Campfire has built a devoted following among fantasy and sci-fi authors who need to track complex worlds, magic systems, and sprawling character relationships. With 17 interconnected modules for everything from timelines to constructed languages, it's an impressive worldbuilding platform.
But here's the question many authors eventually ask: what about the actual writing? In this comparison, we'll look at Campfire and Author's Forge - two tools with very different priorities.
Quick Overview
What is Campfire?
Campfire is a web-based storytelling platform with 17 modules covering characters, locations, maps, timelines, magic systems, languages, species, cultures, and more. It also includes a manuscript module for writing. Campfire uses a modular pricing system: you can pay for individual modules ($0.50-$2.00/month each), get all modules for $125/year, or pay $375 for lifetime access to everything.
The platform was created in 2018 by Jason Louro, a college student who needed better tools to organize his screenplay. It's evolved significantly since then, with browser, desktop, and mobile apps available.
What is Author's Forge?
Author's Forge is a desktop writing application for Mac, Windows, and Linux. The core features - full writing environment, organization tools, and EPUB export - are free.
What makes it particularly relevant for worldbuilders: the AI Writing Assistant reads your entire library - your manuscript, your notes, your character details, your magic system rules, everything you've documented. It can catch when chapter 20 contradicts the rules you established in chapter 3. It understands your world because it's actually read all of it. Author's Forge is designed primarily for writing, with notes and organization supporting that central task rather than the other way around.
Head-to-Head Comparison
Primary Focus
This is the fundamental difference between these platforms.
Campfire: Campfire is first and foremost a worldbuilding tool. The manuscript module exists, but it's clearly not the priority. As one reviewer put it: "The manuscript itself takes a backseat here for the worldbuilding." Users on Campfire's own forums have expressed frustration: "We're writers. We want to write. Make the writing medium the best it can be." The platform excels at organizing information about your fictional world, but the actual writing experience is secondary.
Author's Forge: Author's Forge is built around writing. The organizational structure (Libraries, Series, Books, Chapters) supports the writing process. Notes and world-building tools exist to serve your manuscript, not overshadow it. The focus is on helping you get words on the page.
The verdict: If you spend more time planning worlds than writing prose, Campfire's 17 modules are genuinely useful. If you want to write your book and need organization to support that, Author's Forge keeps writing at the center.
Manuscript Editor Quality
This is where the priorities become obvious.
Campfire: Multiple reviewers have noted problems with Campfire's manuscript editor. One 2025 review stated: "Buggy behavior in the manuscript editor is constant in spite of frequent updates." The editor lacks Track Changes, making professional editing workflows difficult. The mobile app can be laggy when editing text. Early versions didn't even have the manuscript module available on mobile. It's functional, but it's not where Campfire's development energy goes.
Author's Forge: The writing environment is the core product. An organizational structure built for authors (Libraries, Series, Books, Chapters), a Notes system for tracking characters and world-building, and the AI Writing Assistant that understands your entire work. Author's Forge is designed for the hours you spend actually drafting and revising your manuscript.
The verdict: Campfire's manuscript editor works, but its bugs and limitations reflect its secondary status. Author's Forge treats the writing experience as the main event.
Price
Campfire: Campfire's modular pricing is innovative - you can buy only what you need. Individual modules range from $0.50 to $2.00 per month. All 17 modules together cost $12.50/month, $125/year, or $375 for lifetime access. The free tier limits you to 25,000 words in your manuscript (most novels are 70,000-100,000 words), 10 characters, and restricted access to other modules.
Author's Forge: Free forever for core features including unlimited writing, organization, and EPUB export. The AI Writing Assistant is available through Pro ($19.99/month) or pay-as-you-go pricing.
The verdict: Campfire's free tier hits walls quickly - 25,000 words won't get you through most novels. Full access costs $125/year or $375 lifetime. Author's Forge gives you unlimited writing for free, with AI as an optional upgrade.
AI Features
Campfire: Campfire has no AI writing assistance. There's no AI that understands your story, helps with plot consistency, or assists with drafting. Some vague mentions of "AI integrations" appear in marketing materials, but there's no substantive AI writing assistant built into the platform. All that worldbuilding you document in Campfire? No AI reads it or helps you stay consistent with it.
Author's Forge: Author's Forge includes an AI Writing Assistant that reads your entire library - your manuscript, your notes, your world-building, your characters. This is particularly powerful for complex fantasy and sci-fi: the AI knows your magic system rules because it's read your notes. It knows your character's backstory because it's read that too. It can flag when you accidentally contradict your own worldbuilding. Suggestions appear as inline edits with a clear diff view, so you stay in control.
The verdict: For worldbuilders, this is the key question: do you want to document your world in a tool that looks pretty but can't help you stay consistent? Or in a tool where an AI actually reads everything and can catch your mistakes? Author's Forge offers the latter.
Worldbuilding Tools
Campfire: This is Campfire's strength. Seventeen modules cover characters (with customizable sheets and arc tracking), locations, interactive maps with pins, timelines, relationship webs, family trees, encyclopedias, magic systems, languages, species, cultures, religions, philosophies, and more. For authors building complex fantasy or sci-fi worlds, the depth is impressive.
Author's Forge: Author's Forge includes a Notes system for world-building, character tracking, and research. Create a note for a character, tag it with "protagonist" and "mage," and access it instantly from your sidebar while writing. Create notes for your magic system rules, your locations, your factions. The tag-based system lets you organize information your way - and here's the key difference: the AI Writing Assistant reads all of it. Ask it to check if your current scene contradicts your established magic rules. It can, because it's read both your manuscript and your notes.
The verdict: If you're building Tolkien-level worlds with interactive maps, relationship webs, and visual timelines, Campfire's dedicated modules are genuinely valuable. But if what you really need is worldbuilding notes that an AI actually understands and can reference for consistency checking - that's what Author's Forge offers. Less visual, more functional.
Data Storage and Privacy
Campfire: Campfire is cloud-based. Your data lives on their servers, syncing across browser, desktop, and mobile apps. This enables collaboration features but means your manuscripts and world-building are stored remotely. Some users have reported sync issues between desktop and mobile versions.
Author's Forge: Your files are stored locally on your computer in standard Markdown format. No account required for core features, no data sent to external servers. Want cloud backup? Put your library folder in Dropbox, Google Drive, or iCloud - you control where your data lives.
The verdict: Campfire requires trusting their cloud infrastructure with your work. Author's Forge keeps your files local, giving you complete control over your data.
Platform and Offline Access
Campfire: Available as a web app, desktop app, and mobile app. The desktop app allows offline work, but syncing is required to keep everything updated. Some modules aren't available on mobile (Relationships, Arcs, Languages, Calendar, Research). Users have reported that offline editing "requires enabling specific settings and having enough storage on the device."
Author's Forge: Desktop application for Mac, Windows, and Linux. All core features work fully offline - your files are local, so there's nothing to sync. AI features require an internet connection when you use them.
The verdict: Both work offline, but Author's Forge's local-first approach is simpler. No sync configuration, no missing mobile modules, no wondering if your changes made it to the cloud.
Learning Curve
Campfire: Seventeen modules means a lot to learn. Reviews consistently mention a "steep learning curve" and note that the extensive features "may initially pose a challenge for new users." The visual customization options - while appealing - can become a distraction. One review warned that Campfire "can encourage procrastination through customization options."
Author's Forge: Create a library, start writing. Add notes as you need them. The structure mirrors how authors actually work - you don't need to learn 17 modules before you can be productive.
The verdict: Campfire's depth comes with complexity. Author's Forge is designed for authors who want to write their book, not configure their worldbuilding software.
Who Should Choose Campfire?
Campfire is a good fit if you:
- Write fantasy or sci-fi with complex, detailed worlds
- Spend significant time on worldbuilding before drafting
- Need specialized tools for magic systems, constructed languages, or detailed timelines
- Want collaboration features for co-writers
- Don't mind cloud-based storage for your work
- Have budget for $125/year or $375 lifetime
- Are comfortable with a learning curve
Who Should Choose Author's Forge?
Author's Forge is a good fit if you:
- Want an AI that actually reads your worldbuilding notes and catches when you contradict them
- Write fantasy/SF series and need AI that knows your entire world across multiple books
- Value a polished manuscript editor over visual worldbuilding tools
- Want to write your book, not configure 17 modules
- Prefer keeping your files local rather than in the cloud
- Don't want to pay $125-375 for writing software
- Need something productive from day one
- Want worldbuilding notes that serve your writing, not the other way around
Can You Use Both?
Some authors do use different tools for different purposes. You could plan your world in Campfire's specialized modules, then write your actual manuscript in Author's Forge where the AI Writing Assistant can help with drafting and revision.
Since Author's Forge is free for core features, this workflow only costs what you'd spend on Campfire anyway. The question is whether Campfire's worldbuilding modules add enough value beyond what you can accomplish with Author's Forge's notes system.
Final Thoughts
Campfire is a powerful worldbuilding platform. For authors who spend months developing fictional worlds before writing a word of prose, its 17 modules offer genuine utility. The character sheets, interactive maps, and timeline tools are well-designed for their purpose.
But here's the question Campfire can't answer: what good is beautifully organized worldbuilding if nothing helps you stay consistent with it while you write? Campfire has no AI. All those detailed notes you create? You have to remember them yourself. Campfire's manuscript editor - the place where you actually write your book - is clearly secondary, with bugs and limitations that reflect its status.
Author's Forge takes the opposite approach: writing comes first, and the AI actually reads your worldbuilding. Document your magic system rules, and the AI can check your scenes against them. Create character notes, and the AI knows that character's history when helping you revise. That's not a feature Campfire offers - and it's arguably more useful than interactive maps for actually finishing your book.
For worldbuilders who want to write their book (not just plan it), Author's Forge offers AI-powered consistency checking that Campfire's 17 modules can't match.