Freelance writers and editors
A writer or editor takes on commissions and bills for them.
Authors and self-publishers
You write your book in chapters, and download it as an EPUB and a PDF. Readers buy your ebooks and signed paperbacks from your own shop.
Your books belong to your own account. Your shop, reader list and supporters page can be in Personal or in a team.
Get started free
This combination of five Magpie areas fits an author.
- Books
- Books holds your manuscript, and makes the EPUB, the PDF and a page to read online.
- Store
- Store sells your ebooks and signed paperbacks from a shop of your own.
- Websites
- Websites builds your author website, with your books and their prices.
- Newsletter
- Newsletter keeps your reader list, and tells it about each new book.
- Supporters
- Supporters lets readers support you monthly, and read chapters as you write them.
You write the manuscript in chapters, and Magpie lays it out as a book.
Books holds your manuscript: front matter, chapters, back matter, and parts if the book has them. A scene you cut can wait in Set aside, out of the book. Each chapter keeps its earlier drafts.
You choose serif or sans serif type, the chapter numbers and the trim size. The EPUB carries the cover and the contents. The PDF is laid out for print, with page numbers and running heads.
Readers buy your ebooks and signed paperbacks from your own shop.
Store is your online shop. An ebook sells as EPUB or PDF, and the buyer downloads the one they chose. A signed paperback can ask who to sign it to.
Paperbacks can take pre-orders before your copies arrive, with the date they will ship. Buyers pay by card into your own Stripe account, with no Magpie fee.
Your author website shows the series, and you change it yourself.
Websites is Magpie's site editor. Your site is built from sections, with a page for each series and one about you. A Store products section lists the books you sell, with their current prices.
Changes stay drafts until you publish them. The site can be at your own domain.
Your reader list hears about the new book on launch day.
Newsletter keeps your reader list. Readers join from a sign-up page with double opt-in, and checkout can ask buyers to join.
You write each issue, send yourself a test and schedule it for launch morning. A sent issue has a web copy, which can start a social media post.
Readers can support you monthly, and read the next book chapter by chapter.
Supporters gives you a public page with a free tier and monthly paid tiers. Supporters pay by card, and the money goes to your own Stripe account.
A post can hold a new chapter for paying supporters only, or for chosen tiers. Others see its title and excerpt. A poll lets readers decide a minor character's fate.
Five more areas cover research, beta readers, launch posts, your links and readings.
- Notes
- Notes keeps research and loose scenes, which you can bring into the book as chapters.
- Documents
- Documents lets a beta reader comment on a chapter and suggest changes.
- Social Media
- Social Media schedules your launch posts to Bluesky, Mastodon and LinkedIn.
- Link-In-Bio List
- Link-In-Bio List puts your books, your shop and your newsletter on one page.
- Calendar
- Calendar lists your readings and signings, and takes RSVPs up to a capacity.
A book goes from the first chapter to launch day.
The draft
You write the chapters, and bring in scenes from your notes.
The first readers
Paying supporters read each chapter in a post as you finish it.
The files
You download the EPUB and the print PDF of the finished manuscript.
The pre-orders
Signed paperbacks take pre-orders in your shop, with their ship date.
Launch day
The ebook goes live in the shop, and the newsletter goes out the same morning.
Setting up takes four steps.
Start your book
You write a first chapter, or bring your notes in. Help: Write and organize a book.
Set the book's look
You choose the type, the trim size and the cover. Help: Design, publish, and export a book.
Open your shop
You add your ebooks and paperbacks, and publish the shop. Help: Set up and publish a Store.
Connect Stripe
You connect your Stripe account, so readers can pay by card. Help: Connect Stripe to receive money.
Plans
An author working alone fits Pro, for your own work in Personal. Pro has no limit on books, and the free plan allows 1.
Magpie adds no fee to your shop's sales. Magpie's fee on supporters' payments is 3%. Stripe's processing fee is taken from each card payment. Prices are on the Pricing page.
Other writers and creators have pages of their own.
Newsletter writers
A newsletter writer sends each issue to free and paying readers.
Bloggers and people with a personal website
A blogger runs a website and a newsletter at their own domain.
Comic and webcomic artists
A comic artist sells books and prints, and posts new pages early.
Questions authors ask
Can I write a whole novel in Magpie?
Yes. A book holds front matter, chapters, back matter and parts, up to 400 sections. Each chapter has a status, from Outline to Done. The word count shows against a goal you set.
Can I get an earlier draft of a chapter back?
Yes. Each chapter keeps its 30 most recent versions in History. Restoring one keeps the current text there first, so a restore can be undone.
Can I bring my notes into the book?
Yes. Each note you pick becomes a chapter, or goes to Set aside. The chapter is a copy, so the note stays as it was.
Can I download my book as an EPUB?
Yes. The EPUB holds the book's details, its contents, its cover and its pictures. You upload it yourself to the ebook stores you sell through.
Can I make a PDF laid out for print?
Yes. The PDF's page size is 5 by 8, 6 by 9 or 7 by 10 inches. It has the chapter numbers, page numbers and running heads you choose. You save it from the browser's print dialog.
Can I publish under a pen name?
Yes. The author name on the title page can be any name you write under. The copyright page names the copyright holder separately.
Where does my ISBN go?
The copyright page has a field for it, beside the publisher and the edition. You get the ISBN from your country's ISBN agency.
Can I sell my ebook directly to readers?
Yes. A download product holds the EPUB and the PDF, each up to 500 MB. Buyers choose a format and download it from their order page or their confirmation email. You can limit how long, and how often, they can download it.
Can I sell signed copies?
Yes. A paperback is a product with its own stock. A text field can ask the buyer who to sign it to. You ship the order, or the buyer collects it.
Can readers pre-order the next paperback?
Yes. The paperback keeps selling when its stock reaches zero. It shows the date it is expected to ship. Buyers pay when they order, and pre-orders have their own list.
Can I give a book away to read online?
Yes. A published book has its own page, with its cover, its contents and your bio. Readers can read it online, or download the EPUB and PDF free. A reader who comes back is offered the page where they stopped.
Can supporters read the new book before it is out?
Yes. A post can hold a chapter for paying supporters only, or for chosen tiers. Others see its title and excerpt.
Can I hold a launch reading with RSVPs?
Yes. An event can be on your public calendar, with RSVPs up to a capacity. You can invite people by email or with a link. The event's page shows how many are going.
What does Magpie take from my sales?
Magpie adds no fee to your shop's sales. Supporters' payments carry Magpie's 3% fee. Stripe's processing fee is taken from each card payment.
Write your next book in Magpie.
Create a Magpie account and start your first book.