# Writerly — Start thinking like a writer!

> Creative writing guide with AI tools for inspiration, exercises, and character development. (iPhone/iPad app by Russell Archer.)

- Source: https://appshunter.io/ios/app/writerly/id1143101981 (this page in markdown: same URL + `.md`)
- Developer: [Russell Archer](https://appshunter.io/developer/1112550413)
- Category: Education, Books
- Price: Free with in-app purchases
- Rating: 4.60/5 from 111 App Store ratings · 17 written reviews indexed
- Age rating: 4+
- Requires: iOS 26.0 · 79 MB
- Languages: American English
- Released: 2017-02-01
- Data updated: 2026-09-01
- Monetization: free with in-app purchases
- User reviews in markdown: https://appshunter.io/ios/app/writerly/id1143101981/reviews.md

## What is Writerly?

Want to write? Start thinking like a writer! Writerly will show you how.

Writerly is for everyone interested in creative writing. From first steps to advanced topics, Writerly is loaded with advice, exercises, ideas and prompts to help you develop as a writer, whether you're a beginner or a seasoned pro.

Our new AI Toolkit unleashes the power of Apple Intelligence to bring you tools to spark your creativity, brainstorm your ideas, help you research books and novels, and create characters and writing exercises - it's like having an always-available creative writing friend!

Writerly includes a huge amount of unique content that has been extensively tested and trialled by professional authors and creative writing students. So have fun, get inspired and get writing!

Key features:

- Available for your Mac, iPhone and iPad!
- Learn how to observe the world like a writer
- AI Toolkit (for research, exercises, brainstorming and more)
- Like having an always-available creative writing friend!
- Techniques to combat writer's block
- Discover techniques to unlock your creativity
- Unique 'generators' for Appearance, Mood, Character, Journeys and much, much more
- Warm-up exercises
- Meet your characters (like speed dating with your characters!)
- Ways into Character (in-depth character development tools, techniques and exercises)
- A Year of Prompts (a writing prompt for every day of the year)
- How to work with sensory detail
- Core character development exercises
- Built-in timer for exercises
- Widgets (daily prompts and character generation right on the home screen)
- Progress tracker

## Key features

- AI Toolkit for research and brainstorming
- Character development tools and exercises
- Daily writing prompts
- Techniques to combat writer's block
- Sensory detail guidance
- Built-in timer for exercises
- Home screen widgets

## Pricing and in-app purchases

Base price: Free.

**One-time purchases**

| Purchase | Price | Type |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Ways into Character | $1.99 | one-time |
| A Year of Prompts | $0.99 | one-time |
| Meet your Characters | $1.99 | one-time |
| AI Toolkit | $2.99 | one-time |


## Recent user reviews (10 of 17)

All indexed reviews: https://appshunter.io/ios/app/writerly/id1143101981/reviews.md

### 1/5 — Eh

*2023-04-06, version 2.41*

Eh

### 2/5 — Save your time and money

*2023-01-06, version 2.2*

At best you can call this a (slightly) interactive slide show. I say slight because if you purchase an addon you can click a few buttons that do absolutely nothing of use whatsoever. I gave it 2 stars because it does have a modicum of useful tips however you can find these for free on any given How-To-Be-A-Writer blog. Save your time and money; this isn't the tool you think it will be.

### 5/5 — Great app improvements, meh widgets

*2022-12-02, version 2.3*

I wrote a review before they revamped it, and I still think the app is good. I’m glad they incorporated a view of your progress. I wish there were more options for the widgets other than the add-ons you have to pay for. I’d like for it to be the timer, or the exercise you need to complete. It’d be great to see a widget for something you’d use the app for every day. Even still, it’s a great app!

### 4/5 — Inspiring app

*2022-07-15, version 2.2*

I have found the app is a great way to help me start a daily writing practice though so far I have barely scratched the surface of the exercises 

One little niggle in the “year of writing promos” is the excessive number of days where four prompts are given. 

Invariably I find the days with multiple prompts less inspiring and more arbitrary than the single prompts and those will be the days I break my writing streak. 

Would it be possible to include the option for a preference for the number of prompts per day?

### 5/5 — Incredible Value (content and price)

*2022-06-05, version 2.2*

After looking around the program for fifteen minutes, I bought all the add-on modules and can’t believe how much rich, creative, and varied content it contains. The tiny price the developers are  asking for such a beautiful and useful program is almost a giveaway. They have done a fantastic job of blending information and inspiration in a visually rich interface that is as entertaining as it is informative. I look forward to every day’s writing prompts and all the information I’m learning about characters. Huge thanks for a fantastic job. I can’t wait to see what shows up in future updates.

### 3/5 — companion app -

*2022-03-13, version 2.1*

This app seems pretty neat-I would call it a companion app with prompts, exercises, etc. You do not write within the app and everything is an in app purchase

### 3/5 — Sins of omission in the decription

*2022-01-27, version 2.1*

I was looking for something that would let me write and keep track of key information along the way, ideally output with correct formatting for a screenplay.  This is not that product, you can't type text into Writerly.  It's perhaps better seen as a tutorial tool; a series of prompts, exercises and advice.  Best I can tell, to access more than the most ephemeral levels of those you need to buy the three addons, each one is billed as less than a cup of coffee, which is likley true (depending on where you buy your coffee, I've had some truly awful cups of coffee in some really cheap places) as all thjree together come, at time of writing this review, to just under a fiver.

Whilst technically multiplatform, I personally don't consider running on mac, iPad and iPhone to qualify. I expect multiplatform to mean diffrent ecosystems, if this is multiplatform then a lightbulb is multi environment as it works in the living room, bedroom and garage.

Three stars is a compromise, it seems to do what it does well, but the description on the Appstore isn't clear about what that is.

What could have saved it, without becoming a full blown editor, would be some templates and plugins for common writing tools (Pages, Word, Scrivener &c) to help with layout for types of output that require a specific format and the writer to quickly answer questions liek "Where have I used this location before and how did I describe it?" and "How did I describe this characters eyes, did I say bluey-green or greeny-blue?"

### 5/5 — 𝚆𝚑𝚢 𝚒 𝚑𝚊𝚝𝚎 𝚠𝚛𝚒𝚝𝚎𝚛𝚕𝚢

*2021-05-24, version 1.3*

𝙸𝚝 𝚠𝚘𝚗𝚝 𝚕𝚎𝚝 𝚖𝚎 𝚒𝚗!!!!!!!!(ᗒᗣᗕ)

### 5/5 — Intriguing app which should be a great help. And: typo alert!

*2020-09-20, version 1.2*

I am intrigued by this app (which is far too buried on the App Store!) and happily paid for the extra content. I noticed a typo in your penultimate paragraph in the Clearing section (“form” instead of “from”) and given the nature of this app I thought you’d want to know! 🙂

### 5/5 — Soooo much good information!

*2020-08-25, version 1.2*

One thing though. Support appears to be down. Also, there’s a typo on the “Clearing” section. Form should be from if anyone wishes to fix it. “...but if form time to time you glance...”

## Frequently asked questions about Writerly

### What does Writerly do?

Writerly is designed to help users develop their creative writing skills. It provides advice, exercises, ideas, and prompts to assist both beginners and experienced writers in their craft. The app also features an AI Toolkit to spark creativity, brainstorm ideas, research, and create characters.

### What are the key features of Writerly?

Key features include an AI Toolkit for research and brainstorming, character development tools, daily writing prompts, techniques to overcome writer's block, guidance on sensory detail, a built-in timer for exercises, and home screen widgets for quick access to prompts and character generation.

### How much does Writerly cost?

The application is available for free with in-app purchases. This means you can download and use the basic features without charge, with options to purchase additional content or features.

### What devices is Writerly compatible with?

Writerly is available for your Mac, iPhone, and iPad. This allows users to continue their writing journey across multiple Apple devices seamlessly.

### Who is Writerly for?

Writerly is for anyone interested in creative writing, regardless of their experience level. Whether you are just starting out or are a seasoned pro, the app offers tools and content to help you grow as a writer.

## Version history (last 5 releases)

### 2.50 — 2025-09-15

- Added the "AI Toolkit" in-app purchase (requires iOS 26)
- Book Suggestions. Tell the AI what aspect of creative writing you want to study and it provides a suggested reading list
- Brainstorm Buddy. AI acts like a creative partner that you can talk to in natural language. You can brainstorm plot ideas, develop concepts, or solve story problems through conversation with the AI
- Character Creation. AI can expand a simple character idea into a detailed profile. For instance, given a brief description (e.g. "a young wizard from a humble background, eager to prove herself"), the AI can produce a fuller backstory, personality traits, strengths, flaws, and even ideas for the character's arc
- Prompts. Expanded AI writing prompts
- Exercises. Generate creative writing exercises
- Updated map-related functionality to use latest Apple MapKit APIs
- Created a new universal icon that supports Apple’s Liquid Glass design language, ensuring a consistent appearance across iOS, iPadOS, macOS, and the App Store

### 2.44 — 2024-12-07

- Bug fix: Fixed a sizing issue with the macOS dock icon
- Bug fix: Fixed a macOS Sequoia 15+ issue where a "Writerly would like to access data from other apps" prompt was incorrectly displayed on each launch. This was related to passing data between the main app and widgets (Writerly does not access data in other apps)
- Refactored all widgets for both iOS and macOS to look cleaner and handle the display of long text more effectively
- Refactored the navigation system with a new look and to make use of the latest Apple APIs
- Changed the minimum supported version of iOS from 15.0 -> 17.6, and for macOS from 12.0 -> 14.6

### 2.43 — 2024-01-31

- Bug fix: Fixed an issue where opening the app at the end of an exercise without tapping on the notification caused the timer to be left in an indeterminate state
- Bug fix: Fixed an iPad-related issue where a timed exercise could be cancelled by switching to another app
- Added an animation to smooth changes to time remaining in the exercise timer progress view when bringing the app to the foreground
- Updated help text related in Introduction, How do I use the timer? Added text to clarify how and why exercises may be cancelled

### 2.42 — 2024-01-24

- Bug fix: Fixed an issue where timer notifications were being cancelled and progress status not correctly updated
- Bug fix: Fixed a number instances where page layout was incorrectly calculated for smaller format devices (e.g. iPhone SE)
- Minor bug and typo fixes, and improvements to layout and artwork

### 2.41 — 2023-01-22

- Bug fix: Fixed an intermittent bug where in-app purchases were not always correctly and consistently recognized
 - Added Terms of Service and Privacy Policy links to the Purchases page
 - Added Refresh Product List and Redeem Offer buttons to the Purchases page (see Manage Purchases)
 - Added Contact Us button to the What's New, Welcome, Privacy Policy, Credits and Purchases pages
 - Modified the style of all buttons to be more consistent
 - Numerous minor bug and typo fixes, and improvements to layout and artwork

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## More apps by Russell Archer

- [Retreev](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/retreev/id1112550414)

All apps by Russell Archer: https://appshunter.io/developer/1112550413

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*Data collected daily from the US App Store and indexed by [AppsHunter](https://appshunter.io/). User reviews are verbatim App Store reviews. Ratings, prices and chart positions refresh continuously; this snapshot is from 2026-09-01.*