Plain-language terms.
This is a desktop app you paid for. You get a perpetual license to use it on devices you own. You don't get to resell it, bundle it into a commercial product, or decompile it for a competing product. The full End-User License Agreement is available at noveltywriter.app/eula.
The license
Novelty Writer is licensed by Novelty Technologies, LLC. A Novelty Writer license is personal, non-transferable, and for use on devices belonging to one human. You can install and activate it on every device you own. We don't enforce a device cap and we don't fingerprint your hardware.
Activation and verification
Activation happens by signing in to the same account on each device. The app phones home periodically to confirm the license is still active — typically once every 12 hours. If your device is offline for more than 21 days the app drops into read-only mode until the next successful check; your manuscripts always stay readable.
Updates
Twelve months of version updates are included with purchase. After that, you keep using the last version covered by your license — it doesn't expire. Security patches for the version you own remain free.
Refunds
Email us within 14 days of purchase and we'll refund you, no questions asked. After a refund, your license is marked refunded on our side and the desktop app drops into read-only mode at the next online check (usually within minutes, at most 12 hours). Your manuscripts stay on your disk and remain readable forever — we never reach into your files.
Trial
New installs include a 30-day fully featured trial. The trial clock starts when you create your first manuscript. After the trial expires the app drops into read-only mode (open, read, and export still work) until you sign in or buy a license.
No warranty
Software is provided as-is. We're careful about data safety — hidden git, autosave, autocommit — but you should still back up your manuscript.
AI output
The app forwards prompts to providers (OpenRouter, Google, Voyage) via API keys you supply. You own the output. Check whether your publisher or contest has any rules about AI-assisted writing; that's between you and them.
Last updated: May 2026.