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Local source Novels ​

If you like to download and organize your novels, then you want to know how to manage your own series in Tsundoku. This explains how to import local novels, including EPUB volumes, and keep chapters in the expected order.

WARNING

This page explores some advanced features.

Base Folder ​

Set your local novels base folder in the app and place one folder per novel:

text
LocalNovels/
  My Novel Title/
    ...chapter files or folders...

My Novel Title becomes the novel title shown in the app.

Supported Chapter Formats ​

The local novel source accepts these chapter formats:

  • Plain text: .txt, .text
  • HTML: .html, .htm, .xhtml
  • EPUB: .epub
  • ZIP archives: .zip, .cbz
  • RAR archives: .rar, .cbr
  • Directories containing text/html files

Hidden files/folders (starting with .) are ignored.

Import Patterns ​

1) One chapter per file ​

Use multiple files directly inside the novel folder:

text
LocalNovels/
  My Novel Title/
    001 - Prologue.txt
    002 - Chapter 1.txt
    003 - Chapter 2.html

Appearance in chapter list:

  • One file = one chapter row.
  • Chapter title comes from filename (without extension).
  • Chapter number is parsed from filename when possible.

2) One chapter per folder ​

Use chapter folders that contain text/html pages:

text
LocalNovels/
  My Novel Title/
    001 - Chapter 1/
      01.xhtml
      02.xhtml
    002 - Chapter 2/
      page1.html
      page2.html

Files inside each folder are read in filename order.

Appearance in chapter list:

  • One folder = one chapter row (not one row per file inside).
  • The chapter title is the folder name.
  • File contents inside the folder are concatenated in filename order into one reader page text stream.

3) One chapter per archive ​

Use zip/rar containers with text/html files:

text
LocalNovels/
  My Novel Title/
    001 - Chapter 1.zip
    002 - Chapter 2.cbz

Text/html entries inside archives are read in filename order.

Appearance in chapter list:

  • One archive = one chapter row.
  • Archive entries are concatenated in filename order when opened.

4) EPUB as single chapter ​

A single-chapter EPUB is imported as one chapter:

text
LocalNovels/
  My Novel Title/
    001 - Side Story.epub

Appearance in chapter list:

  • One EPUB file = one chapter row.
  • Chapter title defaults to EPUB filename (or metadata when available).

5) EPUB with internal TOC chapters (multi-chapter EPUB) ​

If an EPUB has multiple TOC entries, each TOC entry becomes a separate chapter.

text
LocalNovels/
  My Novel Title/
    Volume 01.epub

The app reads each TOC chapter by its internal reference.

Appearance in chapter list:

  • One TOC entry = one chapter row.
  • Titles come from TOC labels.
  • Chapter numbers are generated as sequential values to preserve global reading order.
  • When multiple EPUB volume files exist, chapter titles are prefixed with the EPUB filename for context.

Multi-Volume EPUB Ordering ​

For multi-volume novels where each volume is an EPUB with multiple TOC chapters:

  • Volume file order is determined by filename natural order.
  • TOC chapter order is kept within each volume.
  • TOC chapters are assigned continuous chapter numbers (1, 2, 3...) in file order.
  • Final chapter list is ordered by chapter number, then by chapter title.

Recommended naming:

text
Volume 01.epub
Volume 02.epub
Volume 03.epub

or

text
001 - Volume 1.epub
002 - Volume 2.epub
003 - Volume 3.epub

Avoid unnumbered names like only Part A.epub, Part B.epub unless lexical order is intended.

Metadata Notes ​

  • EPUB metadata can populate chapter/novel fields.
  • Cover image may be extracted from EPUB (embedded or external URL).
  • The last EPUB's cover will be used as cover if none exists
  • If metadata is missing, filename-based values are used.

Troubleshooting ​

  • Wrong order: add zero-padded numbers (001, 002, 003) to filenames.

Mixed Content Rules ​

  • Mixed files in the same novel folder are supported: .epub, .txt/.html, archives, and chapter folders can coexist.
  • Ordering is still based on top-level filename natural order.
  • EPUB files inside a chapter folder are not treated as EPUB chapters; folder mode reads only text/html files inside that folder.