1. Create a project
Sign up, confirm your address, create a new project. To look around, the sample crime novel “What the Tide Leaves Behind” is waiting – every tool is already filled in there.
Writing month · November 1–30, 2026
30 days. One crime novel.
November is writing month. Take on your crime novel: Inkcubator counts along every day, shows your streak, celebrates your daily goal – and keeps suspects, clues and timeline together while you write.
- Goals set in a minute
- Runs in your browser – nothing to install
- Your text is yours: export any time
ProgressGoals
Everything is optional; an empty field switches the goal off.
Word target50,000
DeadlineNov 30, 2026
Daily goal1,667
- Scenes in chapters count; the scene pool does not.
- Larger pasted or cut passages do not count as written.
- Streak and record always use the current daily goal.
Needed until then: 1,667 words a day
Daily goal reached – 1,667 words today. Well done!
Ready in three steps
Set a goal, start writing, keep going.
How much you take on is up to you. 50,000 words is the well-known benchmark for a writing month; 30,000 words or a finished first act are goals just as much.
2. Enter your goals
Open the “Writing goals” page in your project, “Goals” tab: word target, a deadline of November 30 and your daily goal. Inkcubator works out how many words a day you need until the deadline.
3. Write every day
In the editor, “Book” and “Today” sit in the toolbar with progress bars. Both grow the moment you type, and when you reach your daily goal, confetti rains down.
Keep going
See your mystery grow, every evening.
The “Writing goals” page shows where you stand: how many words you added today, how long your streak is and whether you’ll finish by November 30 at this pace.
- Writing calendar of the last 26 weeks: one square per writing day, the more words, the stronger the color
- Streak: days in a row that reached the daily goal – plus your record and your best day
- Pace and a forecast, “At this pace you finish on …”, marked “On track” or “Behind schedule”
- Confetti for your daily goal and for reaching your word target – with “reduce motion” just a notice
- Honest counting: cutting lowers the day’s balance, a pasted block of 50 words or more doesn’t count as written
938 / 750words todayDaily goal reached
6day streak
2,310Best day
Apr 5, 2027Forecast · On track
The plan
Four weeks, one case.
A suggestion, not a rule: this is how a crime novel can spread across November – with the tool that helps most in each week.
Week 1 · November 1–7
The case stands
Note down logline and premise, take the crime grid as your beat sheet – 13 beats from the crime to the aftermath – and add your suspects with motive, means and opportunity. Then write the first scenes.
Plot & structureWeek 2 · November 8–14
The clues are laid
Add clues and red herrings as setups, each with the scene where it drops. In the who-knows-what matrix, record which character knows what from which scene on.
Who knows whatWeek 3 · November 15–21
The middle holds
Rate every scene for tension and mood. The tension curve lays the target corridor from the crime grid over it and warns you when the middle sags.
Tension curveWeek 4 · November 22–30
The solution plays fair
Mark the culprit, choose the solution scene and run the fair-play check: are there enough incriminating clues before it? Does one come too late?
Fair-play check- Focus mode and typewriter mode: just you and the text
- Ambient sounds of rain, thunder, wind and fire – only on click
- Autosave and automatic scene versions
- From December: export your manuscript as Word, PDF or text – in standard manuscript format if you like
FAQ
Questions about the writing month
Is “30 Days, One Crime Novel” a competition?
No. There is no event to register for, no leaderboard and no prizes. You write for yourself; Inkcubator counts along and shows your progress.
Do I have to reach 50,000 words?
No. Word target, deadline and daily goal are up to you and all optional. You can change them at any time; streak and record then use the new daily goal.
I’ve already started. Can I bring my text?
Yes. Paste it into your scenes: it counts towards the book, but not as written today – pastes of 50 words or more stay out of the day’s balance. If a paste should count after all, the notice offers “Count them”.
What happens if I skip a day?
Your streak starts over; your record stays. The current day doesn’t break the streak while it is still running. If you wrote somewhere else, you can correct the day in the history.
When does a writing day end?
At midnight in your time zone, which you set in the settings.
Do I need AI?
No. Writing goals, the who-knows-what matrix, the fair-play check and the tension curve all work without AI. The AI review is an optional extra with your own key.
What happens to my text on November 30?
It stays where it is, and you keep writing. For revision, export the manuscript as Word, PDF or text, and the whole project as a ZIP backup at any time.
What does Inkcubator cost?
Inkcubator is still in development and pricing isn’t set yet. Everyone with an account will hear about it first.
It starts on November 1.
Create your project today and set your goals – then the very first day counts.
Sign up now