Turn your Zotero library into a citation map
Your Zotero library grows one saved paper at a time, but Zotero itself never shows you how those papers actually relate to each other. OrbLit connects to your library and builds that picture — a citation network, thematic clusters, and related papers you haven't collected yet.
OrbLit's citation network map — filled nodes are papers already in your collection, outlined nodes are discovery papers found around it.
The problem: a library that keeps growing, but stays flat
A folder full of PDFs and a flat list of references doesn't tell you which papers are foundational, which cite each other, or where the gaps in your reading are. That structure exists — Zotero just doesn't surface it.
The solution: a map built directly from your collection
OrbLit reads your Zotero library (or a single collection within it) and turns it into an interactive citation network: which papers reference which, clustered by theme, with related papers OpenAlex knows about that aren't in your library yet — all without leaving your existing Zotero workflow.
How it works
- 1Connect your Zotero library — takes one API key, no software to install.
- 2OrbLit builds a citation network from your collection via OpenAlex.
- 3Explore thematic clusters and papers related to your collection that you haven't collected yet.
- 4Add anything useful straight back to Zotero, PDF included — no manual export/import round-trip.