Building a platform that respects writers while serving readers isn't a sprint—it's a marathon with clear milestones.
We believe in radical transparency. You deserve to know exactly what exists today, what's coming next, and what's still on the drawing board. No vague promises. No marketing fluff. Just honest timelines and real features.
Here's the complete NOVA roadmap, broken down by development waves.
Current Status: Wave 1 (Closed Beta)
Timeline: Months 1-3
Status: Live and actively tested
Wave 1 is about getting the fundamentals right. No platform can succeed without a solid reading experience, functional author tools, and meaningful discovery. That's what we shipped first.
What's Live In The Closed Beta Right Now
Reader Client
- Browse, read, follow, and bookmark across novels, fanfiction, and poetry
- Responsive PWA that works beautifully on mobile
- Night mode and adaptive reading layouts
- Unified library across all content types
- Zero ads, zero paywalls
Author Dashboard
- Create and publish works with our WYSIWYG + markdown editor
- Draft saving with autosave (because losing work sucks)
- Basic analytics: views, applause, bookmarks
- Cover uploads, metadata management, and tagging
- Branch and sub-branch publishing for alternate storylines
Semantic Recommendations
- Content discovery powered by embeddings (not just "popular this week")
- Related story recommendations that actually make sense
- User-to-story matching based on reading patterns
Enhanced Tag Wrangling
- Tag normalization and aliasing
- Embedding-backed categorization
- Manual override capability for precision
Collaboration System (Core)
- Real-time co-editing with presence indicators
- Branch and version controls (like git, but for fiction)
- Basic permission management for co-authors
Pricing & Subscriptions
- Free tiers for readers and authors
- Supernova Reader ($4.99/mo) and Supernova Author ($14.99/mo)
- Nueva Estrella ($17.99/mo) for power users
- Integrated with Polar for payments
Community & Social Layer
- Chapter-specific comments
- Applause system for reader engagement
- Public and private reading lists
- Report system for content moderation
What We're Learning
Closed Beta isn't just about testing features—it's about understanding how writers actually work and what readers genuinely need.
Early insights:
- Branch publishing is being used in unexpected ways. Authors are experimenting with alternate POVs, timeline splits, and "what-if" scenarios we didn't anticipate.
- Semantic search works better than expected. Readers are finding stories they never would've discovered through tags alone.
- Collaboration features are underutilized. We need better onboarding to show authors how powerful real-time co-editing actually is.
We're adjusting as we go. That's the point of beta.
Wave 2: Depth & Quality (In Active Development)
Timeline: Months 4-8
Status: Core features in development, rolling out gradually
Wave 2 is about making NOVA indispensable for serious writers. We're building tools that don't exist anywhere else—not on Wattpad, not on Royal Road, not even on Scrivener.
Tutorial & Education System
Writing is a craft. Platforms should help writers improve, not just host their work.
What we're building:
- Structured learning modules for fiction fundamentals
- Progress tracking and personalized recommendations
- Community-generated lessons and techniques
- Integration with author analytics (so you can see what's working)
Why it matters: Most platforms treat writers like content factories. We're treating them like artists who deserve to grow.
Comments are great. Structured critique is better.
What we're building:
- Request/offer critique workflows with reputation gating
- Paragraph-level inline comments (not just chapter-end feedback)
- Critique completion tracking and satisfaction metrics
Why it matters: Writers need more than "great chapter!" They need actionable feedback from readers who actually engage with craft.
Advanced Analytics
Basic stats (views, likes) are table stakes. Writers deserve real insights.
What we're building:
- Per-story retention curves (where do readers drop off?)
- Read-through rates across chapters
- Applause trends over time
- Engagement pacing analysis
- Exportable reports for power users
Why it matters: You can't improve what you can't measure. These analytics help writers understand what's working and what isn't.
Enhanced Quality Algorithm
Wave 1's semantic recommendations are good. Wave 2 makes them great.
What we're improving:
- Multi-signal ranking (completion rates, time-on-page, organic sharing)
- Anti-gaming measures (idle time caps, bot detection)
- Genre-specific tuning without genre lock-in
- Transparent scoring (authors can see why their work ranks where it does)
Why it matters: Discovery shouldn't be a black box. Writers deserve to know how the system works.
Timeline: Months 9-15
Status: Design phase, some prototyping
Wave 3 is where NOVA becomes a creative suite, not just a publishing platform.
Collaboration Enhancements
Wave 1 gave you real-time editing. Wave 3 makes it professional-grade.
- Dictionary and style guide enforcement
- Richer merge/conflict resolution UI
- Offline-safe commits with autosave
- Inline writing suggestions (grammar, pacing, style)
Fandom & Wiki System
Great stories build worlds. Readers want to explore them.
- Author-curated lore and canon pages
- Cross-story linking for shared universes
- Version-controlled wiki pages (because canon disputes are real)
- Moderation tools for community-managed wikis
Map Builder
For worldbuilders who want to show, not just tell.
- Import map assets (images, SVGs, tiled maps)
- Pin locations with descriptions and cross-references
- Embed maps directly in stories or wiki pages
- Simple at launch, richer features over time
Commission Marketplace (Beta)
Readers want custom content. Authors want income. Let's connect them.
- Post commission requests with clear terms
- Accept/fulfill workflow with escrow payment holds
- Manual moderation to start, automated trust scoring later
- Fair take-rate that doesn't exploit creators
Wave 4: Intelligence & Internationalization
Timeline: Months 16-24
Status: Research and early prototyping
Wave 4 is about scale—helping NOVA serve millions of writers and readers across languages and formats.
AI Authoring Assistant Suite
Used responsibly, AI can make writers more productive without replacing their voice.
What we're considering:
- Contextual editing suggestions (not rewrites—suggestions)
- Style transforms (adjust tone, tense, POV)
- Scene brainstorming and structural feedback
- Privacy-first: opt-in only, no training on your work without consent
Why it's Wave 4: We're waiting for the right models and the right ethics framework. Rushing this would be a mistake.
Smart Content Warnings
Manual content tagging is imperfect. Automation can help.
- Auto-generated content warnings via classifiers
- Author override and human-in-loop review
- Reduction in misclassified or under-tagged content
Advanced Recommendation & Localization
NOVA should work for everyone, everywhere.
- Cross-language story recommendations
- Translation infrastructure for international readers
- Localized discovery feeds
Professional Publishing Tools
For writers ready to take the next step.
- Pitch packet generators for agents and publishers
- Export to industry-standard formats (EPUB, PDF, manuscript layout)
- Submission tracking and analytics
Beyond Wave 4: The Long Game
We have plans. Big plans. But we're not going to promise specifics until Waves 1-4 are solid.
Here's what we're thinking about:
Creative Marketplaces
- Artist, editor, and voice actor hubs for hiring professionals
- Secure contracting and escrow for freelance work
- Reputation systems to build trust
Expanded Formats
- NOVA Write Studio (think Scrivener, but integrated)
- Webtoon and comic publishing tools
- Audio and video storytelling formats
Cross-Media Expansion
- Partnerships with studios for adaptation pipelines
- IP management tools for writers with multiple formats
These aren't promises. They're possibilities. We'll only build them if Waves 1-4 prove there's demand.
Why This Roadmap Matters
Most platforms don't share roadmaps. They announce features when they're ready (or when they need a PR win).
We're doing this differently because transparency builds trust. You deserve to know:
- What exists today (so you can decide if NOVA is ready for you)
- What's coming next (so you can plan accordingly)
- What's aspirational (so you're not disappointed if timelines shift)
Timelines Are Estimates, Not Promises
Software development is unpredictable. Features take longer than expected. Priorities shift based on user feedback. Bugs happen.
We'll update this roadmap quarterly with:
- What shipped on time
- What's delayed (and why)
- What we learned that changed our plans
Your Feedback Shapes the Roadmap
We're building this for writers and readers, not for investors or executives. If a Wave 3 feature matters more to you than a Wave 2 feature, tell us. We'll listen.
The best platforms are built with their communities, not for them.
How to Stay Updated
Newsletter: Sign up at newsletter for quarterly roadmap updates and feature announcements.
Blog: We'll publish deep-dives on major features as they ship, explaining the "why" behind the "what."
The Bottom Line
NOVA's roadmap is ambitious. We know that. We're building features that don't exist anywhere else, and we're doing it without venture capital breathing down our necks demanding growth at all costs.
This will take time. But it will be worth it.
Because writers deserve better tools. Readers deserve better discovery. And everyone deserves a platform that treats them like people, not metrics.
We're building that platform. One wave at a time.
Questions about the roadmap? Reach out at email.
Want to help shape what we build? Apply for beta access over here.
Just want to follow along? Subscribe to the newsletter.
NOVA: Building the future of fiction, transparently.