Thank you @bentossell for hunting Freewrite!
I'm very excited about being on Product Hunt and sharing my first product that I've ever built & launched.
I wanted to create something out of my own need, a beautifully designed daily writing experience that could keep me accountable to how much/how frequently I actually wrote, as well as ensuring my total privacy and not saving what I write in someones database etc.
All feedback appreciated 🙌🏻
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I'll be honest it has been over a year since I used 750 words and I'm glad to see someone pick up to create a modern equivalent. Thanks for your work here @ThisIsGustav. I've signed up and will be sure to give it a good go. I tend to use iA Writer now for it all and though this may sound silly I back them up in Day One (Classic).
But I'm glad to have somewhere to click the Let It Go button. Thanks so much for this and happy to keep spreading the word about it. Only thing on my mind was a "Night Mode" but the colour gradient variation in the background suited me fine.
I really loved the onboarding process as @ivanlucansky pointed out already in the comment section. One last suggestion I'd be happy to share is for the avatars if you'd be open to adding diversity to the list of authors present (I'm talking both people of colour and even perhaps language if you wish). Thanks!
@mkaigwa Thank you so much for your thoughtful words! I'm also a former user of 750 words and wanted something new (and that doesnt save anything in a database somewhere).
Night Mode is a great idea, it's definitely something I'll add and will fit nicely into the other settings.
I'm very much looking to bring in more diversity among the avatars! It's been on my todo for some time and I'll make sure to get around to it ASAP, if you know anyone you'd like to see there, let me know :)
Thanks again for your comment!
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@thisisgustav OK, so 24 hours later I am back with more (let me know how to connect with you directly but reflecting on my experience! Here are a few things that have been on my mind.
First, I've enjoyed writing with FreeWrite. Last 750-word session was 1405 words so there's something there.
Can I say how much I love "Stealth Mode." I often times get to the office late and I still want to be able to write my +750 words but not have to go outside or excuse myself - shared office and I'm by the door do people cross and walk behind me a lot. I appreciate this feature as I feel it was made "for me" in a sense.
A part of me is curious as far as whether you'd ever consider using accepting Markdown - perhaps in experiments. I don't know if you've used or seen @iAWriter - https://www.producthunt.com/tech... but I'm quite fond of the way that it allows for indented lists and so on that allow for one to leave little "notes to self" peppered all over the writing.
I'm currently doing this now with leaving asterisks at the beginning of my sentences but I know it was on my mind. To be fair, i see the benefit of the rigidity and simplicity that says - no bells, no whistles, just writing!
Another thing that is interesting in iA Writer is a feature known as focus mode that allows you to focus on one sentence at a time. Another one I love is called Typewriter mode which allows you to keep your current sentence and wording dead centre in the middle of the page. Valuable to me but sure it might not be a feature you have thousands of users ask for. I'm grateful for it in iA Writer.
Also, way to go with the full-screen setup. So clean and appreciate how easy it was to set up and block everything else out.
Lastly, to go back to your suggestion of diversity I'd love to share a few:
Brazilian
Paolo Coelho
African-American
James Baldwin
Toni Morrison
I see you already have Maya Angelou
For African Authors I'd say
Chinua Achebe
Ngugi wa Thiong'o
or the better known and more contemporary work of Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie
I'd recommend work by any of them for you if you're interested.
Overall, thanks for making this. I did see the FAQ about pricing and will give the free trial a good go and see.
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Nice work Gustav! As a former classmate of yours I'm inspired to move along and build something myself. Maybe I'll write something about it tonight on Freewrite...
@adambrgmn Thank you Adam! That's awesome, the idea of this app actually came forth during freewriting, so I can only say: go for it and let me know how I can help! :)
That's great. Still can't use Google Goals in a calendar and just write my goals right in a scheldule or notes. Your one looks simple but really enough stuff!
@galeriks after 10 days you can choose to subscribe for $4 per month (or $3.33 if paid annually)!
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@thisisgustav@galeriks Probably useful information to add to the site. Personally, I never sign up for things if I don't know how much it's gonna cost me if I want to keep using it.
@prestonattebery Good question! I would say yes, but another primary use case could also be purely creative exerise/writing exercise, but I believe that in itself has therapeutic value. Freewriting/morning pages I think is a mix of creativity/therapy/insight.
Tim Ferriss describes it as "the most cost-effective therapy" he ever found (http://fourhourworkweek.com/2015...), which I think is quite accurate :)
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One of the most beautiful sign up process I have ever seen :) Love it!
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