Jason Lamb .ME Some stuff I think is cool and interesting, you might too!

September 23, 2026

A Two-Pane Writing Tool That Keeps the Draft in View

Filed under AI

When I ask for help with a piece of writing, I still want to keep the actual draft in front of me. My AI Writing Tool is built around a two-pane layout: writing on one side, suggestions on the other.

The browser editor keeps the draft in local storage and maintains a local change log. That makes the page useful before an AI request is involved. Writing, revising, and keeping the current text available are the basic jobs.

When suggestions are requested, the page sends the draft to a PHP endpoint that calls the AI service. The API key stays in server-side configuration rather than being placed in the browser code. The project also includes basic request throttling and a health-check endpoint for setup.

The separation between local storage and an AI request is worth understanding. Local autosave means the draft is stored in that browser; it does not mean every device automatically shares it. Requesting AI suggestions also means submitting the selected draft content through the configured service. Those are two different parts of the workflow.

The interface is intentionally smaller than a full document platform. It is a place to develop a piece of text and compare suggestions without constantly moving between windows.

I like the idea of assistance that leaves the working document visible. The suggestions can be useful without becoming the whole experience. The person writing still has to decide whether a change preserves the meaning, sounds natural, and actually improves the paragraph.

This project gives that decision a straightforward place to happen: the draft and the advice, side by side.

Open the hosted project · Explore the project on GitHub