Building Pinery with Heberti Almeida

Summary

From a stormy Brazilian farm to the Mac App Store. Former Square engineer Heberti Almeida spent seven years turning a side project into Pinery, a focused Markdown writing and self-publishing app for Mac. We cover privacy-first on-device AI, clean ePub and PDF export, subscription pricing that sustains indie software, and how tractor time can sharpen product thinking.

Who this is for

• Indie hackers
• Technical founders
• Author-creators
• Anyone seeking a calm, private, production-grade writing workflow

Product snapshot

• Pinery: Markdown editor for writing, designing, and exporting books
• Exports: ePub 3, clean digital PDF, static website
• Focus: Distraction-free writing, live preview, customizable typography and design
• Privacy: File-based, offline friendly, iCloud optional, exploring on-device AI proofreading
• Model: Mac App Store with monthly and annual subscriptions
• Early traction: ~600 users and 40 subscribers within the first month

Key takeaways

• A single-purpose tool can beat feature bloat when the output quality is excellent
• Privacy by design creates trust and a durable product moat
• Product Hunt and creator newsletters can drive meaningful early traction without paid ads
• Subscription pricing is the most reliable way to sustain indie software and ship updates
• Alternating deep work with physical work can accelerate problem solving and reduce stress

Frameworks discussed

1) Privacy-First Authoring

1. Keep manuscripts local as plain text Markdown
2. Offer optional cloud sync controlled by the user
3. Add on-device AI for proofreading and tone adjustments
4. Never transmit manuscript text to third-party LLMs by default

2) Lean Publishing Loop

1. Write in focus mode
2. Live preview for structure and flow
3. Design pass with typographic controls
4. Export to ePub or PDF
5. Ship and iterate on reader feedback

3) Calm Tool Product Strategy

1. Decide the core outcome
2. Remove non-essential features
3. Obsess over export fidelity
4. Embrace opinionated defaults
5. Document power features without cluttering the UI

4) Indie Pricing Rationale

1. Map pricing to a single successful outcome
2. Favor annual plans with a fair monthly option
3. Use App Store subscriptions for sustainable updates
4. Expect some pushback and stay the course

Links and resources

• Pinery website
• Pinery on the Mac App Store
• Pinery on Product Hunt
• Heberti on X
• AI for Founders
• Ryan Estes