in Markdown and using the same vault for notes and writing often choose Word-Smith; writers who want a fully self-contained tool often prefer Scrivener.
What export formats does Word-Smith support?
Word-Smith exports to PDF, DOCX, EPUB, Markdown, and HTML. A print preview shows the final layout before any file is generated. Options include title page, running header, table of contents, footnotes, and comments. Zotero citation support renders references in APA, Chicago, Harvard, MLA, or IEEE format, with the bibliography appended automatically.
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