Have you ever started writing a story and realized you should’ve recorded important details about characters, locations, and customs for future reference? If not, you’re one of the clever ones. However, some of us don’t realize our mistake until it’s too late—and sifting through a half-baked manuscript to find the forgotten hair color of a specific character isn’t a great use of time.
Fortunately, a good worldbuilding app makes documentation easy. Let’s take a look at three free applications—two web-based and one downloadable—that can help you keep track of your story’s critical details.
1. Campfire Blaze
Campfire Blaze is one of the slickest free worldbuilding web apps available. The user interface is attractive, the menus are well-designed, and the included features are everything you’d want in a good writing tool to create engaging content.
With the app, you can design characters, locations, magic systems, languages, and more. The free edition, however, places limitations on the number of entries you can add. For example, the character limit is a hard 10. Luckily, as well as selling a complete professional package, Campfire Blaze also offers premium content by the module, which means you only pay for what you need.
The application’s free version also grants access to the plotting tool, which allows you to map the main plot of your story, additional plotlines, and character arcs. On top of that, the application’s user interface is customizable, so you can design a theme that suits your tastes.
The best features of the Campfire Blaze free edition are:
- Numerous character and world design options
- Slick and intuitive interface
- Customizable GUI
- Plot and character arc mapping
- A web app you can access anywhere
- Flexible premium payment options
If you’re writing a short story or don’t require a lot of documentation for your novel, the free edition of Campfire Blaze is a worthy worldbuilding app.
2. Notebook.ai
Notebook.ai is the ideal free worldbuilding web app for anyone who wants to avoid limitations. Some features, such as timeline mapping, buildings, and creatures, require premium access. However, the app puts no limits on the number of characters, items, and locations you can create.
The user interface is basic, but the menus are functional and intuitive. Creating a character is simple, and the application allows you to add all the necessary details, such as looks, history, and abilities. Unfortunately, the most interesting worldbuilding items, such as vehicles, technologies, and traditions, exist behind a premium paywall, but you can’t deny that Notebook.ai offers a lot for nothing.
The best features of the Notebook.ai free edition are:
- Unlimited characters, items, and locations
- Detailed entries
- Functional and intuitive menus
- Web app you can access anywhere
- Reasonable monthly premium payment options
If you want to create characters and locations without limits, Notebook.ai is the ideal worldbuilding app. However, if you require more versatility, unlocking the numerous premium panels is worth considering.
3. Bibisco
Bibisco is a free downloadable worldbuilding app that boasts unlimited character and location entries, as well as handy story design features. The application is available for Windows, macOS, and Linux, although there’s no option to sync data across devices automatically.
Character creation is detailed and offers the features needed to satisfy most writers. You can even input detailed answers regarding personality and psychology, and the backstory and evolution panels help round out your characters.
Additional features, including access to objects, relations, and timeline, require a premium purchase, but the minimum asking price is reasonable.
The best features of the Bibisco free edition are:
- Unlimited characters and locations
- Comprehensive character design options
- Downloadable app for Windows, macOS, and Linux
- Ability to import and export projects
- Reasonable premium price
If you require an offline app with unlimited character creation, Bibisco is an excellent solution.
What’s the Best Worldbuilding App for You?
Even imaginary worlds can grow quite large, and documenting the important details is crucial to maintaining consistency throughout your story.
Whether your story is large or small, the ideal worldbuilding app can help you manage your creation. The features in these apps differ, so have a look through each of them and decide which works best for you.