Some writing tools are built to stay out of your way.
Squibler is not really one of those.
That is not necessarily a bad thing. It’s just the first thing you notice when you open it up. Squibler is trying to do a lot. You can plan a book, organize chapters, build out characters, use templates, track your progress, and even bring AI into the drafting process.
For the right kind of writer, that could be exactly what you want.
If you like having a system around your book before you start writing, Squibler gives you plenty to work with. It feels less like a blank document and more like a project dashboard for your manuscript.
But that also means it may feel like too much if all you want is a clean place to write and eventually format your book for publishing.
I’ve tested a lot of writing software over the years, and Squibler is one of those tools where the answer is not simply “good” or “bad.” It depends on how you write, how much structure you want, and whether you actually need all the extra features it gives you.
So let’s take a look at what Squibler does well and where it gets in its own way.
But first… There is actually another tool that I recommend more than Squibler called Atticus. It's not just a great writing program built for authors, but it's also the best book formatting platform on the market. If you want to know why it's our favorite, check out our comparison of the best writing tools on the market (and spoiler – Squibler didn't make the cut).
What is Squibler and What Does it Do?
At its core, Squibler is a writing platform aimed mostly at authors, screenwriters, and people working on longer projects like books or scripts. But unlike tools that just give you a blank document and let you start typing, Squibler tries to structure the entire writing process.
When you start a project, you’re usually working from some kind of template. That could be a novel outline, a screenplay format, or another kind of structured project setup. The idea is that instead of figuring out how to organize everything yourself, the platform already gives you a framework to start from.
From there, the software includes different tools meant to help you map out characters, plot points, and sections of your manuscript. You can move pieces around, track your progress, and keep different parts of your project organized inside one dashboard.
More recently, they’ve also added AI writing features that can help generate text or expand sections of what you’re writing.
So instead of being just a writing tool, Squibler is really trying to be a planning system plus a writing environment rolled into one. For writers who like having that kind of structure around their projects, it can actually be pretty appealing.
For writers who prefer to just open a document and start typing, it might feel like a lot happening before you even get to the writing part.
Squibler: My Take
The easiest way to describe Squibler is that it’s a tool built for writers who like systems.
There are a lot of moving parts inside the platform, and once you start clicking around you realize pretty quickly that the goal here isn’t just to give you a place to write. It’s to give you a place to plan and manage an entire writing project.
Some of the features actually do a nice job of helping you keep things organized, especially if you’re working on something big like a novel where you’re juggling characters, scenes, and plot threads.
At the same time, I also had moments where it felt like the software was doing more than it really needed to. Sometimes a simpler tool that lets you focus on the words themselves can be more helpful than a system that tries to manage everything around the writing process.
But there are definitely some parts of Squibler that certain writers will enjoy, so let’s walk through the features that stood out the most while I was using it.
Organizational Features
One of the first things you notice when using Squibler is how heavily it leans into organization.
Squibler includes several tools that allow writers to manage their manuscript and outline more effectively. Writers can break their work into chapters and sections and move them around easily within the interface.
So, if you’re working on a book, Squibler allows you to create a chapter within a draft, which is very helpful since it enables you to write chapters separately instead of having to write big chunks in one place. Squibbler separates your work and divides it into smaller sections in these drafts so you get to focus only on the chapter you’re working on.
Additionally, you get to move any chapter you want by dragging and dropping them, which is also a great feature when you’re working on a book as you don’t have to do all of this annoying, time-consuming cutting and pasting. This feature is particularly useful when you have a lot of chapters in your book and want to move them with ease.
You’d be also happy to learn that a table of content is added to any project you write in Squibler. This table of content shows any changes you make to the chapters’ order. But the chapter number is not corrected by Squibler, so you need to correct it manually.
Writing Templates
Squibler also comes with a large library of templates for different types of writing projects.
Some writers will probably like this a lot, especially if they prefer starting from a structured outline instead of a blank page.
Squibler provides templates for things like novels, screenplays, and other long-form writing projects. Adventure, Romance, Mystery, Fantasy, and general fiction and Non-fiction are a few examples. You also get a variety of templates for scripts in adventure, comedy, horror, and tragedy genres.
Smart Writer
Squibler also includes an AI writing assistant called Smart Writer that can generate text based on prompts.
This is one of those features that seems to be showing up in almost every writing tool lately, so it’s not exactly unique to Squibler.
That said, it can still be helpful for brainstorming ideas or expanding sections when you get stuck.
Of course, as with any AI tool, the output will likely need some tweaking, however, I've found that just getting something on the page can save the author a huge amount of headache, even if you have to go back and rewrite the whole thing over again.
But I actually found the output to be not half bad.
Now, a tool like this is great for the average author, but if you're an AI enthusiast, this isn't going to be as robust as a platform like Sudowrite, which is entirely structured around the concept of AI for fiction writers. But most authors aren't going to need that. Most authors are just going to want a great way to describe someone crossing a room that doesn't sound boring. And an AI tool like what Squibler offers may be exactly what you need. It's not the main feature, and it's not supposed to be, but it will definitely help the well-rounded author.
Also, Squibler’s pricing is based on AI credits now, not AI word counts. The free plan currently gives you 1,000 AI credits per month, Plus gives you 10,000 AI credits per month, and Pro gives you unlimited AI credits. So if you’re comparing Squibler to other AI writing tools, make sure you’re comparing credit limits instead of assuming every paid plan gives you unlimited AI use.
Elements
If you're looking for a writing program that acts as a place to write your first draft AND a place to create your story bible, then Squibler might be right for you. The Elements feature lets you add all your notes for:
- Characters
- Companies
- Features
- Objects
- Persons
This is a great way to mark down any particularly important information that you need to know at a moment's notice while writing your book.
A Robust Free Version
Even though the premium versions of Squibler can be kind of pricey, the free plan does let you try the platform before paying. At the time of this writing, Squibler’s free plan includes 1,000 AI credits per month and lets you test its full book and screenplay creation workflow. That’s enough to get a feel for how the software works, but authors who plan to use the AI features heavily will probably run into the limits pretty quickly.
There are definitely reasons why you would want to upgrade (like the limited “files”, where chapters count as a file, or the ability to export to all formats), but there is more than enough for any author to get started.
Exporting Options
Once you complete your project in Squibler, you can export it as PDF, Word (.docx), or ePub. Squibler says those formats are ready for self-publishing platforms or for submitting to traditional publishers, though I’d still recommend previewing your files carefully before uploading anywhere. That’s especially true if your book has images, special formatting, or a more complicated layout.
Full-Length Manuscript Prompt
It's not how I would recommend using Squibler, but I'd be remiss if I didn't mention that Squibler now leans heavily into full-length AI manuscript generation. Their official pages describe tools for generating books, novels, and scripts, including the option to generate a full-length book from a prompt.
I would still treat that as a starting point, not a finished manuscript. If you use it at all, use it for a rough version you plan to heavily rewrite, reshape, and fact-check.
For manuscript type, you can select fiction, non-fiction, short story, or script.
I would advise against using Squibbler (or any AI tool) to write an entire manuscript for you. However, if you're a beginner, and you need a “jumpstart” to give you a “version 1.0 draft” that you can then heavily edit and revise, it could be a handy training tool.
What I Don’t Like About Squibler
While Squibler has a lot of features packed into it, there were a few things that kept popping up while I was using the platform that are worth mentioning.
None of these are dealbreakers for everyone, but depending on how you work, they could end up being frustrating over time.
In a few cases, it’s just small usability things. In others, it’s more about the tradeoff that happens when a tool tries to do a lot of different jobs instead of focusing on one thing really well.
These were the main issues that stood out to me.
It's Pricey
Squibler’s Plus plan is currently listed at $29.99/month, or $15.83/month when billed annually. They also have a Pro plan listed at $89.99/month, or $49.17/month when billed annually, which includes unlimited AI credits.
However, Squibler's price is likely to be a turn-off for some authors, especially when compared to other writing apps that cost less and have even more robust features than Squibler does. We’re not saying that Squibler is not worth it, we’re just saying that you should explore other cheaper options before you decide to subscribe to Squibler.
This is especially true if you DON'T need the AI Smart Writer.
That said, if you use Squibler’s AI features regularly, the price may make more sense than it first appears. Just keep in mind that the Plus plan is credit-based. If you want unlimited AI credits, that appears to require the Pro plan.
Not Fast Enough
When I tested Squibler, I noticed some lag while moving around the platform, especially when clicking between chapters and subsections. Squibler has since listed performance improvements in its release notes, including reduced memory usage for smoother longer writing sessions, so this may be better than it was. Still, if speed matters to you, I’d test the free plan with a real project before paying.
Limited Formatting
Even though Squibler does output to PDF and an Ebook file, it still lacks considerably in decent book formatting. That's why I would recommend Atticus as the better tool, because it's a robust formatting platform that also happens to be a writing program similar to Squibler.
And it's also a lifetime product, so you won't be paying an annual fee.
Squibler is Good, But Atticus is Better
Squibler is not a bad tool. Actually, there’s a lot to like here if you’re the kind of writer who wants your planning, drafting, notes, characters, and AI help all living in the same place.
That is where Squibler makes the most sense. It is built for writers who like structure. If you enjoy mapping everything out before you write, or you want a tool that helps you manage a bigger project, you may really like it.
But I do think a lot of authors will find it to be more than they need. There are a lot of pieces inside Squibler, and depending on how you work, those pieces may help you write… or they may just give you more things to click on before you actually get words on the page.
That's why I still lean toward Atticus for most authors.
Atticus gives you a clean place to write, but its real strength is what happens after the draft is done. You can format your book for ebook and print without having to move everything into a separate tool later. And since it is a one-time purchase instead of a monthly subscription, it is easier to recommend if your main goal is writing and publishing books without adding another recurring bill.
So if you love the planning side of writing and want a bigger system around your manuscript, Squibler is worth checking out.
But if you want something simpler that also handles the publishing side better, Atticus is still the one I’d point most authors to first.
