What roles and permissions can collaborators have?
What roles and permissions can collaborators have?
PubliWrite allows authors to work with collaborators inside the editor. Each collaborator can have a different role, depending on how they are expected to contribute to the book.
Permissions help the book owner control who can view, edit, comment on, or manage parts of the manuscript.
Collaborator roles
There are four main roles in the editor:
- Owner
- Author
- Editor
- Viewer
Each role has a different level of access.
Owner
The Owner is the person who created the book project.
The owner has the highest level of access and can manage the manuscript, collaborators, and publishing setup.
Owners can:
- View and edit the manuscript
- Add, edit, and organize chapters or sections
- Use formatting and manuscript settings
- View, add, reply to, resolve, and delete comments
- Review and restore previous versions
- Invite collaborators
- Change collaborator roles
- Remove collaborators
- Manage royalty splits, where applicable
- Start the publishing process
The owner role cannot be assigned to another collaborator.
Author
The Author role is usually for co-authors or contributors who actively help write or develop the book.
Authors can:
- View and edit the manuscript
- Add, edit, and organize chapters or sections
- Use formatting and manuscript settings
- View, add, reply to, resolve, and delete comments
- Review previous versions, where available
- Contribute directly to the book content
This role is useful for collaborators who share responsibility for the manuscript.
Editor
The Editor role is usually for people who help review, polish, or improve the manuscript.
Editors can:
- View and edit the manuscript
- Make formatting changes, where available
- View, add, reply to, resolve, and delete comments
- Suggest or make improvements to the text
- Help prepare the manuscript for publication
This role is useful for editors, proofreaders, or collaborators who need to work directly on the content.
Viewer
The Viewer role is for collaborators who need to read the manuscript and leave feedback without editing the text.
Viewers can:
- View the manuscript
- Add comments
- Reply to comments, where available
Viewers cannot edit the manuscript, change formatting, manage versions, or remove comments created by others.
This role is useful for beta readers, early reviewers, or people giving feedback before publication.
Quick permissions overview
Permission | Owner | Author | Editor | Viewer |
|---|---|---|---|---|
View manuscript | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes |
Edit manuscript | Yes | Yes | Yes | No |
Add or organize chapters | Yes | Yes | Yes | No |
Use formatting settings | Yes | Yes | Yes | No |
Add comments | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes |
Resolve/delete comments | Yes | Yes | Yes | No |
Review version history | Yes | Yes | Yes | No |
Restore previous versions | Yes | No | No | No |
Invite collaborators | Yes | No | No | No |
Change or remove collaborators | Yes | No | No | No |
Manage royalty splits | Yes | No | No | No |
Start publishing process | Yes | No | No | No |
Important note
Some permissions may depend on the current setup of the book, the collaborator’s role, and the features available in the editor.
If you are not sure which role to choose, use the lowest level of access needed for that person’s task.
Related articles
- How do I invite collaborators to my book?
- How do I remove or manage collaborators?
- How do I edit, comment, and collaborate in real time?
- How do I manage changes and version history?
- How do royalty splits work with collaborators?
Updated on: 22/05/2026
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