create-plot

name	create-plot
description	Create whole-novel plot and plot-thread source files for this novel project. Use when the user wants to generate, refine, structure, or save a central plot, act structure, promise, pressure, reversals, turns, reveals, or payoffs into plot/ as Markdown with YAML frontmatter.

Create Plot

Overview

Use this skill to turn a rough plot prompt into a complete plot/*.md source file.

Always follow AGENTS.md and plot/_template.md. Generate a workable plot skeleton from the user's prompt, ask for missing information and desired direction, revise through feedback, then write only after confirmation.

Before running a bundled command, resolve <skill-dir> to the absolute directory containing this SKILL.md. This keeps the same skill usable from either the repository-local skill tree or the Novelist plugin.

Workflow

1. Read Context

Read:

• AGENTS.md
• project.md
• plot/_template.md
• plot/000.master-plot.md
• Existing files in plot/
• Relevant outlines/, world/, characters/, materials/, and macguffins/ files if referenced

2. Generate A Plot Draft

From the user's prompt, infer a compact first-pass plot in Korean. Include:

• story promise
• protagonist pressure and opposition
• inciting incident
• core conflict
• act or sequence shape
• midpoint reversal
• lowest point
• climax choice
• resolution shape
• setups, reveals, and payoffs
• open questions and missing decisions

Mark inferred items clearly. Do not lock major canon facts without user confirmation.

3. Ask For Direction

Ask the user what to strengthen, remove, or decide. Focus on plot decisions with real consequences:

• emotional ending vs ironic ending
• external conflict vs internal conflict
• mystery-first, thriller-first, romance-first, or literary-first structure
• single protagonist vs ensemble pressure
• reveal timing and whether the reader knows more than the characters

Continue the feedback loop until the user says it is enough or gives enough detail to save.

4. Build The Plot File

Use a filesystem-safe ASCII slug. Save to plot/<slug>.md; id must be plot-<slug>.

Required frontmatter:

id: plot-ascii-slug
type: plot
title: ""
scope: novel
status: seed
starts_in: ""
turns_in: []
pays_off_in: ""
characters: []
materials: []
macguffins: []
created: YYYY-MM-DD
updated: YYYY-MM-DD
tags: []

Use scope: novel for the whole-book plot and scope: thread for a subplot or plot thread.

The Markdown body must include:

• # <title>
• ## Promise
• ## Pressure
• ## Turns

5. Write And Verify

Prefer the bundled script:

python3 "<skill-dir>/scripts/write_plot.py" --input /path/to/plot.json --project-root .

Use a temporary JSON file with final confirmed data. The script writes plot/<slug>.md, refuses invalid slugs, and refuses to overwrite existing files unless --force is passed.

After writing, verify frontmatter delimiters, type: plot, matching id, and git status --short. Do not commit unless the user asks.