Macros

Macros provide ways to do additional functionality ranging from changing the style of text to dynamically reacting to mouse events. Often, Story Formats are chosen based on what macros they provide and how they can be used together.

Twine 1 and SugarCube

In Twine 1, macros were written with two less-than (<<) and two-greater-than signs (>>) around the keyword. (SugarCube, as a successor of this form, follows the same syntax.)

Example:

<<display “Another Passage”>>

Harlowe

Introduced in Twine 2, the Harlowe story format uses a different syntax for macros. They are wrapped in a single open, "(", and close parenthesis, ")", and use brackets, "[]", to indicate which text or sections are associated or acted upon by the macro.

Example:

(font: “Arial”)[This text will be in Arial.]

Snowman

Snowman does not provide macros. Instead, it introduces a new set of JavaScript functions and expects the author to write their own code and macro-like functionality.