charmbracelet/gum · error

failed to run write

Error message

failed to run write: %w

What it means

gum write could not run its Bubble Tea program (the interactive textarea). The underlying tea error is wrapped with %w. Without the TUI, the text input cannot be collected, so the command aborts.

Solutions

1. Run gum write in an interactive terminal
2. Verify the calling context isn't cancelled before the program runs
3. Use `gum write --placeholder ...` only in TTY-capable environments; fall back to plain read for non-TTY
4. Inspect the wrapped %w cause to identify the specific tea failure

Example fix

// before
nohup ./script-using-gum-write.sh &   # no TTY → fails
// after
if [ -t 0 ]; then text=$(gum write); else read -r text; fi

[ -t 0 ] && [ -t 2 ] || { echo 'gum write requires an interactive terminal'; exit 1; }

if ! text=$(gum write 2>/dev/null); then
  echo 'write cancelled or TUI failed' >&2
  exit 1
fi

When it happens

Trigger: `p.Run()` on the tea program returns an error: no TTY, context cancelled before/during run, output initialization to os.Stderr fails, or terminal capability issues.

Common situations: Running `gum write` in CI or non-interactive scripts, cancelling via Ctrl-C combined with context propagation, detached sessions (cron, nohup) with no terminal attached.

Related errors

• failed to start tea program
• unable to start program
• failed to get selection
• unable to run action
• unable to run filter

AI-assisted analysis of charmbracelet/gum@4d089f9550 (2026-08-31). Data as JSON: /api/errors/af533e136bae8c58. Report an issue: GitHub.

Appendix: source

Thrown at write/command.go:79

		help:        help.New(),
		showHelp:    o.ShowHelp,
		keymap:      defaultKeymap(),
		padding:     []int{top, right, bottom, left},
	}

	m.textarea.KeyMap.InsertNewline = m.keymap.InsertNewline

	ctx, cancel := timeout.Context(o.Timeout)
	defer cancel()

	p := tea.NewProgram(
		m,
		tea.WithOutput(os.Stderr),
		tea.WithContext(ctx),
	)
	tm, err := p.Run()
	if err != nil {
		return fmt.Errorf("failed to run write: %w", err)
	}
	m = tm.(model)
	if !m.submitted {
		return errors.New("not submitted")
	}
	fmt.Println(m.textarea.Value())
	return nil
}

View on GitHub (pinned to 4d089f9550)