vim-singlechar

A simple Vim plugin that lets you insert single characters (including Unicode) without leaving normal mode.

Overview

vim-singlechar allows you to quickly insert characters while staying in normal mode.

Features

Insert characters (supports Unicode) at or after the cursor position
Support for counts to insert a character multiple times
Stay in normal mode for efficient editing
Minimal workflow interruption
Works with Vim 9+
Supports vim-repeat for . repeat functionality

Installation

Manual installation

cd /tmp
git clone https://github.com/lohhiiccc/vim-singlechar.git
mkdir -p ~/.vim/pack/plugins/start/
cp -r vim-singlechar ~/.vim/pack/plugins/start/
cd -

Optional: Install vim-repeat

For seamless repeat (.) support, install vim-repeat:

mkdir -p ~/.vim/pack/tpope/start
cd ~/.vim/pack/tpope/start
git clone https://tpope.io/vim/repeat.git

Usage

By default, the plugin provides four mappings:

[optional param] (param)

[count]<Leader>i(char) - Insert a character at the cursor position
[count]<Leader>a(char) - Insert a character after the cursor position
[count]<Leader>I(char) - Insert a character at the beginning of the line
[count]<Leader>A(char) - Insert a character at the end of the line

After pressing the mapping, you'll see a prompt asking for the character to insert. Press any character and it will be inserted without entering insert mode.

With count

You can use a count before the mapping to insert the character multiple times:

3<Leader>i, will insert three commas at the cursor position
5<Leader>a. will insert five periods after the cursor position

Repeat last insert with `.`

If vim-repeat is installed, you can repeat the last character insertion with . in normal mode.

Configuration

You can customize the plugin by setting these variables in your vimrc:

" Change the mappings (before loading the plugin)
let g:singlechar_map_insert_at    = '<Leader>i'   " Default
let g:singlechar_map_insert_after = '<Leader>a'   " Default
let g:singlechar_map_insert_begin = '<Leader>I'   " Default
let g:singlechar_map_insert_end   = '<Leader>A'   " Default

" Set the static cursor (no cursor move during singlechar actions)
let g:singlechar_static_cursor = 1 " Deafault = 0

" Change the prompt message
let g:singlechar_prompt = 'Press the character to insert - Press Esc to cancel...'  " Default

" Disable default mappings (if you want to create your own)
let g:singlechar_no_mappings = 1

" Show warning if more than one character is entered
let g:singlechar_keylen_warning = 1 " Default

" Customize the warning message
let g:singlechar_warning_message = 'Only the first character will be taken: {char}' " Default

Commands

The plugin provides these commands: