Generate first-draft technical documentation from code analysis
---
name: draft-docs
description: Generate first-draft technical documentation from code analysis
disable-model-invocation: true
---
# Draft Docs
Generate Reference or How-To documentation drafts to `docs/drafts/` for review before publishing.
## Arguments
- **Topic prompt:** Description of what to document (e.g., "Document the WebSocket API")
- **--publish [file]:** Move reviewed draft to final location and update navigation
## Mode 1: Generate Draft
Invoke the **draft-docs** skill with a topic prompt, e.g. `draft-docs "Document the authentication middleware"`.
### Step 0: Gather Context
Before parsing input, gather project context:
```bash
# Check for existing docs structure
ls -la docs/ 2>/dev/null || echo "No docs/ directory found"
# Identify documentation framework
ls docs/navigation.json docs/mint.json docs/docusaurus.config.js docs/mkdocs.yml 2>/dev/null | head -1
# Check for existing drafts
ls docs/drafts/*.md 2>/dev/null || echo "No existing drafts"
# Get recent code changes for context
git diff --name-only $(git merge-base HEAD main)..HEAD 2>/dev/null | head -20
```
**Capture:**
- Docs structure: `docs/` subdirectories present
- Navigation system: `navigation.json`, `mint.json`, or other config
- Tech stack hints: from file extensions and imports in changed files
- Existing drafts: to avoid duplicates
### Step 1: Parse Input
Extract from the prompt:
1. **Topic:** What to document (e.g., "authentication middleware")
2. **Content type:** Detect from keywords:
| Keywords | Type | Skill |
|----------|------|-------|
| "how to", "guide", "steps", "configure", "set up" | How-To | [howto-docs](../howto-docs/SKILL.md) |
| "API", "reference", "parameters", "function", "endpoint" | Reference | [reference-docs](../reference-docs/SKILL.md) |
If ambiguous, ask: "Should this be a Reference doc (technical lookup) or How-To guide (task completion)?"
### Step 2: Load Skills
Always load both:
1. [docs-style](../docs-style/SKILL.md) - Core writing principles
2. Detected type skill:
- [reference-docs](../reference-docs/SKILL.md) for Reference
- [howto-docs](../howto-docs/SKILL.md) for How-To
### Step 3: Analyze Code
Search the codebase for relevant code:
1. **Symbol search:** Find functions, classes, types matching the topic
2. **File search:** Locate related files by name patterns
3. **Reference search:** Find usage examples
Gather:
- Function/method signatures
- Type definitions
- Existing comments/docstrings
- Usage patterns in tests or examples
### Step 4: Generate Draft
Apply the loaded skills to generate documentation:
**For Reference docs:**
- Follow `reference-docs` template structure
- Document all parameters with types
- Include complete, runnable examples from actual code
- Add Related section linking to connected symbols
**For How-To docs:**
- Follow `howto-docs` template structure
- Start title with "How to"
- List concrete prerequisites
- Break into single-action steps
- Include verification section
### Step 5: Write Draft
1. **Create output path:**
- `docs/drafts/{slug}.md`
- Slug from topic: "WebSocket API" → `websocket-api.md`
2. **Ensure directory exists:**
```bash
mkdir -p docs/drafts
```
3. **Write the draft file** (see **Hard gates** → Write gate: confirm file on disk before the next step)
4. **Report to user:**
```markdown
## Draft Created
**File:** `docs/drafts/{slug}.md`
**Type:** Reference | How-To
**Based on:** [list of analyzed symbols/files]
### Next Steps
1. Review the draft for accuracy
2. Add any missing context or examples
3. When ready, publish by invoking the **draft-docs** skill with `--publish docs/drafts/{slug}.md`
```
### Step 6: End-of-Run Verification
Verify draft generation completed successfully:
```bash
# Confirm draft file exists
ls -la docs/drafts/{slug}.md
# Validate frontmatter (YAML header)
head -10 docs/drafts/{slug}.md | grep -E "^---$|^title:|^description:"
# Check markdown syntax (if markdownlint available)
markdownlint docs/drafts/{slug}.md 2>/dev/null || echo "markdownlint not available"
```
**Verification Checklist:**
- [ ] Draft file created at `docs/drafts/{slug}.md`
- [ ] Frontmatter includes `title` and `description`
- [ ] Content type matches detected type (Reference or How-To)
- [ ] Code examples are complete and runnable
- [ ] All analyzed symbols referenced in draft
If any verification fails, report the specific issue and offer to regenerate.
## Mode 2: Publish Draft
Invoke the **draft-docs** skill with the `--publish` flag, e.g. `draft-docs --publish docs/drafts/websocket-api.md`.
### Step 1: Read Draft
Read the draft file and extract:
- Title
- Content type (from frontmatter or structure)
### Step 2: Determine Destination
Ask user which section:
```markdown
Where should this document go?
1. **API Reference** → `docs/api/{slug}.md`
2. **Guides** → `docs/guides/{slug}.md`
3. **How-To** → `docs/how-to/{slug}.md`
4. **Other** → Specify path
```
### Step 3: Move File
```bash
mv docs/drafts/{slug}.md {destination}/{slug}.md
```
### Step 4: Update Navigation
Check for `docs/navigation.json` and update navigation:
1. **Read current navigation.json**
2. **Find appropriate navigation group**
3. **Add new page entry**
4. **Write updated navigation.json**
Example update:
```json
{
"navigation": [
{
"group": "API Reference",
"pages": [
"api/existing-page",
"api/websocket-api"
]
}
]
}
```
### Step 5: Report
```markdown
## Published
**From:** `docs/drafts/{slug}.md`
**To:** `{destination}/{slug}.md`
**Navigation:** Updated `docs/navigation.json`
The document is now live in your docs.
```
### Step 6: End-of-Run Verification
Verify publish completed successfully:
```bash
# Confirm file moved to destination
ls -la {destination}/{slug}.md
# Confirm draft removed
ls docs/drafts/{slug}.md 2>/dev/null && echo "WARNING: Draft still exists" || echo "Draft cleaned up"
# Verify navigation updated
grep -q "{slug}" docs/navigation.json && echo "Navigation includes new page" || echo "WARNING: Navigation may need manual update"
# Check markdown syntax at final location
markdownlint {destination}/{slug}.md 2>/dev/null || echo "markdownlint not available"
```
**Verification Checklist:**
- [ ] Document moved to `{destination}/{slug}.md`
- [ ] Draft removed from `docs/drafts/`
- [ ] Navigation file updated with new page entry
- [ ] No broken links in navigation structure
- [ ] Document accessible at expected URL path
If any verification fails, report the specific issue and offer remediation steps.
## Content Type Detection
### Reference Indicators
- Prompt mentions: API, endpoint, function, method, class, type, parameters, returns
- Target is a specific symbol or set of symbols
- User wants technical specification
### How-To Indicators
- Prompt mentions: how to, guide, steps, configure, set up, integrate
- Target is a task or workflow
- User wants procedural instructions
## Rules
- Always load `docs-style` skill for every draft
- Generate to `docs/drafts/` - never directly to final location
- Include frontmatter with title and description
- Use realistic examples from actual codebase
- Reference analyzed symbols in draft metadata
- Preserve existing navigation structure when publishing
- Ask before overwriting existing files
## Hard gates (sequenced)
Do not skip ahead: each **Pass** must be true before the next step. Use commands or explicit artifacts—not internal assurance.
### Generate draft (Mode 1)
1. **Context gate — Pass:** Step 0 commands ran (or equivalent) and you recorded at least one concrete outcome: e.g. `docs/` listing snippet, or explicit note that `docs/` is missing and will be created.
2. **Type gate — Pass:** Reference vs How-To is decided using the keyword table **or** the user’s explicit answer (quote or paraphrase with “user chose …”). Do not start **Step 3: Analyze Code** until this is locked.
3. **Skills gate — Pass:** Before analysis, both are in play: [docs-style](../docs-style/SKILL.md) and the type skill ([reference-docs](../reference-docs/SKILL.md) or [howto-docs](../howto-docs/SKILL.md)). In your run, name the two skills loaded (paths)—not “I reviewed writing guidelines.”
4. **Write gate — Pass:** After writing the draft, `test -f docs/drafts/{slug}.md` succeeds (or `ls` shows the file). Only then emit the **Draft Created** block.
### Publish draft (Mode 2)
1. **Destination gate — Pass:** User chose a destination (from the menu or a specific path). Resolve `{destination}` to a full path; **Pass** when the parent directory exists (`test -d "$(dirname "$path")"` or project-appropriate check) **and** you are not overwriting an existing file without explicit user approval.
2. **Move gate — Pass:** After `mv`, the file exists at `{destination}/{slug}.md` (`test -f`) and navigation updates (if applicable) are applied before claiming **Published**.
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