# Series Orchestrator > Saga/series-level fiction orchestration. Handles multi-book continuity planning, cross-volume character arc tracking, power-system escalation management, external skill selection for writing pipelines, and Obsidian vault integration. Covers the gap between single-book narrative craft and franchise-level worldbuilding. - Skill: `theheavenlyd3mon/series-orchestrator` (Agent Skill, multi-file: 4 files) - Install (CLI): `npx skillmds add theheavenlyd3mon/series-orchestrator` - Raw SKILL.md: https://api.skillmd.com/api/skills/theheavenlyd3mon/series-orchestrator/raw - Safety review: pending - Works with: Claude Code, Claude.ai, OpenAI Codex - Category: Integrations & APIs - License: MIT - Author: theheavenlyd3mon (https://skillmd.com/u/theheavenlyd3mon) - Updated: 2026-09-09 - Page: https://skillmd.com/skills/theheavenlyd3mon/series-orchestrator --- # Series Orchestrator — Multi-Book Fiction Pipeline Management Orchestrates long-form fiction across 2+ books/sagas. Bridges single-book narrative craft with franchise-level systems: character arcs spanning volumes, power-progression tracking, faction relationship matrices, and toolchain/skills assembly. ## When to Use Trigger when: - A project spans multiple books/sagas/volumes - You need to track character/power/faction state across books - A power-magic system has explicit escalation rules (star ratings, cultivation ranks, etc.) - You need to select/install external skills for a writing pipeline - An Obsidian vault is needed for story bible/references/workspace - Book-level plot threads need foreshadowing hooks in earlier books ## Skills Audit Process When assembling a writing pipeline, use this systematic approach: ### Step 1: Query the Live Hub ```bash hermes skills browse # see available categories hermes skills search "" # use phrases, NOT single words hermes skills inspect "" # preview content before installing ``` **Pattern:** Single-word queries often return zero results. Always use multi-word queries: - ❌ `search "writing"` → empty - ✅ `search "creative writing"` → 12 results - ✅ `search "obsidian"` → 25 results ### Step 2: External Verification After finding candidates in the hub, verify via web: - Check GitHub stars, README quality, actual content vs description - Look for author reputation and maintenance activity - Cross-reference with community discussions (Reddit, dev.to, LinkedIn) - Note installation commands (usually `hermes skills install ` or `npx skills add `) ### Step 3: Category Mapping Map findings to these categories: | Category | What to Look For | Key Skills Found (Eldrath project) | |----------|------------------|-----------------------------------| | **Architecture & Structure** | Saga→arc→chapter→scene hierarchy, franchise bibles, continuity anchors | `writing-claw` (Narrative OS), `story-skills`, `creative-writing-skills` | | **Humanization** | Remove AI writing patterns, voice calibration, natural prose detection | `blader/humanizer` ⭐30k★, `avoid-ai-writing` ⭐2.5k★ | | **Emotion Evocation** | Character interiority, emotional pacing, dialogue authenticity, tension theory | `the-storytellers-workbench`, `creative-writing-skills` (Prose Quality) | | **Consistency** | Character registry, faction tracking, canon injection, state machines | `writing-claw` (Character Registry), `story-skills` (continuity state) | | **Methodology** | Structured process, sprint targets, revision workflows, quality gates | `book-pipeline` (existing), `creative-writing-skills` (Story Architecture) | | **Organization** | Story universe structuring, motif/theme management, wiki-style references | `writing-claw` (file-system metaphor) | | **Obsidian Integration** | Vault scaffolding, wikilink automation, graph views, markdown bridges | Base `obsidian` skill (build custom for novel-specific needs) | ### Step 4: Install & Evaluate Install candidate skills, then **use them for one real task** before deciding to keep. Document which ones proved useful and which didn't. ## Priority Tiers for Writing Skills Based on the Eldrath series audit, priority ordering: ### P1 — Critical - **`blader/humanizer`** — Removes 33 AI writing patterns; voice calibration. Install FIRST for any publication-targeted project. - **`writing-claw`** — Narrative OS with character registry, gap-based tension theory, series-universe hierarchy. Critical for multi-book consistency. ### P2 — High - **`danjdewhurst/story-skills`** — Story bible format, faction matrices, artifact tracking, chapter/state progress bar. Built for sagas. - **`haowjy/creative-writing-skills`** — Three sub-skills: Story Architecture, Prose Quality, Character Depth. Excellent line-editing guidance. - **`the-storytellers-workbench`** — Craft-level diagnosis engine: flat scenes, voice drift, pacing, character interiority. ### P3 — Medium - **`modoojunko/awesome-novel-skill`** — Chinese-developed, fantasy/wuxia templates. Worldbuilding module may complement our approach. - **Base `obsidian` skill** — Foundation for vault management. Novel-specific workflow built custom. ## Custom Skill Builds (Don't Exist Yet) For series projects, these typically need to be built custom because they combine domain knowledge: | Skill | Purpose | Why Build vs Find | |-------|---------|-------------------| | **Multi-book continuity engine** | Track character arcs, power levels, faction relations, plot threads across ALL books | No existing skill handles inter-book state management | | **Power system tracker** | Star-ratings, magic types, cultivation paths, escalation rules | Domain-specific to each project's magic system | | **Emotional beat mapper** | Internal emotional arcs per character per book | Distinct from plot progression; needs custom emotional framework | | **Writing methodology tracker** | Sprint metrics, revision quotas, quality-slip detection | Combines process tracking with genre-specific quality markers | ## Premise Update / Ledger Re-Sync (mid-project) When the user drops a plot, character, or world update (from Discord, a conversation, a brainstorm, a voice memo), propagate to ALL ledger files before drafting anything new. **Order matters** — downstream files depend on upstream: 1. **Read every ledger file** — plot-ledger, character-sheet, canon, foreshadow-bank, worldbuilding, concept. Identify what changed vs. what the user said. 2. **character-sheet.md** — new/renamed characters, species, roles, combat styles. Update sliders if arc changed. 3. **canon.md** — names, places, rules, timeline. New facts go here first; never let a fact appear in a chapter before it's in canon. 4. **plot-ledger.md** — re-map beats. If a single beat now covers multiple distinct events (e.g. "three dungeons" was one row), split into separate scene-level rows with their own scene IDs. Every new event gets a beat row. 5. **foreshadow-bank.md** — re-index: - New beats → new plant rows (especially trust-building scenes that set up later betrayal/payoff). - Changed chapter assignments → fix plant/payoff chapter columns. - Deleted beats → remove or mark `red-herring`. - Verify: every payoff row has a matching plant; no plant points to a chapter that no longer exists. 6. **worldbuilding.md** — new species, factions, magic rules, societal norms. 7. **concept.md** — update logline/premise notes if the story engine changed. 8. **Diff report to user** — table of files changed + what changed. Flag any `[TBD]` fields still open. **Pitfall:** updating one ledger file and forgetting the others. Canon says "three dungeons" but plot-ledger still says "first dungeon." Foreshadow bank points to ch05 for a rescue that now happens in ch04. Always propagate to ALL files in one pass. ## Cross-Book Continuity Checklist Before starting Book N, verify: - [ ] All cliffhanger hooks from Book N-1 addressed or explicitly deferred - [ ] Protagonist's power level is consistent with where they ended Book N-1 - [ ] New characters introduced have proper backstory established - [ ] Faction relationships evolved logically (no sudden reversals without cause) - [ ] Recurring locations/items have consistent descriptions - [ ] Foreshadowing from Book N-1 pays off OR is retconned with justification - [ ] Supporting character aging/timeline remains plausible - [ ] Power scaling hasn't inflated beyond the system's internal logic ## Power System Tracking Template For explicit power-scaling systems (star ratings, cultivation ranks, etc.): Maintain a `power-progression.yaml` per main character: ```yaml character: Noctis book_1_entry: rating: 0 # unknown/low abilities: ["basic aura sensing"] limitations: ["incomplete training", "fear of full power expression"] book_1_climax: rating: 2 abilities: ["aura manipulation", "elemental affinity"] book_2_entry: rating: 3 # ... ``` Update at end of each drafting pass. Never let a character jump more than 1-2 stars per book without a compelling arc. ## Obsidian Vault Pattern (Series-Scale) The vault IS the project root — not a parallel directory. One vault hosts ALL books + shared world lore. Structure: ``` {series-name}/ ← vault root (e.g. the-eternal-frontier/) ├── 00-HOME.md ← Root MOC — single entry point, wikilinks to all ├── 01-World/ ← SHARED across all books │ ├── worldbuilding.md ← pillars, magic laws, societal implications │ ├── canon.md ← truth ledger (names, rules, timeline) │ ├── factions/ ← one file per faction │ ├── species/ ← one file per species │ ├── magic-system/ ← one file per magic subsystem │ └── locations/ ← one file per location ├── 02-Characters/ ← SHARED — one file per character (spans all books) │ ├── {protagonist}.md ← full template (character-builder skill) │ ├── {companions}.md │ └── {antagonists}.md ├── 03-Books/ ← Per-book ISOLATED working files │ ├── book1-{slug}/ │ │ ├── concept.md │ │ ├── plot-ledger.md │ │ ├── foreshadow-bank.md │ │ ├── voice-profile.md │ │ ├── manuscript.yaml │ │ ├── chapters/ │ │ ├── outlines/ │ │ └── reviews/ │ ├── book2-{slug}/ │ └── ... ├── 04-Series/ ← Cross-book tracking │ ├── series-overview.md ← N-book arc summary + cross-book threads │ ├── power-progression.md ← protagonist star-rating per book │ └── thread-tracker.md ← open/resolved threads across books └── 05-Resources/ ← Meta / pipeline / craft references └── style-guide.md ← voice rules, banned words, tone defaults ``` ### Design principles 1. **World and Characters are SHARED** — they live outside any single book so Book 2–5 reference the same canon. Character sheets track per-book arc state inside the file. 2. **Books are ISOLATED** — each book has its own ledger, foreshadow, chapters, reviews. No cross-contamination. 3. **00-HOME.md is the MOC** — every file is reachable via wikilinks from HOME. No orphans. 4. **Wikilinks everywhere** — `[[Noctis]]`, `[[Saora]]`, `[[Star Ratings]]` connect the graph. 5. **Folder numbering** — 00-05 prefix gives sort order and signals hierarchy at a glance. 6. **Series tracking (04-)** — power progression, thread tracker, and overview live here because they span books. ### Build order for a new series vault 1. Create folder skeleton (all dirs) 2. Write 00-HOME.md with wikilinks (even to files that don't exist yet — Obsidian shows them as unresolved) 3. Move/copy existing flat files into correct positions 4. Create stubs for factions, species, locations (headers + known facts + open questions) 5. Create character files using `character-builder` skill template 6. Create series tracking files (overview, power-progression, thread-tracker) 7. Create style-guide in 05-Resources 8. Update titles/headers in moved files to reflect new series/book names 9. Delete old flat directory (with user confirmation) 10. Update memory with canonical vault path ### Consolidating duplicate trees Projects often accumulate two manuscript trees — e.g. an early Obsidian vault with an old plot structure AND a pipeline `manuscript/{slug}/` directory with the current structure. When this happens: 1. **Identify which tree is canonical** — the one matching the user's latest premise/plot updates. 2. **Merge any unique content** from the stale tree (voice samples, reviews, outlines) into the canonical tree. 3. **Delete the stale tree** entirely. Two trees = guaranteed canon drift. 4. **Update memory** with the surviving canonical path so future sessions don't re-discover the old one. 5. **Report to user** what was kept, what was merged, what was deleted. Never draft against a tree without confirming it's the only one. See `references/skills-audit-guide.md` for the complete audit methodology and source URLs. See `references/build-order-discipline.md` for the non-negotiable pre-draft sequence (characters → world → voice → draft). See `references/character-complexity-scaling.md` for character sheet complexity tiers, working-document style rules, and the three-layer review system (doc-review / narrative-revisor / humanizer). ## Pitfalls - **Hub search requires multi-word queries.** `hermes skills search "writing"` returns empty. Use `hermes skills search "creative writing"` or `"fiction storytelling"`. - **Description ≠ substance.** Always `inspect` a skill and read the SKILL.md body before installing. Many descriptions are thin. - **External GitHub repos may be unmaintained.** Check last commit date, issue open rate, and actual file count. Some popular repos have sparse codebases. - **Chinese-language skills may have English READMEs but Chinese code/templates.** Verify language coverage matches your project language. - **Don't over-install.** Test one skill per category. Keep only what you actually use. Bloat slows skill loading. - **Duplicate manuscript trees.** User may have an old Obsidian vault AND a pipeline tree for the same project. Always check for multiple trees before drafting. Consolidate into ONE canonical path, delete the stale one, update memory. - **Premise updates not propagated to all ledgers.** When the user drops new info, ALL files must re-sync in one pass (character-sheet → canon → plot-ledger → foreshadow-bank → worldbuilding → concept). Updating one file and forgetting the others creates silent canon drift. - **Thin-draft trap (cross-ref: `narrative` skill).** When drafting chapters, hitting plot beats without hitting word count targets. Chapter outlines typically specify ~7,500 words each. If chapters land at <2,000 words, you're writing beat summaries instead of full scenes. Expand with sensory detail, dialogue, interiority, action. Run word count check before marking chapters `done`. The outline is the map, not the territory.