Publishing Workflow

0. Pre-Publishing Review

Before running automated checks, confirm content readiness:

Check the conversation history for evidence of prior reviews:

• Look for "blog-voice-review skill is running" or voice review results
• Look for "blog-proofreading skill is running" or proofreading results
• Check for link testing (curl commands), formatting checks, etc.

If reviews were already done in this conversation:

• Note that and proceed directly to automated checks
• Example: "I see you already did voice review and proofreading earlier, let's run the validation checks..."

If no evidence of reviews, suggest running them:

Before we publish, let's make sure the content is ready:

- Voice review: checks for authentic voice, personal experience, conversational tone
- Proofreading: tests links, checks formatting, reviews flow
- Fact checking: verifies claims against sources (if applicable)

Want to run voice review and proofreading now? Or skip to publishing validation?

If user confirms they're done or wants to skip, proceed to automated checks.

The typical publishing readiness pattern is: write → voice → facts (if needed) → proofread → publish

1. Automated Checks

Run validation script:

python3 .claude/skills/blog-publishing/scripts/validate-post.py <path-to-post>

The script checks:

• Scans for leftover TODO(@ comments
• Validates required frontmatter fields (title, date, description)
• Checks directory structure matches slug
• Verifies date is reasonable for publish
• Confirms post is in /content/en/drafts/ (warns if already in blog/)

2. Find Related Posts for Research & SEO

Optional but recommended. After automated checks pass, search for related content to ensure your post isn't written in a vacuum and discover potential resources to link.

When to use:

• After automated checks pass
• Pick 3-5 key topics, concepts, or tools from your post
• Want curated links for a Resources/Related Reading section
• Want to surface any gaps or angles you might expand on

Process:

1. You identify key topics

   • "Find posts about DevPod, containerization, and local development"
   • "Search for content on automated deployment patterns"
   • Give me 3-5 specific topics to research

2. I search and evaluate (WebSearch)

   • Look for recent posts, articles, tools (prefer 2024-2025)
   • Evaluate relevance to your specific angle
   • Note why each result matters relative to your post
   • Filter out generic tutorials that don't add value

3. I present findings with context

   • Link + publication date
   • Why it's relevant to your post specifically
   • How it complements or differs from your angle
   • Gaps it exposes that you might address

4. You decide what to include

   • Pick which links add value
   • Write the narrative context (I'm providing raw relevance, you provide framing)
   • Add to Resources section with your own commentary

5. Optional: Flag opportunities

   • "This gap suggests you could expand section X"
   • "No existing content covers your angle on Y"
   • "This contradicts a point in your post - worth addressing?"

Response format:

**Topic: [X]**

🔗 [Article Title] (Publication, Date)
- Why relevant: [1-2 sentences on how it connects to your post]
- Angle difference: [How it's different or complementary]

🔗 [Another article]
- Why relevant: ...

**Gaps I noticed:**
- [Potential area for expansion or note]
- [Something you might want to address]

What this isn't:

• Not a comprehensive literature review
• Not writing content for you
• Not telling you what should be in Resources
• Not exhaustive research - just enough to inform your decisions

Integration: Runs after automated checks but before the final Publishing Checklist. Gives you research context while you're in final review mode.

3. Publishing Checklist

Walk through interactively:

Content Review

• All TODO comments removed?
• No placeholder content remaining?
• Spelling and grammar checked?

Frontmatter & Structure

• Date matches intended publish date?
• Description suitable for SEO/social?
• Tags are relevant and accurate?
• Directory structure matches slug?

Final Quality Check

• Conversational and authentic voice?
• Technical concepts explained accessibly?
• Honest about limitations?
• Links tested and working?
• Credits/attributions where appropriate? (optional - not every post needs this)
• Closing feels natural? (no required format - some posts just end)

4. Final Publishing Steps

If all checks pass:

1. Update date - Set date field in frontmatter to publish date
2. Move post - Move from /content/en/drafts/slug/ to /content/en/blog/YYYY/MM/DD/slug/

   # Example
   mv content/en/drafts/my-post content/en/blog/2025/11/01/my-post
   

3. Clean frontmatter - Remove draft: true (optional - location determines status)
4. Commit and push - Post will be live on next build

Script Location

See .claude/skills/blog-publishing/scripts/validate-post.py for implementation.