Your AI, your key, your cost.
Inkloom does not resell AI. You bring your own OpenRouter API key, pick your models, and pay your provider directly. No markup. No middleman. No monthly AI subscription from us.
How bring-your-own-key works.
In plain terms: you hold the key, you choose the model, and Inkloom calls the provider on your behalf. Your manuscript stays local. Only the relevant context travels.
1. Your machine
Your manuscript, your key, and your model settings all live locally in Inkloom.
2. The request
When you trigger generation, Inkloom assembles the relevant context and sends it, with your key, to OpenRouter.
3. The model
OpenRouter routes your request to the model you chose. The response comes back as a diff you review in Inkloom.
Get an OpenRouter key in five steps.
From sign-up to your first AI-assisted draft. Most people finish in under ten minutes.
Create an OpenRouter account
Go to openrouter.ai and sign up. OpenRouter is an API aggregator that gives you access to many models from many providers through a single key. You fund your account with credits and pay per token for what you use.
Generate an API key
In your OpenRouter dashboard, navigate to Keys and create a new API key. Name it something recognizable, like Inkloom. Copy the key immediately. You will not be able to see it again after you close the page.
Paste the key into Inkloom Settings
Open Inkloom, go to Settings, and find the API Keys section. Paste your OpenRouter key into the field. The key is stored locally on your machine in an encrypted store. It never touches our servers.
Choose your models
In the same Settings panel, assign models to each layer: planning, drafting, and image. You can pick any model your OpenRouter account supports. Start with the defaults and adjust as you learn what fits your book.
Start using AI features
Once the key is saved and models are assigned, AI features become available. Draft a chapter, run Voice Pass, or generate a cover concept. Every AI output arrives as a reviewable diff with a Context Trace.
Planning, drafting, and image models.
You assign a model to each layer of work. Different tasks have different needs, and you are not locked into one model for everything.
Planning models
Concept, Blueprint, and Outline generationThese tasks benefit from strong reasoning and structured output. A larger, more capable model is a good fit here. You might spend more per token, but planning calls are infrequent.
Example: A frontier reasoning model for structured field generation and outline expansion.
Drafting models
Chapter drafting and revisionDrafting benefits from long context and strong prose. You want a model that can hold your chapter brief, relevant canon, and voice rules, then produce coherent chapter text. This is where most of your token spend goes.
Example: A long-context model tuned for creative writing or general prose.
Image models
Cover concepts in Cover StudioCover concepts use a dedicated image generation model, separate from your text models. You assign this independently so you can pick the best image model without affecting your text generation.
Example: A diffusion-based image model for cover concept generation.
Where your key lives, and where it goes.
Your key is yours. Inkloom holds it locally and uses it only to call your provider.
Key stored locally
Your OpenRouter key is stored in an encrypted local store on your machine. It is not sent to Inkloom servers. It is not shared. It is not logged.
Used server-side only for generation
When you trigger a generation, Inkloom uses your key to call OpenRouter directly. The key is used only to authenticate that request. It is not persisted anywhere except your local store.
You can revoke anytime
If you ever want to cut off access, revoke the key in your OpenRouter dashboard. Inkloom will immediately lose the ability to make AI calls. Generate a new key and paste it in to resume.
No markup, no middleman
You pay OpenRouter directly for the tokens you use. Inkloom takes no cut. There is no per-token fee from us. Your $299 purchase is the only money we receive.
Your manuscript lives on your computer. Not ours.
Inkloom runs locally. Your manuscript lives in a local database. The only thing that leaves your machine is what you explicitly send to your own OpenRouter account for generation. A privacy lock can keep your manuscript entirely local even when a key is stored.
Read the privacy explainer ->What you actually spend on AI.
It depends on your models and how much you generate. Here is a rough picture to set expectations.
You control your spend at every step. Set spending limits in your OpenRouter dashboard. Switch to cheaper models for routine tasks. Turn AI off for chapters you write by hand. You are never billed by Inkloom for AI usage.
Bring your own key. Keep control of your AI.
Inkloom is $299 once. Your AI costs are whatever you choose to spend, paid directly to your provider. No subscription from us. No markup. No middleman.
Your book is bigger than a prompt.
Give it a memory.
Inkloom helps you plan, write, remember, check, polish, typeset, cover, and publish a coherent book from one integrated local-first environment.
$299 one-time purchase. Buy once. It is yours.