Installation

You can install with:

pip install zenmarked

If you use uv, you can install it with:

uv tool install zenmarked

Or skip installation and just use it through uvx like so: uvx zenmarked

Usage

zenmarked [FILE.md] [options]

Argument	Description
`FILE.md`	Optional. File to open on start (created if it doesn't exist). Its directory becomes the working directory.

Option	Description
`--port PORT`	Port to listen on (default: auto-assign)
`--image-dir PATH`	Directory for uploaded images (default: `images/` inside working dir)
`--no-autosave`	Disable auto-save (use Ctrl+S only)
`--theme THEME`	Color theme: `light` or `dark` (default: `dark`)
`--mode MODE`	View mode: `split`, `edit`, or `preview` (default: `split`)
`--no-browser`	Don't auto-open browser on start

Examples

# Open CWD — sidebar shows all .md files, create/edit freely
zenmarked
# Open a specific file
zenmarked notes.md
# Light theme, custom port
zenmarked journal.md --theme light --port 8080
# Open in preview-only mode (editor hidden)
zenmarked draft.md --mode preview
# Custom image directory, no autosave
zenmarked docs/readme.md --image-dir docs/assets/imgs --no-autosave

Screenshots

Dark mode

Features

3-column layout: sidebar (file list + image gallery) + editor + live preview
View modes: split (editor + preview), edit (editor only), or preview (preview only) — toggle via the segmented control in the sidebar or cycle with Ctrl+\
Markdown syntax highlight via CodeMirror
Live preview via marked.js, updates as you type
Auto-save enabled by default, Ctrl+S to save manually at any time
Image support: drag-and-drop, click drop zone, or paste from clipboard
Image insertion modal: alt text, caption, alignment, custom width
Click image in preview to edit its properties
Rename image right-click image in the gallery to rename it
- references are updated automatically across all .md files in the working dir
Smart URL paste: select text in editor, paste a URL → auto-creates a markdown link
Light / Dark themes

Image paths

Images are stored in ./images/ (relative to the working directory) by default, and inserted into markdown as ./images/filename.png.

The image target directory can be overriden through option --image-dir PATH

Keyboard shortcuts

Shortcut	Action
`Ctrl+S`	Save current file
`Alt+N`	Create new file
`Ctrl+\`	Cycle view mode (split → edit → preview)
`Escape`	Close modals
`Ctrl+B`	Bold
`Ctrl+I`	Italic
`Ctrl+E`	Inline code
`Ctrl+K`	Insert link
`Ctrl+Shift+7`	Ordered list
`Ctrl+Shift+8`	Unordered list
`Ctrl+Shift+.`	Blockquote