release-notes-generator

name	release-notes-generator
description	Automatically generate and update RELEASE_NOTES.md from git commits, categorizing major/interesting changes into Features and Bugs with rewritten readable messages, organized by month with GitHub links.

Release Notes Generator Skill

When to use

Use this skill whenever asked to:

• Update release notes
• Generate release notes from commits
• Create changelog from git history
• Summarize recent changes for release

Instructions

Follow these exact steps to generate release notes:

1. Fetch recent commits: Use git log to get commits. Focus on unpushed or recent changes.

   git log --pretty=format:"%H %ai %s" --all
   

   Prioritize major and interesting commits only - ignore minor fixes, formatting changes, dependency updates, or trivial commits.

2. Classify commits by date and type:

   • Group commits by month and year (e.g., January 2026, November 2025)
   • Within each month, separate into Features and Bug Fixes
   • Features: New functionality, UI improvements, performance enhancements, new APIs/commands.
   • Bug Fixes: Fixes for errors, crashes, incorrect behavior, regressions.

3. Rewrite messages: Original commit messages may be poor. Rewrite each into 1 clear, readable sentence starting with an action verb (e.g., "Added user authentication flow" instead of "auth stuff").

4. Format RELEASE_NOTES.md:

   • Top-level: # Release Notes
   • Month headers: ## Month Year (e.g., ## January 2026)
   • Section headers: ### Features and ### Bug Fixes
   • Each entry format: - [](github-link): Description
   • Use commit's short hash (8 chars) as clickable link to GitHub commit.
   • Within each month: Features first, then Bug Fixes.
   • Months in reverse chronological order (newest first).
   • Separate each month section with ---
   • Append new entries to existing file if it exists; do not overwrite old notes.

5. GitHub links:

   • Format: https://github.com/<owner>/<repo>/commit/<full-commit-hash>
   • Get repo URL from: git config --get remote.origin.url

Example Output Structure

# Release Notes

## January 2026

### Features

- [`abc1234`](https://github.com/owner/repo/commit/abc1234567890123456789012345678901234567): Added support for real-time notifications in the dashboard.
- [`def5678`](https://github.com/owner/repo/commit/def5678901234567890123456789012345678901): Implemented dark mode toggle with local storage persistence.

### Bug Fixes

- [`ghi9012`](https://github.com/owner/repo/commit/ghi9012345678901234567890123456789012345): Fixed login crash when email contains special characters.

---

## December 2025

### Features

- [`jkl3456`](https://github.com/owner/repo/commit/jkl3456789012345678901234567890123456789): Added user profile customization options.

Execution Steps

1. Run git log --pretty=format:"%H %ai %s" --all to list commits with dates.
2. Get repository URL: git config --get remote.origin.url
3. Filter to 5-10 major ones per month.
4. Group by month, categorize as Features or Bug Fixes, and rewrite messages.
5. Check if RELEASE_NOTES.md exists: if yes, read it and insert new month sections in chronological order; if no, create new.
6. Format each entry with clickable commit hash links.
7. Write the file and commit with message like "docs: update release notes from recent commits".

Tips

• Be selective: Only 30-50% of commits qualify as "major/interesting".
• Readable: Use single sentences, preferring action verbs at the start.
• No duplicates: Check existing RELEASE_NOTES.md before adding.
• Chronological: Newest months at the top, oldest at the bottom.
• Month grouping: Combine all changes from the same month into one section.