Changelog Generator

Changelog Generator

Use This Skill When

• Preparing release notes for a new product version
• Creating weekly or monthly product update summaries
• Documenting changes for customers or stakeholders
• Writing app store changelog submissions
• Generating update notifications for users
• Maintaining public changelog or product update pages
• Creating internal release documentation
• Need to transform commits into customer-facing language

When NOT to Use

• Internal developer documentation (keep technical commit language)
• When commits already have clear user-facing descriptions
• For non-git version control systems
• When detailed technical accuracy is required for developers
• For automated CI/CD commit logs (use raw commits instead)

Context: Changelog Maturity

Undeveloped: Raw git commits listed, technical jargon, unclear for customers.

Target: Commits categorized by type, translated to user language, grouped logically, professional formatting.

Optimized: Polished changelog with strategic storytelling, emphasis on customer impact, brand voice, multimedia integration.

Core Principle

Users deserve clear, accessible changelogs that celebrate product improvements. Transform technical commits into customer language that highlights impact, not implementation.

Instructions

Step 1: Gather Commit History

Identify the scope:

Command pattern (provide to user):

Get all commits from [DATE] to [DATE]
or
Get all commits between version [V1] and [V2]
or
Get all commits from the past [N] days

Step 2: Categorize Changes

Standard Categories:

Rule: If a commit fits multiple categories, prioritize user impact (features > improvements > fixes).

Step 3: Translate to Customer Language

Translation Framework:

Guidelines:

• Focus on user benefit, not technical how
• Use active voice and action verbs
• Mention specific impact (speed, new capability, fixed behavior)
• Avoid jargon (refactor, pipeline, dependency, etc.)
• Start with action: "Create", "Add", "Fix", "Improve", "Support"

Step 4: Structure the Changelog

Format:

# Version [X.Y.Z] - [Release Date]

## ✨ New Features

- **Feature Name**: Brief description of what users can now do. 
  Context or benefit.

## 🔧 Improvements  

- **Feature/Area**: Specific improvement made. Impact or reason.

## 🐛 Bug Fixes

- Fixed issue where [behavior] now [correct behavior]
- Resolved [problem area] that affected [users/use case]

## ⚠️ Breaking Changes (if applicable)

- **Change Name**: What changed and how users need to update.

## 📖 Documentation

- Added/updated guides for [area]

Requirements:

• Group related commits together
• Use headers and icons for scannability
• Include 1-2 sentence descriptions (not bullet points for multi-part features)
• Highlight user impact or benefit
• Keep tone positive, celebratory for new features

Step 5: Apply Brand Voice

Tone Examples:

• Professional/Enterprise: "Advanced authentication options are now available"
• Friendly/Consumer: "You can now invite team members to your workspace!"
• Technical-but-Clear: "Improved JSON parsing performance by 2x"

Check:

• Does it sound like your product talking?
• Would customers understand without developer context?
• Does it emphasize customer benefit?

Quality Checklist

Before finalizing:

• ✓ All commits categorized appropriately
• ✓ Customer-friendly language (no jargon)
• ✓ Action verbs and active voice
• ✓ User benefit mentioned or implied
• ✓ Consistent formatting and tone
• ✓ Grouped logically by feature area
• ✓ Breaking changes clearly marked
• ✓ No internal/refactoring commits visible
• ✓ Professional presentation ready to share

Output

Provide:

1. Structured Changelog

   • Clear version/date header
   • Categorized sections (Features, Improvements, Fixes, Breaking)
   • Customer-friendly descriptions
   • Emoji/icons for quick scanning

2. Release Notes Summary (optional)

   • Headline highlighting major feature
   • 2-3 key improvements
   • Link to full changelog

3. Editable Markdown

   • Ready to paste into CHANGELOG.md
   • Save and share immediately
   • No manual reformatting needed

• Writing app store update descriptions
• Generating email updates for users
• Creating social media announcement posts