Meet the Developer
The story behind the story engine.
Taran Stafford
Developer & Founder
I decided I wanted to write a novel - a big, sprawling one with branching timelines and more characters than I could keep track of. Somewhere between organising scenes, keeping track of characters and trying to remember what happened when, I realised I was spending an awful lot of time fighting my tools instead of actually writing.
So, naturally, I did the very developer thing and decided to build my own!
Codiko is a desktop app where your manuscript, characters, timelines and world-building all live together - with an optional AI assistant that can search across your project when you want it to. It’s built with Rust and React, runs natively on Mac and Windows, and keeps your data on your machine.
It started as a side project because I needed it. If you’re trying to keep a whole story in your head too, I hope Codiko makes writing yours a little easier.
Why it’s built this way
Writing comes first
Codiko has tools for planning and organising, but they’re there to support the writing - not get in its way. Open your project, find where you left off, and get back to your story.
Start simple
You don’t need a complicated novel or a perfectly planned world to use Codiko. Start with chapters and scenes, then bring in timelines, characters, and other tools when they’re useful to you.
AI should be optional
AI can be genuinely useful for exploring ideas, checking continuity, or finding details buried in a manuscript. But it shouldn’t write your book for you, and you shouldn’t need it to use Codiko.
Your work is yours
Your manuscript and project data stay on your computer. Codiko doesn’t upload your writing to its own servers. If you use AI, requests go directly to the provider you choose.
Got questions, feedback, or just want to say hi?