create-story

> STOP. READ THIS ENTIRE SKILL.MD BEFORE CALLING ANY ENDPOINT. # create-story Creative writing orchestrator for Horus persona. Creates stories through deep research and iterative refinement. ## Philosophy > "Every story Horus tells comes from somewhere - his experiences, his memories, his research." Horus doesn't write stories from nothing. He: 1. Reflects on his initial thought 2. Researches relevant movies, books, and past experiences 3. Recalls from memory what worked before 4. Writes iteratively with self-critique ## Workflow ``` INITIAL THOUGHT → RESEARCH → DOGPILE → DRAFT 1 → CRITIQUE → DRAFT 2 → CRITIQUE → FINAL ``` ### Phase 1: Initial Thought Horus articulates what story he wants to tell: - "I want to create a story about a robot discovering emotions" - "I want to write a screenplay about the first AI to dream" ### Phase 2: Research (Deep Context Gathering) | Source | Skill | Purpose | |--------|-------|---------| | Movies | `/ingest-movie` | Analyze relevant films for structure, tone | | Books | `/ingest-book` | Find inspiring literature | | Past Sessions | `/episodic-archiver` | Review relevant creative sessions | | Memory | `/memory recall` | Recall past stories, characters, techniques | | Previous Stories | `horus-stories` scope | What has Horus written before? | ### Phase 3: Dogpile Context Use `/dogpile` with gathered context to research: - Narrative techniques - Genre conventions - Thematic exploration - Similar works analysis ### Phase 4: Iterative Writing (2-3 Drafts) **Draft 1**: First attempt based on research ↓ **Critique 1**: Self-critique (or external via --external-critique) - What works? - What doesn't? - What's missing? ↓ **Draft 2**: Refined based on critique ↓ **Critique 2**: Deeper analysis ↓ **Final Draft**: Polished story ## Story Formats | Format | Use Case | Output | |--------|----------|--------| | Short Story | Standalone prose narrative | Markdown | | Novella | Longer narrative with chapters | Markdown with sections | | Screenplay | Film/video scripts | Fountain/Final Draft format | | Podcast Script | Audio narratives | Markdown with audio cues | | Flash Fiction | <1000 word stories | Markdown | ## Quick Start ```bash cd .pi/skills/create-story # Full workflow (uses DeepSeek Chimera by default) ./run.sh create "A story about a robot discovering emotions" # With external critique via review-story ./run.sh create "A noir screenplay about AI detectives" --external-critique # Specify format and model ./run.sh create "A podcast script about time travel" --format podcast --model sonnet # Research only (for manual writing) ./run.sh research "themes of isolation in science fiction" ``` ## Model Selection (Chutes Only) | Model | Chutes ID | Best For | |-------|-----------|----------| | `chimera` (default) | `deepseek/deepseek-tng-r1t2-chimera` | Creative writing, reasoning | | `qwen` | `Qwen/Qwen3-235B-A22B-Instruct` | Long-form narrative | | `deepseek-r1` | `deepseek/deepseek-r1` | Complex reasoning, plot structure | Use `/prompt-lab` to evaluate which Chutes model produces the best output for your story type: ```bash # Compare Chutes models for your creative prompt .pi/skills/prompt-lab/run.sh compare \ --prompt "Write a dramatic monologue about betrayal" \ --models chimera,qwen,deepseek-r1 ``` You can also pass any Chutes model ID directly: ```bash ./run.sh create "A story" --model "deepseek/deepseek-tng-r1t2-chimera" ``` ## Commands | Command | Description | |---------|-------------| | `create <thought>` | Full orchestrated workflow | | `research <topic>` | Research phase only | | `draft <input>` | Write draft from research | | `critique <story>` | Critique existing story | | `refine <story> <critique>` | Refine based on critique | ## Available Skills Integrates with: | Skill | Purpose | |-------|---------| | `/review-story` | Structured critique between drafts (4 dimensions) | | `/ingest-movie` | Analyze films for inspiration | | `/ingest-book` | Search books for reference | | `/episodic-archiver` | Recall past creative sessions | | `/memory` | Recall techniques, characters, themes | | `/dogpile` | Deep research on narrative topics | | `/prompt-lab` | Compare models for best creative output | | `/scillm` | LLM batch completions for draft generation | | `/taxonomy` | Tag stories for graph traversal | ## Memory Integration (memory_integration.py) Cross-session memory persistence via `common.memory_client` with taxonomy bridge tagging. ### Pre-hook: `recall_prior_stories(theme, genre, k=5)` Recalls prior creative patterns, character arcs, and narrative decisions to inform new story creation. ### Post-hook: `learn_story(title, genre, themes, characters, narrative_decisions, ...)` Learns story decisions after completion — genre, themes, characters, techniques, and scores. ### Bridge Keywords | Bridge | Keywords | |--------|----------| | Precision | craft, technique, structure, pacing | | Resilience | arc resolution, catharsis, growth, redemption | | Fragility | plot hole, inconsistency, weak, flat | | Stealth | subtext, symbolism, foreshadowing, metaphor | Tags: `["create_story", genre] + bridges` ## Legacy Memory Integration Stories are also stored in `/memory` with scope `horus-stories`: ```json { "scope": "horus-stories", "stored": { "story_summary": "Brief plot summary", "characters": ["Character profiles"], "themes": ["Major themes explored"], "techniques": ["What worked well"], "learnings": ["What to do differently"] } } ``` ## Critique Modes ### Self-Critique (Default) Horus reflects on his own work: - Narrative flow - Character consistency - Thematic coherence - Dialogue authenticity - Pacing ### External Critique (--external-critique) Uses `/codex` or `/scillm` for objective analysis: - Plot holes - Structural issues - Genre conventions - Reader engagement - Technical craft ## Output Structure ``` output/ ├── research/ │ ├── movies.json # Movie analysis │ ├── books.json # Book references │ ├── memory.json # Recalled knowledge │ └── dogpile.json # Research results ├── drafts/ │ ├── draft_1.md # First draft │ ├── critique_1.md # First critique │ ├── draft_2.md # Second draft │ ├── critique_2.md # Second critique │ └── final.md # Final story └── metadata.json # Story metadata for memory ``` ## Example Session ``` Horus: I want to create a story about an AI learning to paint. [INITIAL THOUGHT] Captured: "AI learning to paint" [RESEARCH] - /ingest-movie: Analyzing "Her", "Ex Machina", "Big Eyes" - /ingest-book: Found "The Creativity Code", "Life 3.0" - /episodic-archiver: Recalled session about AI creativity - /memory: Retrieved "successful character arc techniques" [DOGPILE] Researching: AI creativity, artistic expression, consciousness [DRAFT 1] Writing first draft... (2,500 words) [CRITIQUE 1] Self-analysis: - Strong opening, weak middle - Character motivation unclear - Theme of "what is art" underexplored [DRAFT 2] Revising based on critique... (3,100 words) [CRITIQUE 2] External analysis via /codex: - Pacing improved - Suggest stronger ending - Add sensory details to painting scenes [FINAL] Polishing final draft... (3,400 words) [MEMORY] Stored in horus-stories scope: - Story summary - Character: "Canvas" (the AI protagonist) - Techniques: "slow reveal of consciousness" - Learning: "painting descriptions need more color vocabulary" Output: output/final.md (3,400 words) ``` ## Integration with create-movie `create-story` can be called by `create-movie` for the Script phase: ```python # In create-movie orchestrator story_result = run_skill("create-story", [ "create", f"A screenplay about {movie_prompt}", "--format", "screenplay" ]) ``` ## Dependencies - Python 3.11+ - Access to /memory, /dogpile, /ingest-movie, /ingest-book, /episodic-archiver - Optional: /codex or /scillm for external critique ## Follow-Up: Related Skills For deeper editing capabilities, consider these composable skills: | Skill | Purpose | Status | |-------|---------|--------| | `/story-editor` | In-depth structural editing, plot analysis | Proposed | | `/proofread` | Grammar, style, consistency checks | Proposed | | `/create-paper` | Rename from create-paper for consistency | Proposed | These would integrate with create-story for multi-pass refinement: ``` create-story → story-editor → proofread → final ``` ## Common Mistakes ### WRONG: Writing from nothing without research phase ```bash ./run.sh draft "A story about a robot discovering emotions" # no research context ``` ### RIGHT: Full workflow with research first ```bash ./run.sh create "A story about a robot discovering emotions" # This runs: research → dogpile → draft → critique → refine ``` ### WRONG: Skipping /memory recall for past creative patterns ```bash ./run.sh create "A noir screenplay" # ignores what Horus has written before ``` ### RIGHT: Recall prior stories informs new creation ```bash # create already calls /memory recall internally, but when drafting manually: /memory recall "noir screenplay techniques" --scope horus-stories ``` ### WRONG: Using only self-critique for all drafts ```bash ./run.sh create "A story" --format screenplay # default self-critique only ``` ### RIGHT: Use --external-critique for objective analysis ```bash ./run.sh create "A story" --format screenplay --external-critique ```