Core Workflows

Core workflows are a reference for ongoing use. For first-time setup, see Onboarding-Fresh-Vault or Onboarding-Existing-Vault.

Planning Your Novel

• Act Structure: Scenes are organized by act (default 3 acts, configurable in Settings → Acts). Acts come from the scene frontmatter Act: field.
• Subplot Tracking: Each ring represents a different subplot. Keep scenes in a single subplot or spread them across multiple subplots to capture common themes, topics, characters, etc.
• Story Beats: Use story beat systems (Save the Cat, Hero's Journey, Story Grid, or Custom) to lay out the momentum scaffolding.
• Backdrop & Micro-backdrops: Mark major plot backdrop events using the special context ring placed below the outer ring in Chronologue mode. For lighter-weight context — eras, seasons, or historical milestones — use micro-backdrop rings configured in Settings with a title, color, and date range.

Creating Scenes

• Book Designer: Use Book Designer to generate a full manuscript scaffold (acts, subplots, optional beat notes).
• Create basic scene note: Command palette → Radial Timeline: Create basic scene note (uses the Base YAML template).
• Create advanced scene note: Command palette → Radial Timeline: Create advanced scene note (uses the Advanced YAML template, including any Advanced YAML editor customizations).

Publication Mode and Tracking Progress (formerly Subplot)

• Scene Status Colors: In Publication Mode, scenes are color-coded by status: Todo = plaid, Working = pink, Overdue = red, Complete = publish stage color. In Narrative and Chronologue modes, scenes display their subplot color.
• Publishing Stages: Track manuscript through Zero → Author → House → Press.
• Completion Estimate Mark: Plugin calculates target completion date based on your recent writing pace. The calculation is most accurate when the Due date is updated to the day of scene completion.

Modes: Publication 2 Settings: Publishing stage colors

Exporting a Manuscript

Manuscript export — filter, order, and select a range of scenes

When you're ready to read through your work or send it to an editor, use the Manuscript export command.

1. Open the command palette (Cmd/Ctrl + P) and select Radial Timeline: Manuscript export.
2. Subplot Filter: Optionally filter to compile only scenes from a specific subplot.
3. Order: Choose from Narrative, Chronological, Reverse Narrative, or Reverse Chronological ordering.
4. TOC: Select Markdown, Plain Text, or No Table of Contents.
5. Range: Use the drag-bar slider to visually select a specific range of scenes to include (useful for generating a single act or particular range of scenes).
6. Output: A new file is created in the Export folder (default Radial Timeline/Export) containing the compiled text of all selected scenes.

Zero Draft Mode

Prevents edits to completed zero-draft scenes. Click completed scene → modal for pending edits → save ideas for later revision. Keeps you progressing to new scenes instead of endlessly revising. See the Settings for details.

Zero Draft modal — capture edit ideas without breaking flow

Settings: → Radial Timeline → Zero draft mode