audio

name	audio
description	Generate audio narration of blog posts using Google Gemini TTS. Supports summary narration, full article read-aloud, and two-speaker podcast/dialogue mode with 30 voice options. Outputs MP3 with HTML5 audio embed code. Works standalone via /smart-blog-skills:audio or internally from write. Falls back gracefully when API key is not configured. Use when user says "blog audio", "narrate blog", "audio version", "text to speech", "tts", "podcast mode", "read aloud", "audio narration", "voice", "narration", "generate audio".
user-invokable	true
argument-hint	[generate|voices|setup] [file-or-text] [--mode summary|full|dialogue] [--voice name]
license	MIT

Blog Audio -- Gemini TTS Narration for Blog Posts

Generate professional audio narration of blog content using Google's Gemini TTS. Three modes: summary (200-300 word spoken overview), full article read-aloud, or two-speaker podcast dialogue. 30 voices, 80+ languages, HTML5 embed output.

Quick Reference

Command	What it does
/smart-blog-skills:audio generate <file>	Generate audio narration of a blog post
/smart-blog-skills:audio voices	Show available voices with characteristics
/smart-blog-skills:audio setup	Check/configure API key for Gemini TTS

Prerequisites

• Python 3.11+ (venv managed automatically by run.py)
• GOOGLE_AI_API_KEY environment variable (same key used by image)
• FFmpeg (for WAV-to-MP3 conversion; falls back to WAV if missing)

Always Use run.py Wrapper

# CORRECT:
python3 scripts/run.py generate_audio.py --text "..." --voice Charon --json

# WRONG:
python3 scripts/generate_audio.py --text "..."  # Fails without venv

API Key Check (Gate Pattern)

Before generating audio, check for the API key:

echo $GOOGLE_AI_API_KEY

• If set: proceed with generation
• If not set: guide the user: "Audio generation requires a Google AI API key. Get one free at https://aistudio.google.com/apikey Then set it: export GOOGLE_AI_API_KEY=your-key This is the same key used by /smart-blog-skills:image -- if image generation works, audio works too."
• When called internally (from write): return silently if key is missing. Never block the writing workflow.

Setup

For /smart-blog-skills:audio setup:

1. Check if GOOGLE_AI_API_KEY is set in environment
2. If image is configured, the key is already available
3. If not, guide user to https://aistudio.google.com/apikey
4. Verify with a dry run: python3 scripts/run.py generate_audio.py --text "Test" --dry-run --json

Voice Selection

For /smart-blog-skills:audio voices:

Ask the user which voice they prefer, or recommend based on content type:

• Article narration: Charon (Informative) or Sadaltager (Knowledgeable)
• Tutorial/how-to: Achird (Friendly) or Sulafat (Warm)
• News/analysis: Rasalgethi (Informative) or Schedar (Even)
• Lifestyle/wellness: Aoede (Breezy) or Vindemiatrix (Gentle)
• Dialogue host: Puck (Upbeat) or Laomedeia (Upbeat)
• Dialogue expert: Kore (Firm) or Charon (Informative)

Generation Workflow

For /smart-blog-skills:audio generate <file>:

Step 1: Read the Blog Post

Read the file and extract:

• Title (from H1 or frontmatter)
• Full content (markdown body)
• Approximate word count

Step 2: Choose Mode

Ask the user (or auto-select if they specified --mode):

Mode	When to use	Output
Summary	Quick audio overview (1-2 min)	200-300 word spoken summary
Full	Complete read-aloud (5-15 min)	Full article as natural speech
Dialogue	Podcast-style (3-8 min)	Two-person conversation about the article

Step 3: Prepare Text

CRITICAL: Claude prepares the text. The script does TTS only.

Summary mode: Write a 200-300 word spoken summary of the article. Rules:

• Write as natural speech, not written text
• Open with the article's key finding or answer
• Cover 3-5 main takeaways
• Close with actionable advice
• No markdown, no "In this article...", no meta-commentary
• Use conversational transitions ("Here's what matters...", "The key finding is...")

Full mode: Strip the markdown content to clean spoken text:

• Headings become natural transitions ("Next, let's look at...")
• Links become plain text (remove URLs, keep anchor text)
• Images and charts: omit or briefly describe ("As the data shows...")
• Code blocks: describe verbally ("The code uses a for-loop to...")
• Lists: convert to natural sentences
• Remove frontmatter, schema markup, HTML tags
• Add brief intro: "This is [title], published on [date]."

Dialogue mode: Write a 2-person conversation script about the article:

• Speaker1 = Host (curious, asks good questions)
• Speaker2 = Expert (knowledgeable, gives clear answers)
• Format each line as: [Speaker1] What's the key takeaway here?
• Cover the article's main points conversationally
• 15-25 exchanges (produces ~3-8 minutes)
• Natural, not stilted

Step 4: Select Voice

If the user chose a voice, use it. Otherwise, recommend based on mode:

• Summary/Full: default to Charon (Informative)
• Dialogue: default to Puck (Host) + Kore (Expert)

Step 5: Generate Audio

Write the prepared text to a temp file, then call:

# Single voice (summary or full mode)
python3 scripts/run.py generate_audio.py \
  --text-file /tmp/blog_audio_prepared.txt \
  --voice Charon \
  --model flash \
  --output /path/to/audio/post-slug.mp3 \
  --json

# Two voices (dialogue mode)
python3 scripts/run.py generate_audio.py \
  --text-file /tmp/blog_audio_dialogue.txt \
  --voice Puck \
  --voice2 Kore \
  --model pro \
  --output /path/to/audio/post-slug-dialogue.mp3 \
  --json

Model selection:

• flash (default): Fast, cheap. Good for summaries and standard narration.
• pro: Higher quality. Use for dialogue mode or premium content.

Step 6: Deliver

Present the result to the user:

1. File path -- where the audio was saved
2. Duration -- human-readable (e.g., "3:42")
3. Embed code -- ready-to-paste HTML5 audio tag
4. Cost -- estimated API cost
5. Placement suggestion -- where to insert the embed in the blog post

Embedding Guide

Standard HTML (Hugo, Jekyll, static sites)

<audio controls preload="metadata">
  <source src="audio/post-slug.mp3" type="audio/mpeg">
  Your browser does not support the audio element.
</audio>

MDX (Next.js, Gatsby)

<audio controls preload="metadata">
  <source src="/audio/post-slug.mp3" type="audio/mpeg" />
</audio>

WordPress

[audio src="audio/post-slug.mp3"]

Placement

Insert the audio player after the introduction (below the first H2) or at the very top of the article with a label: "Listen to this article" or "Audio version".

Error Handling

Error	Resolution
GOOGLE_AI_API_KEY not set	Get key at https://aistudio.google.com/apikey
FFmpeg not found	Install: sudo apt install ffmpeg. Falls back to WAV output.
Rate limited	Wait and retry.
Text too long (>32k tokens)	Split into sections, generate separately
Unknown voice name	Run /smart-blog-skills:audio voices to see valid options
API key missing (internal call)	Return silently -- writing workflow continues