Chapters

A Chapter is a small group of writers who keep each other going. Each one holds up to 20 writers, so it stays a room you recognize, not a crowd. The point is shared accountability: an optional word goal, scheduled sprints, and a feed where you can see each other show up.

The dashboard itself is about showing up, not chatting. When the group wants to talk, that happens in the Chapter's own chat and forum, covered below.

Finding a Chapter

Browse open Chapters at /chapters. Filter by interest, by whether a Chapter has open spots, or by whether a sprint is running right now. Sort by recently active, newest, or most members.

• An open Chapter lets you join right away.
• An invite only Chapter asks you to send a short note, and the owner or a moderator approves it.

When you ask to join an invite-only Chapter you can say something about your writing. That note is optional.

Starting a Chapter

Creating a Chapter is a paid Pro feature, because a Chapter is a lasting space other writers count on. Joining one and taking part in it is always free.

Use Start a Chapter to make your own. Give it a name, an optional description, and decide who can join. You can set a shared word goal with a deadline, set how many writers the Chapter holds (up to 20), and add a few interests so writers can find it.

There is a November challenge template built in: it fills in a 50,000 word goal, a November 30 deadline, and the right tag in one tap. Nothing special happens behind the scenes; it is just a starting point you can edit.

Once you have created a Chapter, you keep running it even if your Pro subscription later ends. The writers who rely on it do not lose it because your billing changed.

Inviting writers

Beyond letting people find you in the directory, an owner or moderator can bring writers in directly:

• Invite by username. Send a single-use invite straight to a writer. They get a notification and can accept from it.
• Share an invite link. Create a link that anyone can use to join, up to the Chapter's member limit. Hand it out wherever your group already talks.

Either way, an invite stops working once the Chapter is full, and a link invite stays good for a couple of weeks. You can revoke a pending invite at any time.

Showing up together

Inside a Chapter you get a few tabs:

• Activity shows what members have been doing: finished exercises, published pieces, and kept streaks. It never shows anyone's drafts or private work, only deliberate moments from the last 30 days.
• Announcements is a one-directional channel. The owner and moderators post notes; everyone can react.
• Members lists who is in, with their progress toward the goal.
• Sprints lists upcoming and recent writing sprints. Owners and moderators schedule them, and everyone gets a heads-up about ten minutes before one starts.
• Progress is where you report your word count. It is additive, so reporting 500 adds 500 to your running total. No one ever sees your writing, only the number you choose to report.
• Pieces holds work members have shared into the Chapter. A piece can be public and also shared here, or shared with the Chapter only, in which case just the members can read it. See Publishing your work.

Every Chapter also has a member Chapter Chat and its own members-only forum. The chat is for quick back-and-forth; the forum is for longer threads. See Messages and Forum.

Roles

• The owner created the Chapter and has the final say. They can archive or delete it, and they decide who is a moderator.
• A moderator helps run things: posting announcements, approving join requests, and scheduling sprints.
• A member takes part: joining sprints, reporting progress, and reacting.

Handing a Chapter on

An owner can pass the Chapter to someone else. From the Members tab, choose Make owner on a member and confirm. They become the owner, and you stay on as an admin. The Chapter keeps running without a gap.

When an owner goes quiet

A Chapter should outlast any one person drifting away. If an owner has not been active in their Chapter for 30 days, the rest of the group can vote a new owner in so the room keeps going:

• The Chapter's admins vote. If it has no admins, every other member votes.
• When a candidate reaches a majority of those who can vote, they become the owner.
• If the original owner comes back and gets active again within the 30 days, the clock resets and any pending votes clear.

This only ever moves a Chapter forward. It cannot be used to push out an owner who is showing up.

Leaving and archiving

You can leave a Chapter at any time from its page, and you can ask to rejoin later. The owner can archive a Chapter instead of deleting it. An archived Chapter stays visible to its members, but no one new can join and no new content can be posted.

Joining a Chapter and everything you do inside one is free. Only creating a Chapter is a paid Pro feature, and a Chapter you create stays yours to run even if your subscription ends.