Ulysses distinguishes between writing the text in the editor and formatting it during export. This guide explains how to customize the editor to create the perfect writing environment. 

Mac

General Editor Settings

Let's assume you need less space between the lines or you find that they are too far apart. In that case, you might want to change the line height. Or you may want to adjust the indent of the first line to clearly signal the start of a new paragraph. On Mac, go to Ulysses › Settings… › General: 

There, you can adjust all of the following editor settings:

• Font
• Line Height
• Paragraph Spacing
• First Line Indent
• Line Width
• Image Preview
• Insertion Point style

Editor Theme

In Ulysses, themes define the colors used in the editor for background, font, and markup tags. They are like wallpapers for your virtual writing studio. Every theme has a light and a dark version, so you can quickly switch between them. To select your preferred theme, go to Ulysses › Settings… › Markup.

Apply a Different Markup

By default, Ulysses uses its own markup language called Markdown XL. However, under Ulysses › Settings… › Markup, you can also create a new markup or adjust an existing one. To apply another markup, you have to:

1. Select one or multiple sheets in the sheet list.
2. Go to Edit › Convert Markup.
3. Choose one of the other markups from the list.

Visual Styling

Under the menu item View, you can make further settings to customize your writing environment in Ulysses. 

Zoom to Adjust the Font Size

To adjust the font size of the text in the editor, go to Zoom and select Increase/Decrease. Alternatively, you can use the shortcuts ⌘+ (command-plus) to increase, ⌘- (command-minus) to decrease and ⌘0 (command-zero) to set the font size back to the default size. 
 

Focus on Your Writing 

Ulysses offers the essential tools for a distraction-free working environment. The following features aim to help keep you in the flow.

If you select Enter Full Screen, Ulysses will take over your entire screen, so other apps can’t distract you. To fully concentrate on your text, try also to hide the library and the sheet list (⌘3).

Editor Focus makes the toolbar fade out in windowed mode. When needed, you can toggle the library, sheet list and dashboard as overlays via the familiar shortcuts (⌘1, ⌘2, ⌘3, ⌘4).

Paged Mode puts a page-like frame around your text for a less virtual appeal.

Typewriter Mode comprises several settings to help you direct your attention to your current writing:

• Highlight can be set to either your current line, sentence, or paragraph. If enabled, the rest of the text is still readable but fades into the background.
• Fixed Scrolling fixes the current line vertically on one spot while you’re typing. You can choose this spot to be on the top, in the middle, or at the bottom of the screen, or opt for variable. You can freely move your cursor with the mouse or arrow keys when using the latter. Only after you start typing will the current line remain fixed.
• Mark Current Line puts a light grey tint under your current line.

Do you prefer to write in light or dark mode? Under Appearance, you can choose between Match System, Light Mode or Dark Mode.

You can also set the visibility of the Markup Bar. Automatic, Off or Always On — the choice is yours.

You can also select Dark Theme in the View menu to switch only the editor to dark mode while keeping a light appearance for your library and sheet list.

And More …

Select Show Paragraph Numbers if you want to see how many paragraphs you have written.

If you enable Show Counter, a counter will appear at the top right of the editor. Clicking on it will allow you to change the parameter.

iPad/iPhone

On your iPad or iPhone, open the editor in Ulysses, tap the circled ellipsis, and select Editor Settings. Here, you can configure the editor to create your perfect writing environment.

Choose an Editor Theme

Tap Theme to select your preferred editor theme. To download more themes, please visit our Styles and Themes website. If you own a Mac, you can also create your own theme.
 

Appearance of the Editor

You can easily switch the look in Ulysses between light and dark modes. Tap Appearance to either adopt your device's appearance settings or set an app-specific mode.

View Options

Select View Options to tweak the size of image previews to anything between three and eight lines. You can also choose to show them in full color instead of black and white, which is the default. If you don't want to see image previews in the editor, you can turn them off completely. Images in the text will then be indicated with an IMG tag.

On iPad, there are even more settings. You can activate/deactivate the options:

• Hide Shortcut Bar to enable/disable the shortcut bar when using a hardware keyboard,
• Show Counter to enable/disable the floating metric counter in the editor,
• Show Back/Forward to enable/disable the back and forward buttons at the top left in the editor.
   

Adjust the Layout Settings

The default writing font is the iOS system font, San Francisco. However, if you tap on Typography › Font, you can browse and choose other available fonts. 

Can't find the right font? No problem. You can also upload your own font:

1. Transfer a font file (.ttf or .oft) to your iOS device, e.g., by saving it to your iCloud Drive, sending yourself a message, or downloading it from the web.
2. Tap it, select the Share button at the bottom left, and choose Ulysses.
3. You will be redirected to Ulysses, where your new font is now installed.

Under Typography, you can also make various other settings such as Text Zoom, Line Height, Paragraph Spacing and First Line Indent. 

On iPad, you can even keep the keyboard open when switching between sheets by enabling the option “Keep Editor Active.” Additionally, you have the option to adjust the Line Length:

Typewriter Mode

Just like on the Mac, you can also use typewriter mode on your iPhone and iPad. As soon as you activate the setting, you have the same setting options as described in the Mac section above:

• Highlight can be set to either your current line, sentence, or paragraph. If enabled, the rest of the text is still readable but fades into the background.
• Fixed Scrolling fixes the current line vertically on one spot while you’re typing. You can choose this spot to be on the top, in the middle, or at the bottom of the screen, or opt for variable. You can freely move your cursor with the mouse or arrow keys when using the latter. Only after you start typing will the current line remain fixed.
• Mark Current Line puts a light grey tint under your current line.

Some More Settings …

• To apply a different markup on iPad/iPhone, tap Markup and select another markup from the list. This will prompt a dialog box, which you have to confirm by tapping Convert. All new sheets created from now on will use this new markup.
  

  A multi-selection of sheets to convert the markup is currently only available on the Mac.

   
• Select Substitutions to define app-specific spelling and grammar settings as well as text automatic text replacements such as Smart Lists and Smart Tags.
• Tap Revision Mode to enable or disable Ulysses' Advanced Text Check. 

Enter Full-Screen Mode

Do you want to focus on your text and nothing but your text? On your iPad, you can use the full-screen mode to hide the toolbars and even the shortcut row if a hardware keyboard is attached. To enter full-screen mode, tap the circled ellipsis in the sheet and select Full Screen:

To exit full-screen mode, tap the circled ellipsis again and select End Full Screen.