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Writing Studio, AI Beta Reader and MCP: how Slima is laid out
Last updated September 9, 2026 · 7 min read
Slima has two doors and one wire in from outside. Thirty seconds to work out which one you want.
The short answer
| What you want to do | Where you go |
|---|---|
| Write a novel, essays, memoir, long-form non-fiction | Writing Studio |
| Write a screenplay or a series | Writing Studio — a screenplay is a .script file in the tree |
| Draft is done; you want to see how it lands | AI Beta Reader |
| Work inside another AI tool and have it read and write your Slima books | Slima MCP |
| Open a screenplay project made before 4.0 | Script Studio — only visible if you have one |
That first screen after you sign in is these cards. A brand-new account sees two of them: Writing Studio and the AI Beta Reader.
Writing Studio — nearly everything happens here
Who it's for: anyone writing something long. This is where most of the day goes.
Open a book and you get a file tree. Manuscript, screenplay, characters, relationship map, world map, timeline, beat board: all of it is files on that one tree. You never change studio to change what you're working on.
- Editor plus whole-book context — the AI reads the book, not only the chapter you have open
- AI Coach — the right-hand panel: ask, revise, continue, get unstuck
- Six kinds of file you can create —
.mdmanuscript,.scriptscreenplay,.maprelationship map,.geomapworld map,.timelinetimeline,.beatsbeat board - Field-level AI on structured files — on those five types the AI doesn't rewrite the file, it edits fields, and you review each change
- Version control — snapshots pile up as you write, and you can name one at a moment that matters
- AI chapter analysis — Pacing Scan, Dialogue, Repetition and Consistency: four readings of one chapter
Where does a screenplay go? Right-click a folder, choose New Script, and you get a .script file. One episode per file. Both TW and Hollywood formats are there. See writing a screenplay in the Writing Studio.
More: The file tree · The AI Coach · AI Insight overview
AI Beta Reader — the step after the draft
Who it's for: anyone holding a manuscript who wants AI readers to go through it before a human beta reader does.
It doesn't have to be written in Slima. On the AI Beta Reader work list, press Upload Work, drag in files or a whole folder — Word, Markdown, PDF, EPUB, Fountain and more — give it a name, and you can run a report straight away.
- Reader personas — which kind of reader to simulate: an indifferent passer-by, a fan of the source, an editor's eye, a literary critic
- Chapter-level reactions — not just a verdict; it points at where someone would put the book down and where they would keep turning
- A five-dimension editorial pass — structure and theme, character depth, pacing and tension, craft, market fit
- The editor's letter — an overall read in the voice of a senior editor
.script files can be read too; they are assembled into prose in preview format first. Relationship maps, world maps, timelines and beat boards are not manuscript, so they can't be selected.
More: Four-step flow & privacy · Reader or editor?
Slima MCP — the wire in from outside
Who it's for: people already working inside Claude, ChatGPT, Cursor, VS Code or Gemini CLI.
MCP is not a fourth studio. It is a standard-protocol server: once you authorise it, those tools read and write your Slima books directly instead of making you copy and paste a draft across.
- Standard MCP — not tied to any one AI vendor
- Web connection (OAuth) and local connection (stdio) — pick whichever your tool speaks
- Revoke any time — Authorized Apps in your account lists everything connected and when it was last used
More: What Slima MCP is · Pick a connection method
Script Studio — where the old projects live
Before 4.0 screenplays had their own studio, built on a four-level series → season → episode → scene structure. Those projects still open and can still be finished, but the studio no longer starts new works, which is why the card never appears for an account that has none.
Each old book's "⋯" menu offers Copy as new Writing Studio book, which copies the screenplay, characters, locations and structure into a fresh Writing Studio book. It is a copy, not a move: after that the two go their own way.
More: The old Script Studio: what still works and how to move across
Switching between them
The Slima starburst at the top of the activity bar, down the far left of the editor, is Switch Studio. Click it and the menu drops down. Everything shares one account and one subscription, so switching costs you nothing.
Where to go next
Open the app and do this with your own book. Free to start, no credit card.