FiftyThree, the developers behind the popular drawing app Paper, today announced it’s releasing an SDK that will let all developers take advantage of its Pencil stylus for iOS devices. First launched last year alongside an update to Paper, Pencil is a $60 Bluetooth stylus for the drawing app that aims to offer a realistic pencil-to-paper drawing experience.

The SDK will allow for a smooth experience with the Pencil stylus in other apps and that also means in some cases FiftyThree will be working to improve the apps of its direct competitors while hopefully selling its stylus as a platform in the process. Devs will get access to palm rejection, erase, easy pairing, and all the pencil and touch classifiers the company uses in the Paper app. Support for surface pressure is also arriving with iOS 8:

The SDK is available now to developers and works with apps running on an iPad 3+, iPad mini, iPhone 4S+, and iOS 7 and up. The first launch partners include other popular drawing apps that could be considered direct competitors to FiftyThree and its Paper app. The initial partners include Procreate, Noteshelf, and Squiggle:

Surface Pressure Get input from Pencil’s unique tip shape with iOS8. Make decisions based on whether Pencil is touching the screen using the broad edge, or just the tip. Vary brush width; highlight vs underline; cast more powerful spells. (Coming with iOS8)

You can download the SDK and get more info here.

With the FiftyThree SDK, developers worldwide can now tap into Pencil’s industry­leading technologies and find support from a team that values true partnerships. Developers are already discovering new ways of using Pencil to bring the power of natural creativity to their apps, from professional drawing to making music, starting with our partners Procreate, Noteshelf, and Squiggle