Novelist
by Ashley · Uncategorized
Also makes 2 other plugins · 4.1K+ installs across the portfolio →
Easily organize and display your portfolio of books.
Try it live opens a temporary test site in your browser, which can take about 20 seconds to load. Plugins that rely on outside services or a full server may not work completely there.
Health
A 88/100
Few reviews
Active installs
1K+
≈1.9K estimated
Momentum
+3%
downloads vs prior 30d
Biggest opportunity: Swap “authors” for “retail”. “authors” isn't earning its slot: you're not in the first 24 results for its own search. “retail” sits at #8 untagged, close enough for a declared tag to move it up. All five slots are taken, so one has to go.
88 health vs 58 average across 25,737 Uncategorized plugins
Install conversion
How it's measured →2.9%
of downloads still active
At least 1K of 34.2K lifetime downloads are still running, above its category: the median Uncategorized plugin keeps 0.6%, across 17,770 plugins.
Downloads count every update, not just first installs, so older and more frequently released plugins read lower. Compare against other Uncategorized plugins, not across the directory. wp.org reports active installs as the bottom of a band, so the real rate is this or higher.
This plugin shipped 1 release in the last 12 months, and every existing install that updated counted as another download. wp.org publishes no split between first installs and updates, so we show the raw rate rather than guess at one.
Details
Directory ranking optimization
How it's scored →How well this listing is tuned to rank in WordPress.org search, on the factors an owner controls. Not popularity, optimization.
Excellent listing optimization
Most to gain: Rating quality
Updated 63 days ago
Tested up to WordPress 7.1.4, the current branch or newer
5.0★ over 9 reviews, smoothed to 4.24★ and held back under 25 reviews
5 of 5 tags set · short description in place
To rank higher: Too few reviews to rank on quality — nudge happy users to leave one.
Get the full rank-higher report →Search visibility
How it's tracked →Directory searches this plugin turns up in, and which way each one is moving. WordPress.org publishes no history of search positions, so this starts the day we first tracked a keyword and never backfills.
42
Momentum
Losing ground
-0.4
Velocity
places per keyword, 28d
31%
Breadth
of keywords climbing, 28d
+0.1
Acceleration
recent half vs earlier
wp.org is where the directory puts the plugin for that search. On merit is where it would sit if results were ranked on rating, support and updates, without the install boost. The last column is how far the wp.org position moved, from our first reading in the last 90 days to the latest.
| Keyword | wp.org | On merit | wp.org move, 90 days |
|---|---|---|---|
| goodreads your tag | #1 | #3 | up 1 |
| asin | #3 | #3 | 0 |
| retail | #8 | #14 | down 1 |
| series | #24 | #22 | down 3 |
| authors your tag | Not in the top 24 | ||
| books your tag | Not in the top 24 | ||
| publishing your tag | Not in the top 24 | ||
| writing your tag | Not in the top 24 | ||
15 searches this plugin appeared in over the last 90 days, 4 listed. 11 left out as unrelated or noise (years, numbers, stray words). 4 of its tags aren't in the top 24 for their own search.
What to do about it
- Swap “authors” for “retail”. “authors” isn't earning its slot: you're not in the first 24 results for its own search. “retail” sits at #8 untagged, close enough for a declared tag to move it up. All five slots are taken, so one has to go.
Daily downloads
Since 5 Oct 2022 · 1,488 days · wp.org + Plugin Pulse archive
30-day downloads
Rolling 30-day volume · peak 1.5K · peaks are release surges
Directory rank vs rivals
wp.org popularity rank over time · higher is better · when a rival's line climbs above yours, they've overtaken you
Health trend
Composite health score, snapshotted daily
Update activity
How busy the existing users are, measured as downloads in the last 30 days for every 1,000 active sites. A spike means a new release everyone's pulling; a long, slow decline means an aging user base that updates less.
Release cadence
Occasionally updatedHow often this plugin actually ships. A steady rhythm is the maintenance signal a single "last updated" date can't show.
1
releases in the last 12 months
2mo ago
latest release · v1.4.0 · 29 Aug 2026
25
tagged releases on record
Recent releases
What its installed base runs
via wordpress.orgShare of active installs on each version of this plugin. Green is the current release; a big slice on older versions is a user base that has stopped updating.
Estimated active installs
The public count shows “1K+”. Our estimate pins where the real number sits.
Crossed into this band 7.2 years ago; a band this size takes about a year or more to cross, which places it about 90% of the way through.
Install history since 4 Jan 2018
Recent reviews
All reviews on wp.org ↗- ★★★★★ chriscoxwrites3.4y ago
I love this plugin. As an author, I’ve tried so many of them to try to add my books easily to my website. This one is ‘the one’. simple to use and easy to keep updated!
Read on wp.org ↗ - ★★★★★ Tahiel6.5y ago
Amazing plugin! It was the first I used of it’s kind and it was a real help for easily creating my author website. Support is super fast too!
Read on wp.org ↗ - ★★★★★ Nate Hoffelder8.1y ago
I don’t know why more people aren’t using it!
Read on wp.org ↗ - ★★★★★ vitaut898.7y ago
Good plugin, thank
Read on wp.org ↗ - ★★★★★ bunnylumpkins9.6y ago
The support for this theme is fantastic, a great building block for creating book centered sites.
Read on wp.org ↗ - ★★★★★ listronosz9.6y ago
Novelist is a fantastic plugin. I’m using it on my page and I love it. And what is even more important – the support is really great. I received an answer after few minutes!
Read on wp.org ↗ - ★★★★★ Anonymous9.7y ago
The plugin is just what I need, and the support has been great so far, good and quick replies!
Read on wp.org ↗ - ★★★★★ artofpilotage9.8y ago
The plugin works very nicely. Support is quick and very effective in my case.
Read on wp.org ↗
Security history
via Wordfence IntelligenceAll 3 disclosed vulnerabilities are patched in the current version (1.4.0). Sites still on an older version should update.
- Patched Medium · 4.4 Novelist <= 1.2.3 - Authenticated (Administrator+) Stored Cross-Site Scripting ↗2025-03-27 CVE-2025-30847 Improper Neutralization of Input During Web Page Generation Affects <= 1.2.3 Patched in 1.2.4
- Patched Medium · 4.4 Novelist <= 1.2.0 - Authenticated (Administrator+) Stored Cross-Site Scripting via Book Information Fields ↗2023-05-22 CVE-2023-32958 Improper Neutralization of Input During Web Page Generation Affects <= 1.2.0 Patched in 1.2.1
Vulnerability records provided by Wordfence Intelligence. Copyright 2012-2026 Defiant Inc. License and terms.
CVE records: Copyright 1999-2026 The MITRE Corporation. CVE terms of use.
Behavioral tests
via WP HiveAutomated install-time checks, tested on PHP 8.1.12 · WP 6.8.2
Languages
via translate.wordpress.orgTranslated into 3 languages, 0 at 90% or more · development strings
AI assistants
How it's measured →Whether ChatGPT and Claude name this plugin when asked the category question, and whether the readme gives them something to quote.
Not measured yet for this plugin’s topics. Its tracked searches are not among the measured topics. See the topics measured so far.
Readme readiness
4 of 8 pass · checked 26 Oct 2026Can an assistant quote this readme? Eight deterministic checks over the wp.org listing, no model involved.
- ✓ Says what it does "Easily organize and display your portfolio of books."
- ✓ Has a FAQ 9 questions in the FAQ.
- ✓ FAQ asks real questions 9 of 9 read like questions a user would type.
- ! Names who it is for Never says who the plugin is for or what they use it for.
- ! Names what it works with Names no plugin, service or platform it works with.
- ! Headings and lists 0 headings and 2 lists; assistants quote headed sections and bullet lists, not paragraphs.
- ! Enough to quote 644 characters of description; under 1,000 there is little to quote.
- ✓ Tags match the text 3 of 5 tags appear in the text; "publishing", "writing" do not.
Growth timeline
Install-tier crossings we have observed, and how long each tier took to outgrow
- 2019-08-24 800+ → 1K+ up after 315 days in tier
- 2018-10-13 700+ → 800+ up after 77 days in tier
- 2018-07-28 600+ → 700+ up after 91 days in tier
- 2018-04-28 500+ → 600+ up
Competes with
The plugins that solve the same job, ranked by shared tags then reach, closest match first. The letter on the right is each plugin's health grade (A best, F worst).
-
Osom Author Pro 1K+ installs · 4.4★ · 2 shared tags A -
Just Writing Statistics 1K+ installs · 4.2★ · 2 shared tags C -
Web3Press – Migrating to 3ook.com Decentralized Bookstore 300+ installs · 4.4★ · 2 shared tags B -
Word Counter 10+ installs · 3.6★ · 2 shared tags - P Publishing Conditions 10+ installs · 3.6★ · 2 shared tags
-
BookPod Author Tools — installs · 3.6★ · 2 shared tags
Embed this report card
Drop a live Pulse card for Novelist into a readme, a review or a deck. It updates itself.
<iframe src="https://plugins.wpmayor.com/embed/novelist" width="480" height="300" style="border:0" loading="lazy" title="Novelist — Plugin Pulse"></iframe> Novelist: 1K+ active installs, 5.0★ (9 reviews). Plugin Pulse (WP Mayor), as of 2026-10-31. https://plugins.wpmayor.com/plugin/novelist
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