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Global keyboard shortcuts cheat sheet
Last updated September 9, 2026 · 5 min read
The site-wide cheat sheet. You don't have to memorise it — plenty of buttons show their shortcut right next to them, and
⌘/brings up the shortcut sheet whenever you want it.
Everything below is written in Mac symbols. On Windows and Linux, read ⌘ as Ctrl, ⌥ as Alt and ⇧ as Shift.
Learn these five first
| Keys | What it does |
|---|---|
⌘P |
Quick Open (fuzzy file search) |
⌘⇧E |
Explorer |
⌘⇧A |
AI Chat |
⌘D (or F11) |
Zen Mode |
⌘/ |
Bring up the shortcut sheet |
Panels
| Keys | Panel |
|---|---|
⌘B |
Collapse / expand the sidebar |
⌘⇧E |
Explorer |
⌘⇧F |
Search |
⌘⇧G |
Version Control |
⌘⇧A |
AI Chat |
⌘⇧O |
Headings |
⌘⇧C |
Comments |
⌘⇧N |
Notes |
⌘⇧L |
Linked Elements |
⌘⇧B |
Beta Reader |
Tabs, splits, moving around
| Keys | What it does |
|---|---|
⌘W |
Close the current tab |
⌘⇧T |
Reopen the tab you just closed |
Ctrl Tab / Ctrl ⇧ Tab |
Next / previous tab |
⌘⌥→ / ⌘⌥← |
Next / previous file in the same folder |
⌘\ |
Split Editor |
⌘1 / ⌘2 |
Focus the left / right pane |
⌘⇧W |
Close the split |
⌘G |
Go To — jump between chapters inside Zen Mode |
Esc |
Leave Zen Mode |
While you're typing in the editor
| Keys | What it does |
|---|---|
⌘B / ⌘I |
Bold / italic |
⌘⇧S |
Strikethrough |
⌘⌥1 ⌘⌥2 ⌘⌥3 |
H1 / H2 / H3 |
⌘⇧8 / ⌘⇧7 |
Bullet list / numbered list |
⌘⇧' |
Dialogue quotes |
⌘⇧; |
Nested dialogue quotes |
⌘] / ⌘⇧] |
First-line indent / indent every paragraph |
⌘⌥C |
Code |
⌘⇧H |
Highlight |
⌘⇧V |
Paste as Markdown |
⌘Z / ⌘Y |
Undo / redo |
In the file tree (with the tree focused)
| Keys | What it does |
|---|---|
F2 |
Rename |
Delete |
Delete |
Esc |
Clear the selection |
Everything else
| Keys | What it does |
|---|---|
⌘S |
Save right now |
⌘⇧D |
Dark / light toggle |
Alt N |
New file |
⌘, |
Open settings |
Slima autosaves anyway.
⌘Smeans "flush it now" and does not create a version. To keep a named version, use the version control panel — see take a manual version.
Three places keys collide
`⌘B` is bold while you're typing in the editor. With the focus anywhere else — the file tree, say — it collapses the sidebar. The editor is deliberately given priority.
⌘⇧Balways opens the Beta Reader panel. For a blockquote, use the button on the formatting toolbar.- In a relationship map,
⌘Dand⌘Gduplicate a node and create a group — not Zen Mode and Go To. That canvas owns both keys. - In a
.scriptfile,⌘1–⌘5switch element type rather than focusing a pane.
When you forget
Press ⌘/ in the app. The shortcut sheet lists what is available where you are, rendered for your own operating system (⌘ on a Mac, Ctrl on Windows).
Longer lists
Where to go next
Open the app and do this with your own book. Free to start, no credit card.