The Manusly interface has three main regions: the left navigation sidebar (tabs), the top bar (project actions), and the center area (active panel). The URL does not change inside a project; content switches via view mode.
What you will learn
- Every sidebar tab and what it does
- Top bar buttons
- Side panels in writing mode
- Which tabs appear for each book type
Left navigation menu
Location: With a project open → left vertical menu
| Tab | What it does |
|---|---|
| Projects (home icon) | Return to home — project list |
| Dashboard | Publish readiness score, stats, recent exports |
| Editor | Main writing editor + chapter tree + live preview |
| Picture Book | Visual book studio (illustrated types only) |
| Format | Templates, Theme Builder, TOC, advanced layout |
| Publish | Publish checklist, metadata suggestions (AI) |
| Analyze | Manuscript Analyzer — pacing, repeated words |
| Story Bible | Characters, world elements, text scan |
| Cover | Cover image analysis (contrast, thumbnail) |
| Marketing | Amazon, social, email copy (AI) |
| Export | Distribution Center — EPUB, Kindle, PDF, DOCX |
| Settings | Metadata, project file, OpenAI key |
Top bar
Location: With a project open → top horizontal bar
| Button / field | Function |
|---|---|
| ← Back | Return to project list |
| Book title | Active project title |
| Save status | “Saving…” / “Saved” — auto-save indicator |
| Save | Export project as .manusly file |
| Cloud icon | Cloud Sync — upload / download project |
| Eye icon | Toggle right preview panel in Editor |
| Fullscreen | Distraction-free writing mode (editor only) |
Panels in the Editor tab
When you are on the Editor tab, there are three regions:
- Left — Chapter sidebar: Chapter/scene/visual page tree. Drag and drop to reorder. Use + for new pages.
- Center — Writing area: TipTap rich text editor and toolbar.
- Right — Book Preview: Print / iPhone / iPad / Kindle preview (can be closed with the eye icon).
- Bottom — Word stats: Word count and daily goal progress.
Differences by book type
- Children’s Book, Illustrated Book, Cookbook, Magazine: The
Picture Booktab appears; the project opens in Picture Book Studio first. - Fiction: A sample character (“Main Character”) is added automatically; Story Bible is especially useful.
- Other types: Start on Dashboard.
Distraction-free mode
In fullscreen mode the sidebar and preview are hidden. Move the mouse to the top edge of the screen to reveal the top bar.
Next steps