operational-checklist

name	operational-checklist
description	Write the checklist modality (checklist.md) of a spec-driven journal post — the operational working checklist behind the record, rendered as the Checklist tab on the post page. Use when asked to add, write, update, or extract a checklist, working checklist, or checklist tab for a post in _journals/*/posts/*/.

Operational Checklist (the checklist modality)

Goal

Write checklist.md next to a post's index.md — the operational working checklist behind the record, rendered as the Checklist tab on the same post page. The article argues the principle; the checklist is the part you run: the concrete moves, grouped and ordered for use, stripped of rationale. The audience is someone who already buys the principle and is executing it today.

Contract rules

• spec.md is the contract; index.md is the argument. Never edit either from this skill. If the spec names a source checklist document (e.g. a PDF under the journal's sources/), that source is authoritative for the checklist's content and grouping — reproduce it faithfully; do not invent, merge, or drop items.
• Without a source checklist document, distill the checklist from the article's practices (What This Means in Practice, Anti-Patterns inverted into checks) — but add no obligation the article does not support.
• If index.md still embeds the full checklist as a body section (older posts), flag it: the section should move here, leaving the article to reference the Checklist tab. Moving it is the caller's decision unless the request already asks for the migration.

Workflow

1. Read spec.md (Intent, Success criteria, Sources) and index.md in the target post folder. Read the source checklist document if the spec names one. The post must already have an index.md — if not, write the article first (see the detailed-article skill).
2. Write checklist.md in the format below.
3. Run python3 _wiring/build.py; confirm [built] <journal> and that docs/<journal>/<permalink>.html contains "key": "checklist".
4. Tell the user the Checklist tab is live at <permalink>.html#checklist.

Format

• No title heading — the post header (title, byline, tags, hero) is shared by all tabs. Start directly with content.
• Optional front matter: timetoread: "3 min read" (stored, not yet rendered).
• Shape:
  1. One short framing line in italics — what this checklist is for and when to run it, e.g. "The working checklist behind this principle. The Article tab carries the rationale."
  2. ### sections mirroring the source checklist's grouping (or the natural phases of the practice: prepare → do → review). Keep the source order — it usually encodes sequence.
  3. - [ ] task bullets, one action per bullet, imperative or first-person interrogative as the source has it — the renderer shows these as real checkboxes (clickable, state not persisted). Use plain - bullets only for lines that are notes rather than checks (reminders, OK / Not-OK contrasts).
  4. Nested bullets (two-space indent) for sub-items; bold lead-ins for named sub-groups within a section.
• Keep every item scannable: no paragraphs, no rationale sentences — if an item needs explaining, the explanation belongs in the article.
• Cross-links with [[permalink]] are fine and resolve like everywhere else.
• Tone: operational and declarative. This is the tab a reader keeps open while doing the work.