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Show HN: I'm building an app to replace Overleaf and Notion

82 points WolfOliver | 1 comments | 19 Jun 25 10:33 UTC | HN request time: 0.306s | source

Hi HN,

Since 2019, I’ve been working on a writing platform designed for creating complex documents (e.g., theses). I personally use it for everything as it also allows to classify documents in categories so you can organize them efficiently. As of a few months ago, the app is also available in the browser, and you can now invite coworkers to collaborate on a document in real time.

The app is somewhat inspired by LyX. It offers an intuitive, modern editor, but users don’t need to know any LaTeX. When it’s time to export, they can choose from a range of templates (IEEE paper, thesis, etc.).

A few highlights:

- It uses a custom-built block editor that performs well with large documents. Each block is its own contenteditable element (instead of having one massive contenteditable for the whole document)

- If you prefer plain text - you can insert a Markdown block and write using Markdown instead

- Built-in citation management

- Support for cross-references and footnotes

- Mermaid diagrams, inline LaTeX equations, and display math are all supported

- "To-do" sections help you stay organized while writing

You can try it out here: https://www.monsterwriter.com/

Show context
jkhdigital ◴[22 Jun 25 11:31 UTC] No.44346012[source]▶
I started a PhD in 2020 and I know exactly why you created this app because I tried like half a dozen different tools that didn’t fit. I needed a workflow to

1. collect and prioritize relevant research papers

2. make notes and synthesize ideas across my reading

3. use the notes to assemble draft of original writing

4. seamlessly move my own writings into LaTeX documents along with citation details

and ended up in Obsidian where I basically had to build my own tool anyway. Which I never did, because I just wanted to focus on research without fooling around with tools.

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hoosieree ◴[22 Jun 25 12:56 UTC] No.44346559[source]▶
I ended up with Emacs and org-mode. One of my friends used Vim and Pandoc to the same effect. I didn't quite have to write my own tool but each new LaTeX template foisted on me was hours of work that could have been spent doing research. My impression after seeing my peers work with Mendeley, Notion, Overleaf, etc. was they looked prettier at first glance but didn't solve my problem.

Over time I developed the opinion that LaTeX is an unnecessary tax on scientific progress. It's insanity to keep using it when HTML exists.

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1. k2enemy ◴[22 Jun 25 14:31 UTC] No.44347232[source]▶
Just curious what field you are in? I've noticed that in latex and "latex alternative" discussions the problem of journal templates/styles often comes up. However, every journal I've submitted to (dozens of different ones (with lots of rejects!)) just require vanilla latex and the editorial office does the work of getting it into their format. Clearly this isn't the case for everyone though!