Comments, critique, and feedback

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Comment threads

Use a comment thread when you want to discuss one passage before deciding whether to change it. You will see comments in the gutter, anchored to a text range. Open a thread to reply, send feedback, or inspect edits that belong to the discussion. An unresolved passage has an inline underline and a small message count pill. Click either marker to open the gutter card. Use Resolve when the discussion is complete. When you resolve a thread, any pending edits linked to it are also removed. Use Reopen when the discussion should continue. When you delete the anchor text, the detached thread disappears from the gutter. Undoing the deletion restores the text and can restore the thread anchor.

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Proposed fixes in comments

When the agent has explained a problem without changing the draft, you can choose Approve and propose edit on its message. Approving asks the agent to turn the explanation into a reviewable change, so you can inspect the exact wording before accepting it. When you reply to a thread, the agent wakes with the thread transcript. The agent can respond to the discussion and group later edits under the same thread.

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Critique passes

Open Settings, then Critique pass. Built in reviewers include PhD Advisor, Copy Editor, Skeptic, and Fresh Eyes. A critique pass is useful when you want the whole active draft reviewed from one point of view. For example, the Copy Editor can look for sentence problems, while the Skeptic can look for claims that need more support. The reviewer reads the active draft and can produce up to six focused findings. You receive findings as comments, and the reviewer can also propose a fix. You can discuss each finding, accept a linked edit, or resolve the thread. The reviewer name and mascot remain attached to the resulting comments and edits. Choose New reviewer when you need a review that matches your own project or audience. Provide a name, mascot, color, and review prompt that explains what the reviewer should check.

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Import external feedback

Open Settings, then Import feedback. You can bring in feedback from collaborators who reviewed your draft outside DocWriter.

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Upload a Word document

Drop or select a .docx file that has comments. DocWriter extracts each comment with its author and the passage it was anchored to. You see a preview of the extracted comments before importing.

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Paste plain text

Choose Paste feedback and paste any text — email threads, Slack messages, reviewer notes. The agent reads the raw text and identifies each piece of feedback on its own. Include quotes of the passages being discussed when possible so the agent can find the right spots in your draft.

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What happens after import

The agent processes each comment and creates a gutter thread for it. Threads appear progressively as the agent works. For each comment, the agent:

1. Finds the matching passage in your current draft.
2. Creates a thread anchored to that passage, attributed to the original reviewer.
3. Replies with a short assessment of whether it agrees and whether a fix is clear.
4. Proposes an edit when the fix is straightforward. Otherwise it leaves the thread for you to decide.

External reviewer comments appear with a purple icon and the reviewer’s name in the gutter. You accept, reject, or reply to these threads the same way as any other thread.

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Coverage ledger

While an import is active, the agent dock shows a Feedback coverage panel. It tracks how many comments have been addressed and the disposition of each one: applied (edit proposed), discussed (reply only), deferred, or untouched. Click a row to jump to its thread. The ledger persists across page refreshes.