# Story Architect

> Writing app for screenplays, novels, comics and stage plays

Story Architect, also known as STARC, is a writing app from Story Apps for screenplays, novels, comics, stage plays and audio dramas, built around one project bible of characters, locations and worlds. The free version has no limit on projects or documents, and paid Pro and Creator plans add mind maps, corkboards, timelines, sync and real-time collaboration. It follows an open-core model: the core is MIT-licensed, while premium modules are closed source.

- **Category:** Writing Tools
- **Made by:** Story Apps (since 2020)
- **Website:** https://starc.app
- **Runs on:** macOS, Windows, Linux, iOS, Android
- **Facts last checked:** Oct 9, 2026

## Pricing

Story Architect has a free plan. Paid plans start at $4.17 per month, billed annually.

- **Pricing model:** Free plan
- **Free plan:** Unlimited projects and documents, editors for screenplays, comics, audio dramas, stage plays and novels, import and export, and basic character, location and world profiles. No AI credits are included.
- **Free trial:** 30-day free trial of Pro or Creator, available once per new account.

| Plan | Price | What you get |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Free | $0 | Unlimited projects and documents, every script and novel editor, import and export, basic statistics and basic character, location and world info. |
| Pro | $4.17 per month, billed annually; or $150 lifetime | Adds mind maps, image gallery, presentations, corkboard, timeline, character relations, location and world maps, extended statistics and 5 AI credits a month. |
| Creator | $8.34 per month, billed annually | Everything in Pro plus sync between desktop devices, real-time collaboration, 5 GB of cloud storage, script breakdown, showrunner tools and 10 AI credits a month. |

Read from https://starc.app/pricing/ on Oct 9, 2026. Prices change, so confirm with Story Architect before buying.

## Ways to pay less

- **Pro lifetime license for $150** (Lifetime license): Pro can be bought with a single $150 payment instead of a subscription, and comes with 120 AI credits. Creator has no lifetime option. Source: https://starc.app/pricing/
- **50% off any plan for students and professors** (Education): University students and professors get 50% off the base price of any subscription plan after proving their status by institutional email or an ID card. Source: https://starc.app/pricing/

## Key features

- **Editors for several story formats:** Separate editors for screenplays, comics, audio dramas, stage plays and novels apply industry-standard formatting, with Tab and Enter switching between paragraph types.
- **Shared project bible:** Characters, locations and worlds are described once and shared by every story in a project, including all episodes of a series. Pro adds relationship editors, maps and extended profiles.
- **Corkboard and timeline:** On Pro, screenplays and novels get a card board and a timeline. Cards can be colour-tagged and grouped by act, and changes show up in the script text and the reverse.
- **Mind maps:** A mind map tool for brainstorming and planning is part of the Pro plan, alongside an image gallery and presentations.
- **AI Assistant:** Paraphrases, shortens, expands, summarizes, translates and generates text using credits; one credit covers 1,000 words or 10 images. Extra credits start at $10 for 50.
- **Sync and collaboration:** Creator adds 5 GB of cloud storage, sync and real-time co-writing. Co-authors can join on any plan, with editing limited to the modules their own plan includes.

## Good for

- Screenwriters who want standard script formatting on a free plan
- Writers keeping every episode of a series in one project
- Authors who work across screenplays, comics, plays and novels

## Worth knowing

- The pricing page shows prices on annual billing only; 1-, 3- and 6-month terms exist, but their prices are not listed there.
- Sync covers desktop apps for now: the pricing page lists mobile sync as in development.
- Corkboard, timeline, mind maps and extended statistics need Pro; collaboration and script breakdown need Creator.
- The software is pre-1.0: the desktop apps are at version 0.8.3 and the mobile apps at 0.2.0, with several features still planned.

**Tags:** Long-form writing, AI features, Real-time collaboration, Mind mapping

## Alternatives

- [Final Draft](https://toolgpa.com/tools/final-draft): Screenwriting software with automatic script formatting. [Compare](https://toolgpa.com/compare/final-draft-vs-story-architect)
- [Fade In](https://toolgpa.com/tools/fade-in): One-time-purchase screenwriting software for Windows, Mac and Linux. [Compare](https://toolgpa.com/compare/fade-in-vs-story-architect)
- [WriterDuet](https://toolgpa.com/tools/writerduet): Screenwriting software built for real-time co-writing. [Compare](https://toolgpa.com/compare/story-architect-vs-writerduet)
- [Arc Studio](https://toolgpa.com/tools/arc-studio): Screenwriting app with outlining and real-time co-writing. [Compare](https://toolgpa.com/compare/arc-studio-vs-story-architect)
- [Trelby](https://toolgpa.com/tools/trelby): Free, open-source screenwriting program for desktop. [Compare](https://toolgpa.com/compare/story-architect-vs-trelby)

## Sources

The prices, plans, platforms and features above were read from these pages on Oct 9, 2026:

- https://starc.app/pricing/
- https://starc.app/
- https://starc.app/download/
- https://starc.app/help/
- https://starc.app/help/pro-and-creator-activation/

Page: https://toolgpa.com/tools/story-architect
Listed by ToolGPA (toolgpa.com).