Prosemark CLI Writing Project Manager

Prosemark is a command-line tool for planning, organizing, and writing stories using a hierarchical document structure. It provides a clean, file-based approach to managing complex writing projects with structured content nodes, notes, and flexible organization.

Overview

Prosemark helps writers organize their work by breaking down documents into a hierarchical structure of nodes stored in plain Markdown files. Each node contains main content, metadata, and optional notes. The project uses a "binder" approach where the overall structure is maintained in a special _binder.md file, while individual content pieces are stored in separate files.

Key features:

• File-based storage: All content in plain Markdown files
• Hierarchical organization: Tree structure of content nodes
• UUIDv7 identifiers: Temporal ordering with collision resistance
• Editor integration: Launch your preferred editor for content editing
• Atomic operations: Safe file operations that preserve existing content
• Audit capabilities: Check project integrity and consistency

Installation

From Source (Development)

# Clone the repository
git clone https://github.com/yourusername/prosemark.git
cd prosemark

# Install with uv (recommended)
uv sync
uv run pmk --help

# Or install with pip
pip install -e .
pmk --help

System Requirements

• Python 3.13 or higher
• Your preferred text editor (set via EDITOR environment variable)

Quick Start

1. Initialize a New Project

# Create a new writing project
mkdir my-novel
cd my-novel
pmk init --title "My Great Novel"

This creates a _binder.md file with managed content sections for project structure.

2. Add Content Nodes

# Add top-level chapters
pmk add "Part 1: The Beginning"
pmk add "Chapter 1: Origins" --parent 01234567

# The output shows the generated UUIDv7 identifier:
# Added "Part 1: The Beginning" (01234567)
# Created files: 01234567.md, 01234567.notes.md

3. View Project Structure

pmk structure

# Output:
# Project Structure:
# ├─ Part 1: The Beginning (01234567)
# │  └─ Chapter 1: Origins (89abcdef)

4. Edit Content

# Edit the main content
pmk edit 89abcdef --part draft

# Edit notes
pmk edit 89abcdef --part notes

# Edit synopsis (metadata)
pmk edit 89abcdef --part synopsis

5. Create Freeform Content

# Quick writing for ideas outside the main structure
pmk write "Character development ideas"

# Creates: 20250920T1530_01234567-89ab-cdef-0123-456789abcdef.md

Command Reference

Project Management

• pmk init --title TITLE [--path PATH] - Initialize new project
• pmk audit [--fix] - Check project integrity

Content Management

• pmk add TITLE [--parent ID] [--position INDEX] - Add new node
• pmk edit NODE_ID --part {draft|notes|synopsis} - Edit content
• pmk materialize TITLE [--parent ID] - Convert placeholder to node
• pmk move NODE_ID [--parent ID] [--position INDEX] - Reorganize hierarchy
• pmk remove NODE_ID [--delete-files] [--force] - Remove node

Viewing and Organization

• pmk structure [--format {tree|json}] - Display project hierarchy
• pmk write [TITLE] - Create timestamped freeform file

File Structure

Prosemark organizes projects with this structure:

my-novel/
├── _binder.md                    # Project structure (managed content)
├── 01234567.md                   # Node content file
├── 01234567.notes.md             # Node notes file
├── 89abcdef.md                   # Another node
├── 89abcdef.notes.md             # Its notes
└── 20250920T1530_*.md            # Freeform writing files

Binder File Format

The _binder.md file contains your project structure between managed markers:

# My Novel

Your project description and notes.

<!-- pmk:begin-binder -->
- [Part 1: The Beginning](01234567.md)
  - [Chapter 1: Origins](89abcdef.md)
  - [Future Chapter]()
<!-- pmk:end-binder -->

Additional content is preserved outside the managed section.

Node File Format

Each node consists of two files with YAML frontmatter:

Content file (01234567.md):

---
id: 01234567
title: "Part 1: The Beginning"
synopsis: |
  Opening section that establishes
  the world and main characters
created: 2025-09-20T15:30:00Z
updated: 2025-09-20T15:30:00Z
---

# Part 1: The Beginning

Your story content goes here...

Notes file (01234567.notes.md):

---
id: 01234567
title: "Part 1: The Beginning"
created: 2025-09-20T15:30:00Z
updated: 2025-09-20T15:30:00Z
---

# Notes for Part 1

Research, character details, plot notes...

Configuration

Editor Setup

Set your preferred editor via environment variable:

export EDITOR="code --wait"    # VS Code
export EDITOR="vim"            # Vim
export EDITOR="nano"           # Nano

Integration with Other Tools

Prosemark files are designed to work well with:

• Git: All files are plain text and diff-friendly
• Obsidian: Files appear as individual notes with preserved frontmatter
• Any text editor: Standard Markdown with YAML frontmatter
• Static site generators: Compatible with Jekyll, Hugo, etc.

Architecture

Prosemark uses hexagonal (ports and adapters) architecture:

• Domain: Core business logic (nodes, binders, identifiers)
• Ports: Interfaces for external dependencies
• Adapters: File system, editor, console implementations
• Use Cases: Application logic orchestrating the domain
• CLI: Command-line interface layer

This design ensures the core logic is independent of file systems, editors, or CLI frameworks.

Development

Tech Stack

• Python 3.13+ with type hints
• Typer for CLI framework
• PyYAML for frontmatter parsing
• pytest for testing with 100% coverage
• ruff for formatting and linting
• mypy for type checking

Development Setup

# Install development dependencies
uv sync --dev

# Run tests
uv run pytest

# Type checking
uv run mypy src/

# Linting and formatting
uv run ruff check src/
uv run ruff format src/

Testing

The project uses comprehensive testing:

• Contract tests: Verify API interfaces
• Unit tests: Test individual components
• Integration tests: Test complete workflows
• Performance tests: Ensure scalability

Run specific test suites:

uv run pytest tests/contract/     # Contract tests
uv run pytest tests/unit/        # Unit tests
uv run pytest tests/integration/ # Integration tests
uv run pytest tests/performance/ # Performance tests

Contributing

1. Fork the repository
2. Create a feature branch
3. Write tests for new functionality
4. Ensure all tests pass and coverage remains 100%
5. Submit a pull request

License

MIT License

Support

For issues, feature requests, or questions:

• File an issue on GitHub
• Check existing documentation in the specs/ directory
• Review test cases for usage examples