Python Library Development

Python-specific patterns for library/package development. This skill extends meta-library-dev with Python tooling, package management, and ecosystem practices.

This Skill Extends

• meta-library-dev - Foundational library patterns (API design, versioning, testing strategies)

For general concepts like semantic versioning, module organization principles, and testing pyramids, see the meta-skill first.

This Skill Adds

• Python tooling: pyproject.toml, uv, build backends, setuptools, hatch
• Python idioms: Pythonic API design, type hints, decorators, context managers
• Python ecosystem: PyPI, TestPyPI, package discovery, documentation hosting

This Skill Does NOT Cover

• General library patterns - see meta-library-dev
• Basic Python syntax - see lang-python-dev
• Web frameworks - see framework-specific skills
• Data science libraries - see data-analysis-polars-dev

---

Quick Reference

Task	Command/Pattern
New project with uv	uv init --lib <name>
Add dependency	uv add <package>
Add dev dependency	uv add --dev <package>
Install project	uv sync
Run tests	uv run pytest
Build package	uv build
Publish to TestPyPI	uv publish --index-url https://test.pypi.org/legacy/
Publish to PyPI	uv publish
Format code	uv run ruff format .
Lint code	uv run ruff check .
Type check	uv run mypy src/

---

Package Structure

Modern Python Package Layout

my-package/
├── pyproject.toml      # Project metadata and dependencies
├── README.md           # Package description
├── LICENSE             # License file
├── .gitignore          # Git ignore rules
├── src/
│   └── my_package/     # Source code (import name uses underscores)
│       ├── __init__.py # Public API exports
│       ├── py.typed    # PEP 561 marker for type hints
│       ├── core.py     # Core functionality
│       ├── types.py    # Type definitions
│       └── _internal.py # Private module (leading underscore)
├── tests/              # Test directory
│   ├── __init__.py
│   ├── test_core.py
│   └── test_types.py
├── docs/               # Documentation
│   ├── conf.py
│   └── index.md
└── examples/           # Usage examples
    └── basic_usage.py

Why src/ Layout?

Advantages:

1. Prevents import confusion - Can't accidentally import from source instead of installed package
2. Forces testing of installed package - Ensures distribution works correctly
3. Standard practice - Expected by modern Python tools

---

pyproject.toml Configuration

Minimal Configuration

[project]
name = "my-package"
version = "0.1.0"
description = "A brief description of the package"
readme = "README.md"
requires-python = ">=3.9"
license = {text = "MIT"}
authors = [
    {name = "Your Name", email = "you@example.com"}
]
keywords = ["keyword1", "keyword2"]
classifiers = [
    "Development Status :: 3 - Alpha",
    "Intended Audience :: Developers",
    "License :: OSI Approved :: MIT License",
    "Programming Language :: Python :: 3",
    "Programming Language :: Python :: 3.9",
    "Programming Language :: Python :: 3.10",
    "Programming Language :: Python :: 3.11",
    "Programming Language :: Python :: 3.12",
]

dependencies = [
    "requests>=2.31.0",
]

[project.optional-dependencies]
dev = [
    "pytest>=7.4.0",
    "pytest-cov>=4.1.0",
    "ruff>=0.1.0",
    "mypy>=1.5.0",
]
docs = [
    "mkdocs>=1.5.0",
    "mkdocs-material>=9.4.0",
]

[project.urls]
Homepage = "https://github.com/username/my-package"
Documentation = "https://my-package.readthedocs.io"
Repository = "https://github.com/username/my-package"
Issues = "https://github.com/username/my-package/issues"

[build-system]
requires = ["hatchling"]
build-backend = "hatchling.build"

[tool.hatch.build.targets.wheel]
packages = ["src/my_package"]

With Entry Points (CLI Tools)

[project.scripts]
my-cli = "my_package.cli:main"

# Or for plugins
[project.entry-points."some.plugin.system"]
my-plugin = "my_package.plugin:PluginClass"

Build Backend Options

Backend	Use Case	Configuration
hatchling	Modern, simple (recommended)	build-backend = "hatchling.build"
setuptools	Traditional, widely compatible	build-backend = "setuptools.build_meta"
flit	Minimal, for pure Python	build-backend = "flit_core.buildapi"
poetry-core	If using Poetry	build-backend = "poetry.core.masonry.api"

---

Public API Design (Python-Specific)

__init__.py Patterns

Minimal re-exports (recommended):

# src/my_package/__init__.py

"""My Package - A brief description.

Example usage:
    from my_package import parse_data

    result = parse_data("input")
"""

__version__ = "0.1.0"

# Public API - explicitly exported
from my_package.core import parse_data, process_data
from my_package.types import Config, Result

__all__ = [
    "parse_data",
    "process_data",
    "Config",
    "Result",
]

Why all?

1. Controls from my_package import *
2. Documents public API
3. IDE autocomplete hints
4. Type checkers respect it

Type Hints in Public APIs

Always provide type hints for public functions:

from typing import Optional, Union, Sequence
from pathlib import Path

def load_config(
    path: Union[str, Path],
    *,
    strict: bool = False,
    encoding: str = "utf-8",
) -> Config:
    """Load configuration from file.

    Args:
        path: Path to configuration file
        strict: Enable strict parsing mode
        encoding: File encoding (default: utf-8)

    Returns:
        Parsed configuration object

    Raises:
        ConfigError: If file cannot be parsed
        FileNotFoundError: If file does not exist
    """
    # Implementation

Modern union syntax (Python 3.10+):

def process(value: int | str | None) -> dict[str, Any]:
    """Process input value."""
    # Implementation

Pythonic Patterns

Context managers for resource management:

from contextlib import contextmanager
from typing import Iterator

class Database:
    """Database connection manager."""

    def __enter__(self) -> "Database":
        self.connect()
        return self

    def __exit__(self, exc_type, exc_val, exc_tb):
        self.close()
        return False

# Or as generator
@contextmanager
def temporary_directory() -> Iterator[Path]:
    """Create and cleanup temporary directory."""
    temp_dir = Path(tempfile.mkdtemp())
    try:
        yield temp_dir
    finally:
        shutil.rmtree(temp_dir)

# Usage
with Database() as db:
    db.query("SELECT * FROM users")

Decorators for functionality enhancement:

from functools import wraps
from typing import Callable, TypeVar

T = TypeVar("T")

def retry(max_attempts: int = 3):
    """Retry decorator with configurable attempts."""
    def decorator(func: Callable[..., T]) -> Callable[..., T]:
        @wraps(func)
        def wrapper(*args, **kwargs) -> T:
            for attempt in range(max_attempts):
                try:
                    return func(*args, **kwargs)
                except Exception as e:
                    if attempt == max_attempts - 1:
                        raise
                    continue
            raise RuntimeError("Should not reach here")
        return wrapper
    return decorator

@retry(max_attempts=5)
def fetch_data(url: str) -> dict:
    """Fetch data with automatic retry."""
    # Implementation

Properties for computed attributes:

class Document:
    """Document with metadata."""

    def __init__(self, content: str):
        self._content = content
        self._word_count: Optional[int] = None

    @property
    def content(self) -> str:
        """Document content."""
        return self._content

    @property
    def word_count(self) -> int:
        """Cached word count."""
        if self._word_count is None:
            self._word_count = len(self._content.split())
        return self._word_count

    @property
    def is_empty(self) -> bool:
        """Check if document is empty."""
        return len(self._content) == 0

Dataclasses for Data Containers

Modern Python data modeling:

from dataclasses import dataclass, field
from typing import Optional

@dataclass
class Config:
    """Application configuration."""

    # Required fields
    api_key: str
    base_url: str

    # Optional with defaults
    timeout: int = 30
    retries: int = 3
    debug: bool = False

    # Computed default (factory)
    headers: dict[str, str] = field(default_factory=dict)

    # Exclude from repr
    _internal_state: Optional[str] = field(default=None, repr=False)

    def __post_init__(self):
        """Validate after initialization."""
        if self.timeout < 0:
            raise ValueError("timeout must be non-negative")

# Usage
config = Config(
    api_key="secret",
    base_url="https://api.example.com",
    headers={"User-Agent": "my-package/1.0"}
)

Frozen dataclasses for immutability:

@dataclass(frozen=True)
class Point:
    """Immutable 2D point."""
    x: float
    y: float

    def distance_to(self, other: "Point") -> float:
        """Calculate distance to another point."""
        return ((self.x - other.x)**2 + (self.y - other.y)**2)**0.5

---

Module Organization

Private vs Public Modules

Use leading underscore for private modules:

# Public modules (part of API)
my_package/
├── __init__.py
├── api.py          # Public: my_package.api
├── types.py        # Public: my_package.types

# Private modules (internal use only)
├── _internal.py    # Private: implementation details
├── _utils.py       # Private: internal utilities
└── _compat.py      # Private: compatibility layer

Why private modules?

• Signals internal implementation
• Free to refactor without breaking users
• Not imported by from my_package import *

Subpackages for Organization

Large packages benefit from subpackages:

my_package/
├── __init__.py
├── io/             # I/O operations
│   ├── __init__.py
│   ├── readers.py
│   └── writers.py
├── parsers/        # Parser implementations
│   ├── __init__.py
│   ├── json.py
│   └── yaml.py
└── validators/     # Validation logic
    ├── __init__.py
    └── schema.py

# Usage
from my_package.io import read_file
from my_package.parsers.json import JsonParser

Re-export for convenience:

# my_package/__init__.py
from my_package.io import read_file, write_file
from my_package.parsers import parse_json, parse_yaml

__all__ = ["read_file", "write_file", "parse_json", "parse_yaml"]

# Users can do:
from my_package import read_file, parse_json
# Instead of:
from my_package.io import read_file
from my_package.parsers.json import parse_json

---

Dependency Management with uv

Adding Dependencies

# Add runtime dependency
uv add requests

# Add with version constraint
uv add "requests>=2.31.0,<3.0"

# Add development dependency
uv add --dev pytest pytest-cov ruff mypy

# Add optional dependency group
uv add --optional docs mkdocs mkdocs-material

pyproject.toml Dependency Specification

[project]
dependencies = [
    "requests>=2.31.0,<3.0",
    "pydantic>=2.0",
]

[project.optional-dependencies]
# Development tools
dev = [
    "pytest>=7.4.0",
    "pytest-cov>=4.1.0",
    "ruff>=0.1.0",
    "mypy>=1.5.0",
]

# Documentation
docs = [
    "mkdocs>=1.5.0",
    "mkdocs-material>=9.4.0",
]

# All extras combined
all = [
    "my-package[dev,docs]",
]

Dependency Version Constraints

Constraint	Meaning	Example
>=1.0	Minimum version	requests>=2.31.0
<2.0	Maximum version (exclusive)	requests<3.0
>=1.0,<2.0	Range	requests>=2.31.0,<3.0
~=1.4.2	Compatible release	~=1.4.2 means >=1.4.2,<1.5.0
==1.4.2	Exact version (avoid in libraries)	pytest==7.4.0

Best practices:

• Libraries: Use loose constraints (>=2.0,<3.0)
• Applications: Can use exact versions or lockfiles
• Avoid upper bounds unless there's a known incompatibility

---

Testing Patterns

pytest Structure

Standard test organization:

# tests/test_core.py
import pytest
from my_package import parse_data, Config
from my_package.errors import ParseError

def test_parse_valid_input():
    """Test parsing valid input."""
    result = parse_data("key=value")
    assert result == {"key": "value"}

def test_parse_invalid_input():
    """Test parsing invalid input raises error."""
    with pytest.raises(ParseError, match="Invalid format"):
        parse_data("invalid")

@pytest.mark.parametrize("input,expected", [
    ("a=1", {"a": "1"}),
    ("a=1,b=2", {"a": "1", "b": "2"}),
    ("", {}),
])
def test_parse_various_inputs(input, expected):
    """Test parsing various input formats."""
    result = parse_data(input)
    assert result == expected

Fixtures for Setup

Reusable test fixtures:

# tests/conftest.py
import pytest
from pathlib import Path
from my_package import Config

@pytest.fixture
def sample_config():
    """Provide sample configuration."""
    return Config(
        api_key="test_key",
        base_url="https://test.example.com"
    )

@pytest.fixture
def temp_file(tmp_path):
    """Create temporary test file."""
    file = tmp_path / "test.txt"
    file.write_text("test content")
    return file

# tests/test_something.py
def test_with_config(sample_config):
    """Test using fixture."""
    assert sample_config.api_key == "test_key"

def test_with_file(temp_file):
    """Test using temporary file."""
    content = temp_file.read_text()
    assert content == "test content"

Coverage Configuration

# pyproject.toml
[tool.pytest.ini_options]
testpaths = ["tests"]
python_files = ["test_*.py"]
python_functions = ["test_*"]
addopts = [
    "--strict-markers",
    "--cov=my_package",
    "--cov-report=term-missing",
    "--cov-report=html",
]

[tool.coverage.run]
source = ["src"]
omit = ["*/tests/*", "*/__pycache__/*"]

[tool.coverage.report]
exclude_lines = [
    "pragma: no cover",
    "def __repr__",
    "raise AssertionError",
    "raise NotImplementedError",
    "if TYPE_CHECKING:",
    "if __name__ == .__main__.:",
]

---

Type Checking with mypy

Configuration

# pyproject.toml
[tool.mypy]
python_version = "3.9"
strict = true
warn_return_any = true
warn_unused_configs = true
disallow_untyped_defs = true
disallow_incomplete_defs = true
check_untyped_defs = true
no_implicit_optional = true

# Per-module options
[[tool.mypy.overrides]]
module = "tests.*"
disallow_untyped_defs = false

[[tool.mypy.overrides]]
module = "third_party_lib.*"
ignore_missing_imports = true

py.typed Marker

Enable type checking for your package:

# Create marker file
touch src/my_package/py.typed

Include in package distribution:

# pyproject.toml (hatchling)
[tool.hatch.build.targets.wheel]
packages = ["src/my_package"]
include = ["src/my_package/py.typed"]

This enables:

• Type checkers see your package as typed
• Users get type hints in their IDE
• Exported types can be used in annotations

---

Code Quality Tools

ruff Configuration

Modern linter and formatter (replaces flake8, black, isort):

# pyproject.toml
[tool.ruff]
line-length = 88
target-version = "py39"
src = ["src", "tests"]

[tool.ruff.lint]
select = [
    "E",      # pycodestyle errors
    "W",      # pycodestyle warnings
    "F",      # pyflakes
    "I",      # isort
    "B",      # flake8-bugbear
    "C4",     # flake8-comprehensions
    "UP",     # pyupgrade
    "ARG",    # flake8-unused-arguments
    "SIM",    # flake8-simplify
]
ignore = [
    "E501",   # line too long (handled by formatter)
]

[tool.ruff.lint.per-file-ignores]
"tests/*" = ["ARG001"]  # Allow unused arguments in tests

[tool.ruff.format]
quote-style = "double"
indent-style = "space"

Pre-commit Integration

.pre-commit-config.yaml:

repos:
  - repo: https://github.com/astral-sh/ruff-pre-commit
    rev: v0.1.6
    hooks:
      - id: ruff
        args: [--fix]
      - id: ruff-format

  - repo: https://github.com/pre-commit/mirrors-mypy
    rev: v1.7.0
    hooks:
      - id: mypy
        additional_dependencies: [types-all]

---

Publishing to PyPI

Pre-publish Checklist

• Version bumped in pyproject.toml
• CHANGELOG.md updated
• README.md is current
• All tests pass: uv run pytest
• Type checking passes: uv run mypy src/
• Linting passes: uv run ruff check .
• Package builds: uv build
• Test installation: uv pip install dist/*.whl

Building the Package

# Build source distribution and wheel
uv build

# Output:
# dist/
# ├── my_package-0.1.0.tar.gz    # Source distribution
# └── my_package-0.1.0-py3-none-any.whl  # Wheel

Publishing

First, test on TestPyPI:

# Publish to TestPyPI
uv publish --index-url https://test.pypi.org/legacy/

# Test installation from TestPyPI
uv pip install --index-url https://test.pypi.org/simple/ my-package

Then publish to PyPI:

# Publish to PyPI (requires PyPI account and token)
uv publish

# Or specify token
uv publish --token pypi-TOKEN

PyPI Credentials

Configure in ~/.pypirc:

[distutils]
index-servers =
    pypi
    testpypi

[pypi]
username = __token__
password = pypi-YOUR_TOKEN_HERE

[testpypi]
repository = https://test.pypi.org/legacy/
username = __token__
password = pypi-YOUR_TEST_TOKEN_HERE

Or use environment variables:

export UV_PUBLISH_TOKEN=pypi-TOKEN
uv publish

---

Documentation

README.md Structure

# My Package

Brief description of what the package does.

## Installation

```bash
pip install my-package

Quick Start

from my_package import parse_data

result = parse_data("input")
print(result)

Features

• Feature 1
• Feature 2
• Feature 3

Documentation

Full documentation available at docs.example.com.

Contributing

See CONTRIBUTING.md.

License

MIT License - see LICENSE file.

### Docstring Conventions

**Use Google or NumPy style docstrings:**
```python
def process_data(
    input_data: str,
    *,
    strict: bool = False,
    encoding: str = "utf-8",
) -> dict[str, Any]:
    """Process input data and return structured output.

    Args:
        input_data: Raw input string to process
        strict: Enable strict parsing mode (default: False)
        encoding: Character encoding to use (default: utf-8)

    Returns:
        Dictionary containing parsed data with keys:
        - 'status': Processing status
        - 'data': Processed data
        - 'errors': List of errors (if any)

    Raises:
        ValueError: If input_data is empty
        ParseError: If parsing fails in strict mode

    Example:
        >>> result = process_data("key=value")
        >>> result['status']
        'success'
    """
    if not input_data:
        raise ValueError("input_data cannot be empty")

    # Implementation

MkDocs for Documentation

mkdocs.yml:

site_name: My Package
site_url: https://my-package.readthedocs.io
repo_url: https://github.com/username/my-package

theme:
  name: material
  features:
    - navigation.tabs
    - navigation.sections
    - toc.integrate

nav:
  - Home: index.md
  - Getting Started: getting-started.md
  - API Reference: api.md
  - Contributing: contributing.md

markdown_extensions:
  - admonition
  - codehilite
  - pymdownx.superfences

plugins:
  - search
  - mkdocstrings:
      handlers:
        python:
          paths: [src]

---

Versioning and Releases

Semantic Versioning

Follow semver for library releases:

• 0.x.y - Pre-1.0, no stability guarantees
• 1.0.0 - First stable release
• 1.x.y - Backward compatible changes
• 2.0.0 - Breaking changes

Version Bumping

Single source of truth:

# src/my_package/__init__.py
__version__ = "0.1.0"

Read in pyproject.toml (dynamic versioning):

[project]
dynamic = ["version"]

[tool.hatch.version]
path = "src/my_package/__init__.py"

Or use static version:

[project]
version = "0.1.0"

CHANGELOG.md

Keep a changelog:

# Changelog

All notable changes to this project will be documented in this file.

The format is based on [Keep a Changelog](https://keepachangelog.com/).

## [Unreleased]

### Added
- New feature X

### Changed
- Updated behavior of Y

## [0.1.0] - 2024-01-15

### Added
- Initial release
- Feature A
- Feature B

---

Common Patterns

Factory Functions

from typing import Protocol

class Parser(Protocol):
    """Parser protocol."""
    def parse(self, data: str) -> dict:
        ...

def create_parser(format: str) -> Parser:
    """Create parser for specified format.

    Args:
        format: One of 'json', 'yaml', 'toml'

    Returns:
        Parser instance for the format

    Raises:
        ValueError: If format is unsupported
    """
    if format == "json":
        return JsonParser()
    elif format == "yaml":
        return YamlParser()
    elif format == "toml":
        return TomlParser()
    else:
        raise ValueError(f"Unsupported format: {format}")

Singleton Pattern

class DatabaseConnection:
    """Singleton database connection."""

    _instance: Optional["DatabaseConnection"] = None

    def __new__(cls):
        if cls._instance is None:
            cls._instance = super().__new__(cls)
            cls._instance._initialize()
        return cls._instance

    def _initialize(self):
        """Initialize connection (called once)."""
        self.connection = self._create_connection()

Configuration Management

from pathlib import Path
from typing import Any
import json

class Config:
    """Application configuration manager."""

    def __init__(self, config_path: Optional[Path] = None):
        self._data: dict[str, Any] = {}
        if config_path:
            self.load(config_path)

    def load(self, path: Path) -> None:
        """Load configuration from file."""
        with open(path) as f:
            self._data = json.load(f)

    def get(self, key: str, default: Any = None) -> Any:
        """Get configuration value."""
        return self._data.get(key, default)

    def __getitem__(self, key: str) -> Any:
        """Dictionary-style access."""
        return self._data[key]

---

Anti-Patterns

1. Mutable Default Arguments

# Bad: Mutable default
def add_item(item, items=[]):
    items.append(item)
    return items

# Good: Use None and create new
def add_item(item, items=None):
    if items is None:
        items = []
    items.append(item)
    return items

2. Catching All Exceptions

# Bad: Swallows all errors
try:
    result = risky_operation()
except Exception:
    return None

# Good: Catch specific exceptions
try:
    result = risky_operation()
except ValueError as e:
    logger.warning(f"Invalid value: {e}")
    return None

3. Circular Imports

# Bad: module_a.py imports module_b, module_b imports module_a

# Good: Use TYPE_CHECKING
from typing import TYPE_CHECKING

if TYPE_CHECKING:
    from module_b import ClassB

def my_function(obj: "ClassB") -> None:
    # Use string annotation to avoid runtime import
    pass

4. Missing Type Hints

# Bad: No type hints
def process(data):
    return data.upper()

# Good: Clear types
def process(data: str) -> str:
    return data.upper()

---

Troubleshooting

Import Errors After Installation

Problem: ModuleNotFoundError: No module named 'my_package'

Solutions:

1. Ensure package is installed: uv pip list | grep my-package
2. Check package name vs import name (hyphens vs underscores)
3. Verify src/ layout is configured in pyproject.toml
4. Reinstall in editable mode: uv pip install -e .

Type Checking Errors

Problem: mypy reports errors but code runs fine

Solutions:

1. Add type hints to function signatures
2. Use # type: ignore[error-code] for false positives
3. Configure mypy properly in pyproject.toml
4. Add py.typed marker file

Package Not Found on PyPI

Problem: Published package but can't install

Solutions:

1. Wait a few minutes for PyPI to index
2. Check package name isn't already taken
3. Verify upload succeeded: check PyPI web interface
4. Try exact version: pip install my-package==0.1.0

---

References

• meta-library-dev - Foundational library patterns
• lang-python-dev - Basic Python syntax and patterns
• Python Packaging User Guide
• uv Documentation
• PyPI - Python Package Index
• TestPyPI - Test package repository
• PEP 517 - Build system interface
• PEP 518 - pyproject.toml
• PEP 621 - Project metadata