Editing & reading modes

Fable shows a note in three ways. Two of them are for writing, one is for reading. Understanding the difference, and how to switch, is the key to a comfortable editing experience.

Two views, three presentations

At the top level there are two views: an editing view and a Reading view. Inside the editing view there are two modes: Live Preview and Source. That gives three ways to see a note.

Presentation	Can you edit?	Is raw Markdown visible?
Reading view	No, read-only	No. Fully rendered, like a finished page.
Editing · Live Preview	Yes	Hidden, except on the line you are editing.
Editing · Source mode	Yes	Yes. Every character of Markdown is shown.

Live Preview, the default

Live Preview is where most people write. It shows formatted text inline, hiding the Markdown symbols, so a heading looks like a heading and **bold** simply looks bold. The trick that makes it an editor and not just a preview: when your cursor enters a piece of formatted text, the raw Markdown for that line is revealed so you can edit it. Move the cursor away and it collapses back to the rendered result.

Inline marks like bold, italic and links reveal on the active line.
Block elements like tables, callouts, math blocks and embeds reveal as a whole block when your cursor is inside them.
Everything else stays rendered, so the page always reads cleanly while you work.

Source mode

Source mode never renders anything inline; it shows plain, syntax-highlighted Markdown at all times. Reach for it when you want exact control of the characters, for editing complex tables, raw HTML, or frontmatter.

Reading view

Reading view is a distinct, read-only view. Links resolve to titles, embeds expand, images render, and there is no syntax to distract you. It is the closest thing to how a note would look if published.

Switching views and modes

To do this	Use
Toggle reading and editing	`Ctrl` `E`, the toggle icon in the view header, or the status-bar indicator
Switch Live Preview and Source	The command Toggle Live Preview / Source mode, or the view-switcher icon
See editing and reading side by side	Split the tab (right-click the tab → Split right) and set one side to Reading

The choice is per tab. Switching one note's view does not change any other open note, and the choice persists for that tab while it stays open.

Set your defaults

Choose how new notes open under Settings → Editor:

Setting	Options	Default
Default view for new tabs	Editing view / Reading view	Editing view
Default editing mode	Live Preview / Source mode	Live Preview

Writing aids

The editor handles the fiddly parts of Markdown for you. Most of these are on by default and can be adjusted under Settings → Editor.

Aid	What it does
Auto-pair brackets and Markdown	Typing `(`, `[`, `{`, `*`, `_` or ` inserts the closing character; typing over a selection wraps it.
Smart lists	`Enter` continues a list and renumbers ordered lists; `Enter` on an empty item ends the list.
Indent and outdent	`Tab` nests the current item, `Shift` `Tab` outdents. Works across a multi-line selection.
Soft line break in a list	`Shift` `Enter` breaks a line without starting a new item.
Checkbox toggle	Click a rendered checkbox to switch a task between done and not done; the change is written back to Markdown.
Folding	Collapse content under a heading or an indented list from the arrow that appears on hover.
Smart paste	Paste a URL over selected text to make a link; paste an image to save it as an attachment and embed it.
Spellcheck	A toggle in Settings → Editor that enables your browser's built-in spellchecker.
Readable line length	Constrains the text column to a comfortable width for reading and writing.

Now that you can move between modes, the basic formatting page covers the Markdown you will actually type.