Short Fiction Scaffolder

Short Fiction Scaffolder

Create a sustainable project skeleton for a new Chinese commercial short story. Initialize structure only: do not invent characters, plot, manuscript prose, or promotional copy, and do not treat scaffolding permission as authorization for Git or GitHub operations.

Collect Inputs

Obtain two required inputs before starting:

• output path
• work title

The following inputs are optional. Do not ask for them when omitted unless the user says they affect the current initialization:

• pen name
• genre
• target length or length range
• PNG cover path

Extract these values from the user's natural-language request, then call the deterministic script. Do not require the user to restate their request as command-line arguments.

Scaffold the Project

Run this skill's scripts/scaffold_project.py:

python3 <skill-directory>/scripts/scaffold_project.py \
  --output <project-path> \
  --title <work-title> \
  [--pen-name <pen-name>] \
  [--genre <genre>] \
  [--target-length <target-length>] \
  [--cover <png-path>]

The script accepts only a nonexistent or empty target directory. If the target contains any file, preserve it and explain the refusal; do not add or simulate a force-overwrite option. When a cover is provided, the script validates the PNG and copies it to assets/cover.png. Without a cover, the README must not contain an image link.

Do not run git init, create a remote repository, commit, or push during scaffolding. If the user explicitly requests one of those operations afterward, treat it as a separate task and confirm its scope.

Preserve the Output Contract

The generated project must preserve these relationships:

• README.md is the project entry point. It links only to the current recommended draft, the outline, publication metadata, and revision notes that actually exist for the current version.
• docs/outline.md is the single continuously maintained story outline.
• Manuscripts use docs/drafts/vN.md. A major rewrite creates the next version instead of overwriting history.
• Revision notes use docs/revision-notes/vN.md and match the manuscript version. Do not create revision notes for the initial v1.md.
• docs/publication/metadata.md reserves the formal-draft path, one-line pitch, spoiler-free synopsis, tags, content notice, byline, and cover information.
• Publication assets live in assets/; the primary cover is always assets/cover.png.
• Do not create latest.md, current.md, or other duplicate current-version files.

Templates establish structure and writing prompts only; they do not fill in story-specific content. Markdown files use UTF-8 and exactly one H1 each. Use --- only for scene or chapter breaks in the manuscript.

Verify the Result

After scaffolding:

1. List generated files and confirm that the structure and optional fields match the user's inputs.
2. Search for unreplaced {{TOKEN}} markers.
3. Confirm that every local README link exists and that a coverless project has no cover image tag.
4. If the target already belongs to a Git repository, run git diff --check when useful, but do not initialize, commit, or push merely to perform validation.

Report the generated path, the optional inputs used, and the external operations that were intentionally not performed.