Skeleton Works

Quiet infrastructure for small, intentional projects, for people who want to own what they make.

Managed tools for small projects that don’t need to scale loudly or endlessly. No ads. No tracking. No pressure to perform.

Skeleton Works is a managed SaaS platform for people who want to build and run small projects without surrendering them to ad-driven platforms, growth metrics, or venture logic.

It exists for creators, tinkerers, and tiny teams who value craft over clicks—and who want their tools to stay out of the way once they’re working.

What Skeleton Works Is

Skeleton Works provides a calm, stable home for projects that don’t need to scale endlessly or perform constantly.

It gives you:

  • Managed databases and storage
  • Publishing and email tools you own
  • Automation without growth pressure
  • Secure handling of secrets and credentials

All maintained quietly, with boring reliability and human priorities.

No ads.
No tracking.
No algorithmic incentives.
No nickle-and-dime upsells.

What It’s For

Skeleton Works is well-suited for:

  • Blogs, newsletters, and podcasts
  • Small creative projects
  • Indie software and side projects
  • Personal or community tools
  • Values-driven organizations and collectives

You don’t need to publish every week.
You don’t need to “grow an audience.”
You don’t need to optimize engagement.

You just need something that works—and stays yours.

What’s Included (MVP 1.0)

Skeleton Works includes a curated set of tools chosen for durability, ownership, and calm operation:

  • WordPress – flexible publishing and sites
  • Listmonk – self-hosted mailing lists and newsletters
  • Node-RED & n8n – automation and workflow glue
  • Vaultwarden – password and secret management
  • Appsmith – low-code internal dashboards for technically curious users
  • MariaDB, PostgreSQL, MongoDB – managed databases
  • MinIO – object storage for files and backups

All services are managed for you.
You use what you need. You ignore the rest.

What It Is Not

Skeleton Works is not:

  • A growth platform
  • A marketing engine
  • A no-code miracle
  • A replacement for every Big Tech service overnight

You can keep using Gmail.
You can bring your own domain.
You can leave whenever you want.

Skeleton Works does not trap you—it supports you.

Pricing

$49/month

  • One calm, managed platform
  • No tiers, no upsells
  • $5/month from this is donated to public broadcasting

Your subscription quietly supports independent media instead of ad networks and Big Tech.

Our Philosophy

Skeleton Works is built on a few simple ideas:

  • Not everything needs to scale
  • Ownership matters
  • Boring technology is good technology
  • Calm systems last longer than loud ones

Skeleton Works doesn’t help you win the internet.
It helps you keep what you make.

Getting Started

Skeleton Works is currently in early stages.

If this approach resonates with you—if you’re building something small, thoughtful, and your own—you’re in the right place.