Unspool is a tiny Mac app for getting thoughts out of your head.
Open it. Write whatever is already in your head. When you hit 750 words, Unspool marks the day done and keeps the raw page as local Markdown.
No account. No feed. No prompts. Just a quiet place to unspool the noise.
Some thoughts are hard to organize while they are still in your head.
Unspool is built around the morning-pages / 750-words idea: write before you sort. The first few sentences are usually obvious. Somewhere deeper in the page, the real signal starts to show up.
The app keeps the writing session simple so you do not turn relief into another productivity system.
- Open the app.
- Start typing into the empty page.
- Keep going until the page feels lighter.
- Hit 750 words if you want the daily mark.
- Come back tomorrow to a fresh page.
If you reopen Unspool later the same day, it brings you back to today's page. If it is a new day, it starts fresh.
- opens straight into today's writing page
- saves local Markdown files automatically
- resumes today's page if you reopen the app
- starts a fresh page on a new day
- tracks word count, streak, and simple writing stats
- celebrates when you reach 750 words
- lets you choose where Markdown pages are saved
- supports light/dark mode, font size, and font style
- can disable delete/backspace for stricter freewriting
- no account
- no cloud sync
- no analytics
- no social feed
- no forced prompts
- no forced summaries
- no productivity score
By default, Unspool stores entries here:
~/Library/Application Support/Unspool/Entries
You can choose a different folder in Settings. That makes it easy to save pages directly into a notes folder, second brain, or Git-backed archive.
Each entry is a plain Markdown file with small frontmatter metadata and the raw writing body.
Requirements:
- macOS 14 or newer
- Swift 6 toolchain
Start the app:
./script/build_and_run.shRun tests:
swift testBuild a local DMG:
./script/package_dmg.shThe DMG is written to:
dist/Unspool.dmg
An early signed and notarized DMG is published on GitHub Releases:
The current DMG is Developer ID signed and notarized for macOS.
Sources/Unspool: macOS app entry pointSources/UnspoolCore: writing UI, local storage, stats, settingsTests/UnspoolTests: unit tests for storage, word count, streaks, and export behaviorAssets: icon, cover image, and brand assetsdocs: product notes, privacy notes, development guide, and release checklist
Unspool owes a lot to Farza's Freewrite, an amazing open-source Mac writing app. I love Freewrite. Unspool started from that quiet freewriting idea, then adds a 750-words-style daily writing mechanic, local Markdown storage, and a few simpler privacy-focused choices.
Huge thanks to Farza for making Freewrite.
MIT. See LICENSE.
Third-party notices live in THIRD_PARTY_NOTICES.md.
Unspool is early and open source.
Write it out. Keep the signal.
Unspool should stay quiet, local, and focused on the page.