Smart Editing

Smart editing provides automatic text helpers that speed up writing in Feather. All smart editing features are on by default and can be toggled in Settings.

Auto-Close Pairs

When you type an opening character, Feather automatically inserts the matching closer:

• ( inserts ()
• [ inserts []
• { inserts {}
• " inserts ""
• ` inserts ``

The cursor is placed between the pair so you can type the contents immediately.

Skip-Over

If the cursor is directly before a closing character (), ], }, ", `), pressing that character jumps past it instead of inserting a duplicate. This lets you type naturally without worrying about extra closing characters.

Tab-to-Exit

Press Tab when the cursor is immediately before a closing bracket or quote to jump past the closing character and insert a space. This is useful for quickly moving out of a pair and continuing to type.

Selection Wrapping

Select text and then type an opening character to wrap the selection:

1. Select the word hello
2. Type [
3. Result: [hello]

This works with (, [, {, ", and `.

Matching Pair Deletion

Press Backspace between an empty pair (e.g., (), [], {}, "") to delete both characters at once.

List Continuation

Feather automatically continues lists when you press Enter:

• Unordered lists: After - item, pressing Enter adds a new - on the next line
• Numbered lists: After 1. item, pressing Enter adds 2. and auto-increments subsequent numbers
• Task lists: After - [ ] task, pressing Enter adds a new - [ ] on the next line
• Exit a list: Press Enter on an empty list marker (a line with just - or 1. ) to remove the marker and exit the list
• Turn existing lines into a list: select them and use a list command or shortcut — see Lists

Blockquote Continuation

When your cursor is inside a blockquote (> text), pressing Enter automatically adds the > prefix on the next line so you can keep writing within the quote.

Smart Indent

• Tab: Inserts 4 spaces at the cursor position
• Shift+Tab: Removes up to 4 spaces of indentation from the current line

Word Selection

Double-clicking a word selects just the word without including any trailing space. This makes it easier to copy or format individual words precisely.

Paste as Markdown

When you copy rich text from Google Docs, Word, or a web page, Feather converts it to clean markdown on paste — headings, bold, italic, strikethrough, links, images, nested lists, task checkboxes, tables, blockquotes, and code blocks all come across as markdown source instead of styled text.

• Content without real formatting — syntax-colored code from an IDE, for example — pastes as plain text with its whitespace intact
• Ctrl+Shift+V (Edit > Paste as Plain Text) or right-click > Paste as plain text always pastes the clipboard's plain text verbatim, with no conversion. The shortcut works in the main editor and while editing a block in the preview; the right-click command is available anywhere the editor is, including scratchpads
• Toggle it in Settings > Editor > Paste formatted text as Markdown. It's on by default

Getting Help

• Documentation: ventana.tools/docs/feather
• Support Email: support@ventana.tools