Lore & LilacDesktop & mobile
One studio on every desk
Desktop apps for Windows, macOS and Linux open your studio in its own window — and keep a restorable copy of each book on your own computer. On phones, tablets and Chromebooks, install it from the browser. It's the same studio, kept in sync, and books you've opened on a device open there without a connection.
No AI involved The apps are a window onto the same studio; they don't add any AI processing.
What you get
Desktop & mobile, in detail
- Windows (installer or portable), macOS (Apple silicon or Intel, as a .zip you unzip and drag to Applications) and Linux (AppImage or .deb)
- Local backups: a restorable .zip of each book in a folder on your computer (Documents › Lore & Lilac Backups unless you choose another)
- Automatic while the app is open — each book you've changed is backed up at most once a day — plus Back up now whenever you like
- You choose how many copies to keep for each book; older ones are removed, and nothing else in the folder is touched
- loreandlilac:// links that open the desktop app at your library or a scene, from your notes or another app
- Spellcheck suggestions and native menus; automatic updates on Windows and Linux, and a notice when a new Mac version is ready
- A guard against closing the app with words that haven't synced
- Installable web app for iPhone, iPad, Android and Chromebook — no app store needed
- [Opens with no connection](/features/offline) — in the desktop app, the installed app and the browser — once a book has been opened on that device
How it works
In practice
Download or install
Get the desktop app from the download page, or add the studio to your home screen.
Sign in once
Your books, bible and plans are the same on every device. The first launch on a device needs a connection.
Write anywhere
Scenes sync as you go. With no connection, the books you've opened on that device still open, and your changes sync when you're back. If two devices edit the same scene, you choose which version to keep — or keep both.
Keep a copy at home
In the desktop app, Settings › Local backups shows the folder, how many copies to keep and when each book was last saved. To restore, open a backup with Restore a project archive; it comes back as a new book, so nothing is overwritten.
Where we draw the line
What it never does
- Lock your books to one device
- Overwrite one device's work with another's without asking
- Overwrite a book when you restore a backup — it always arrives as a new book
- Open anything from a link except a page inside your own studio
These follow from our commitments. The studio never writes, suggests or rewrites your prose, anywhere.
Before you start
Questions writers ask
Why might my computer warn me about the app?
Until our code-signing certificates are issued, Windows may say the app is from an unknown publisher. The Mac app isn't notarized by Apple yet, so the first time you open it macOS says it can't check it; go to System Settings › Privacy & Security and choose Open Anyway. The download page explains both. Only download from our own site.
Is there a Mac app?
Yes, for Apple silicon and Intel Macs on macOS 13 Ventura or later. It comes as a .zip from the download page: unzip it and drag the app to Applications. It isn't notarized by Apple yet, so the first launch needs one extra step in System Settings › Privacy & Security. Mac updates aren't automatic yet: the app tells you when a new version is ready and opens the download page. You can also use the studio in any modern browser.
Is there an App Store or Play Store app?
Not today. On phones and tablets you install the studio from the browser, which gives you a home-screen icon and a full-screen window.
Can I work offline?
Yes, once a book has been opened on that device: the studio opens without a connection, you can read and write, and changes sync when you're back. Some things still need a connection, such as new scenes, exports and AI features. Here's exactly what works offline.
Are local backups the same as working offline?
No. A backup is a complete, checksummed project archive — chapters, scenes, story bible and plans — that you can restore into the studio at any time, on this or another account. It isn't a file you write in. Working offline uses the studio's own copy on the device instead, and syncs when the connection returns.
Can I dictate in the desktop app?
Browser dictation may not work inside the desktop app. The app allows microphone access only for the studio itself, and if dictation isn't available it points you to your computer's own dictation (Win+H on Windows), which types into the editor like a keyboard.
Try desktop & mobile on your own draft
Import your draft from Word, Scrivener, RTF, EPUB or Markdown, or start on a blank page. The 14-day trial needs no card, and your book is exportable from the first word.