diff --git a/src/project/types/manuscript/manuscript-render.ts b/src/project/types/manuscript/manuscript-render.ts
index 7fd9cbf4d8..2f3318d52d 100644
--- a/src/project/types/manuscript/manuscript-render.ts
+++ b/src/project/types/manuscript/manuscript-render.ts
@@ -45,6 +45,7 @@ import { kNotebookViewStyle, kOutputFile } from "../../../config/constants.ts";
 import { dirAndStem } from "../../../core/path.ts";
 import { basename } from "../../../vendor/deno.land/std@0.185.0/path/win32.ts";
 import { readBaseInputIndex } from "../../project-index.ts";
+import { isQmdFile } from "../../../execute/qmd.ts";
 
 interface ManuscriptCompletion {
   completion: PandocRenderCompletion;
@@ -97,67 +98,74 @@ export const manuscriptRenderer = (
         completion: await renderPandoc(resolvedExecutedFile, true),
         cleanup: !isArticle,
       }];
-    } else if (isHtmlOutput(executedFile.context.format.pandoc, true)) {
+    } else if (
+      isHtmlOutput(executedFile.context.format.pandoc, true)
+    ) {
       const result = [];
+      if (!isQmdFile(input)) {
+        // Use the executed file to render the output ipynb
+        const notebook = nbContext.get(input, context);
+        let downloadHref;
+        if (!notebook || !notebook[kRenderedIPynb]) {
+          progressMessage("Rendering output notebook");
+          const ipynbExecutedFile = nbContext.resolve(
+            input,
+            kRenderedIPynb,
+            executedFile,
+          );
+          const [_dir, stem] = dirAndStem(input);
+          downloadHref = `${stem}.out.ipynb`;
+          result.push({
+            completion: await renderPandoc(ipynbExecutedFile, true),
+            cleanup: !isArticle,
+          });
+        }
+        progressMessage("Rendering HTML preview");
 
-      // Use the executed file to render the output ipynb
-      const notebook = nbContext.get(input, context);
-      let downloadHref;
-      if (!notebook || !notebook[kRenderedIPynb]) {
-        progressMessage("Rendering output notebook");
-        const ipynbExecutedFile = nbContext.resolve(
+        // Find the title of this notebook
+        let title;
+        const nbDescriptor = notebookDescriptor(
           input,
-          kRenderedIPynb,
-          executedFile,
+          manuscriptConfig,
+          context,
         );
-        const [_dir, stem] = dirAndStem(input);
-        downloadHref = `${stem}.out.ipynb`;
-        result.push({
-          completion: await renderPandoc(ipynbExecutedFile, true),
-          cleanup: !isArticle,
-        });
-      }
-      progressMessage("Rendering HTML preview");
-
-      // Find the title of this notebook
-      let title;
-      const nbDescriptor = notebookDescriptor(input, manuscriptConfig, context);
-      if (nbDescriptor) {
-        title = nbDescriptor.title;
-        downloadHref = nbDescriptor["download-url"];
-      }
+        if (nbDescriptor) {
+          title = nbDescriptor.title;
+          downloadHref = nbDescriptor["download-url"];
+        }
 
-      if (!title) {
-        const inputIndex = await readBaseInputIndex(input, context);
-        if (inputIndex) {
-          title = inputIndex.title;
+        if (!title) {
+          const inputIndex = await readBaseInputIndex(input, context);
+          if (inputIndex) {
+            title = inputIndex.title;
+          }
         }
-      }
 
-      // Compute the back href
-      const dirOffset = relative(dirname(input), context.dir);
-      const index = join(dirOffset, "index.html");
+        // Compute the back href
+        const dirOffset = relative(dirname(input), context.dir);
+        const index = join(dirOffset, "index.html");
 
-      // Compute the notebook metadata
-      const notebookMetadata = {
-        title: title || basename(input),
-        filename: basename(input),
-        backHref: parentOutputFiles["html"] || index,
-        downloadHref: downloadHref || basename(input),
-        downloadFile: basename(input),
-      };
+        // Compute the notebook metadata
+        const notebookMetadata = {
+          title: title || basename(input),
+          filename: basename(input),
+          backHref: parentOutputFiles["html"] || index,
+          downloadHref: downloadHref || basename(input),
+          downloadFile: basename(input),
+        };
 
-      const resolvedExecutedFile = nbContext.resolve(
-        input,
-        kHtmlPreview,
-        executedFile,
-        notebookMetadata,
-      );
+        const resolvedExecutedFile = nbContext.resolve(
+          input,
+          kHtmlPreview,
+          executedFile,
+          notebookMetadata,
+        );
 
-      result.push({
-        completion: await renderPandoc(resolvedExecutedFile, true),
-        cleanup: !isArticle,
-      });
+        result.push({
+          completion: await renderPandoc(resolvedExecutedFile, true),
+          cleanup: !isArticle,
+        });
+      }
       return result;
     }
   };