Fixation Reader adds bold word starts to your reading view

Name: Fixation Reader
Author: theluckystrike

Emphasize word starts without changing note text.

Install in Obsidian

Directory page Source on GitHub

MIT · no telemetry · core features free

A reading session shows emphasized word starts in paragraphs, headings and a list. — Open larger

version: 1.1.0
released: 2026-10-21
downloads: 29
review: Passed
health: Excellent
license: MIT
listed for: Desktop, Mobile
obsidian: 1.13.4 or later

Reported app checks run on macOS; mobile devices, screen readers and large-vault performance were not tested.

Directory facts fetched 2026-10-23 07:28 UTC from community.obsidian.md/users/theluckystrike.

About Fixation Reader

You want to try bold word starts in long Markdown notes while keeping their source text as written.

Fixation Reader emphasizes the first letters of words in Reading view. Choose the strength and minimum word length, then toggle the effect to compare a familiar paragraph. The display code leaves your Markdown source unchanged.

Reading view controls and a per-note switch are free. Pro adds Live Preview, folder and tag exclusions, and custom styling.

A sample reading session with word starts on, off, then on again

Free features

Word starts in Reading view

At the default strength of 0.5, Reading emphasizes its first four letters and fast its first two. Set strength from 0.2 to 0.7 and minimum length from 1 to 30. Latin, Cyrillic and Greek words follow this rule.

Protected text

Code, math and existing bold text keep their appearance. Unsupported scripts and words mixing supported and unsupported scripts stay unchanged. Links keep their destinations, and the effect adds no Markdown markers.

Word starts in prose appear beside unchanged code, math and existing bold text. — Open larger

A note switch and a toggle command

Add the Boolean property fixation: false to keep a note plain. The text value false doesn't disable it. Run Turn fixation on or off to change the saved vault setting.

A note with its fixation checkbox off appears without the reading effect. — Open larger

Reading view, strength, minimum length and note controls are free; Live Preview, folder and tag rules, and custom styles need Pro.

Pro features

Pro costs $5 a month or $15 one time through GitHub Sponsors. One sponsorship turns on Pro in every plugin that has it.

Live Preview Pro

Turn on Enable in Live Preview to show word starts while editing. Source mode stays plain, as do rendered callouts and tables in Live Preview. Signing out removes the Pro editor decorations.

A note in Live Preview shows emphasized word starts while editing. — Open larger

Folder and tag rules Pro

Exclude a folder and its subfolders, or exclude exact tag names. Folder matching is case sensitive; tag matching ignores case. A tag rule for skip doesn't exclude skip/child.

An archive note stays plain because a Pro folder rule excludes it. — Open larger

Custom style Pro

Choose a word start weight from 400 to 900 and an optional six-digit hex color. Set ending opacity from 0.3 to 1 to dim the remaining letters. Your font determines which weights it can display.

A sample note uses blue word starts and dimmed word endings. — Open larger

See how Pro works

Set up Fixation Reader

needs

Obsidian 1.13.4 or later

steps

Install Fixation Reader from Community plugins and enable it.
Open a Markdown note in Reading view; the effect starts enabled.
Run Turn fixation on or off and compare the paragraph.
Adjust Fixation strength and Minimum word length in the plugin settings.

If the app can't find a new plugin yet, try again later. Obsidian says a plugin that passes the review shows in the app within 24 hours.

How to show bold word starts in Obsidian

Known limits of Fixation Reader

Word start emphasis supports Latin, Cyrillic and Greek letters; other scripts and mixed unsupported words stay unchanged.
Code, math and existing bold text retain their appearance.
A word split across separate rendered text nodes can receive separate emphasized starts.
PDF, canvas and custom rendered embeds or controls are outside the intended scope.
Source mode stays plain, and rendered callouts and tables in Live Preview also stay plain.
The note switch needs Boolean fixation: false; a text value of false does not disable the effect.
Pro tag exclusions match exact tag names, so excluding skip does not exclude skip/child.
Your font determines which custom word start weights it can display.
The plugin makes no claim about reading speed, comprehension or health.
Mobile devices, screen readers, other desktop operating systems, third-party renderers and large-vault performance were not tested.
Live payment and real GitHub sign-in were not tested; Pro checks used a local sponsor response.
Live Preview leaves words beyond the parsed Markdown syntax tree unmarked and checks again when the editor view updates.

Questions about Fixation Reader

Does this make reading faster?

The plugin makes no claim about reading speed, comprehension or health. Try the display on a familiar paragraph and use the toggle to compare it yourself.

Which languages get word start emphasis?

The rule supports Latin, Cyrillic and Greek letters, including accents. Other scripts stay unchanged, as do words that mix supported and unsupported scripts.

Can I keep just one note plain?

Yes, set its fixation property to Boolean false. A quoted text value of false doesn't count as that switch.

What happens to a word split by formatting?

A word split across separate rendered text nodes can get separate emphasized starts. Custom rendered embeds, PDF text and canvas text are outside the intended scope.

Why can some Live Preview text stay plain?

The editor leaves words unmarked until its Markdown parser reaches them. It checks again when the editor view updates. Source mode and rendered callouts and tables also stay plain.

Network use

Only GitHub sign-in and sponsorship checks contact github.com and api.github.com, after you select Sign in with GitHub. Sign-in sends a public client ID, scope and device code; sponsorship queries send your token and request your tier and total payment. Checks run after sign-in, on Refresh or cache expiry, without note text, file names or other vault data.

Read the full network disclosure