Export a work | Ilena Documentation

Export the open workExport the open work

Open the work and save it.
Open the Work menu and point to Export.
Select PDF, Text (.txt) or Markdown (.md). Your browser downloads the file.

The Work menu open on Export, with its submenu: PDF with the shortcut ⌘E, Text (.txt) and Markdown (.md). — The three formats, in the Export submenu of the Work menu.

⌘ + E downloads the PDF directly. The file is named after the work, with the extension of its format: .pdf, .txt or .md.

While no work is open, the whole Work menu, Export included, is greyed out.

What each file containsWhat each file contains

How each line type appears in an exported file
Line type	PDF	Text (.txt)	Markdown (.md)
Title	Large type	Plain line	Heading: `# Title`
Verse	Regular type	Plain line	Plain line
Indication	Italic, typewriter type	Plain line	Italic: `_indication_`
Legal	Small grey type	Plain line	Quotation: `> line`

Bold text stays bold in the PDF and becomes **bold** in Markdown. The text file holds only the words, one line per line of the work, with no formatting. The foot counts and emotions shown beside the editor are not exported. The heading comes from the work’s Title line, not from the work’s name.

Example: one work, three filesExample: one work, three files

The work Neon Rain holds a Title line, two Verse lines, an Indication, a third verse with the word silver in bold, and a Legal line. Exported as Markdown, Neon Rain.md reads:

# Neon Rain

Neon signs are blinking slow  
Taxis hum where rivers flow  
_softly, almost whispered_  
The city sings in **silver** light  
> Words: Docs Walk, 2026

Neon Rain.md

Exported as text, Neon Rain.txt keeps the same lines, without any mark:

Neon Rain
Neon signs are blinking slow
Taxis hum where rivers flow
softly, almost whispered
The city sings in silver light
Words: Docs Walk, 2026

Neon Rain.txt

In Neon Rain.pdf, the title is in large type, softly, almost whispered in italic typewriter type, silver in bold, and the Legal line in small grey type.