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Preview and Publishing

Preview and Publishing

Test a draft version

A key part of the writing process is testing. You'll need to make sure that your story plays from start to finish without glitches, that your characters are coming to life properly, and that you have implemented all of the tools correctly. We recommend you test the story in our "Chat Tester" before you create a preview or a published version:

Slide out test chat

To test in the slide out test chat:

  1. Press the arrow on the right-hand side of the story graph to open the slide out test chat.
  2. Save any memories needed using the Memory Setter in the top left-hand corner of the test chat window.
  3. Choose either Chat from start or Chat from selected node (you will need to have selected a node in the graph first to do this).
  4. Start chatting!

The slide out chat will not show any media in your story but will show you all character dialogue.

Create and test preview

Before you create a preview or published version make sure you can tick off all items from the checklist below.

Preview/Publish Checklist

Once you have tested, tested and tested again, you're ready to think about publishing. Here's what you should have completed before publishing:

  • Used at least 1 scene
  • Named your Scene(s)
  • Played through your story at least 3 times from start to finish, making different choices
  • Tested you story on a third party you trust, to gain feedback
  • Established an estimated playtime
  • Added a non-gated route whenever you have used a gate
  • Added a route without a memory tag, whenever a memory tag is used, if the memory might not have been saved.
  • Given your characters pictures
  • Selected a voice for all of your characters
  • Written a story description
  • Credited any collaborators
  • Added impacts
  • Spell checked - test your story with the voices switched on to listen out for typos
  • Check your story abides by our Content Guidelines
  • Selected End Story on the final node of your story

    • After crafting your story, create a preview version. This will give you a version number (e.g., V1, V2). This preview version is uneditable, can't be changed and it is not public yet. To make edits you have to return to the draft.

    Steps to create a Preview version:
    1. Click Draft under your story title in the left-hand menu.
    2. Click Create a preview version.

    Once you created a preview version, you will see a "Preview" button appear in the sidebar. By clicking on the "Preview" button you can play the story in the comic player, as you would once it is published.

    Note that this type of testing (playing in Preview mode) only available for Web Comic stories.

    Publish and Promote

    Make sure to check you've covered everything on the Preview/Publish checklist first, and then you're ready to share your story to the wider world.

    • Once satisfied with the preview version, publish it to make it available to users.
    • The last published version automatically becomes the promoted one.
    • You can have multiple published versions, and all published versions are accessible to the public. If you simply access the story without specifying a version, you'll automatically get the promoted version.
    Steps to Publish and Promote:
    1. Create a preview version
    2. Select the ... icon next to the version you'd like to publish.
    3. Click Publish. This story will be automatically the promoted version, if you would like to promote a different version, select the ... icon next to the version you'd like to promote and click Promote.
    4. Congratulations! Your story is now published!
    Play Published version in the Comic Player

    Once you have a published version of your story, a link appears in the version selector dropdown. You will be redirected to the comic player page, where you can play your published story by clicking this link.

    A "Play" button will appear in the sidebar under your story title and on your story's panel card on the "My Stories" page. Both of these buttons will also redirect you to the published version.

    Note that playing the published version in the comic player is only available for Web Comic stories

    Editing and Reverting

    • If you would like to make any changes to the story you will have to return to the draft version, make the changes, and publish/promote it again.
    • If you would like to use a previously published version, you can promote it by the ... icon next to the version you'd like to promote, and click Promote.

    These processes allow you to refine, and share your story while maintaining control over versions and content variations.

    Viewing Previous Versions

    After publishing you will be able to access past versions of your story by clicking Draft under your story title. Here you can reference back to any past version and check the analytics for published versions.

    To see the date a version was published, hover your mouse over the clock logo next to the version.

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