@natjswenson/devlog 0.14.0 → 0.14.1

package/CHANGELOG.md

@@ -2,6 +2,13 @@
 
 All notable changes to `@natjswenson/devlog` are documented here.
 
+## 0.14.1 (2026-09-10) — native branded cover generation
+
+- Require Codex covers to use native generated raster artwork in the established
+  monochrome technical-engraving PRESS style; reject wireframes and SVG substitutes.
+- Require copyable agent handoffs and validated covers before publication.
+- Fix cover backfills when the target repository stores entries below `targetDir`.
+
 ## 0.14.0 (2026-09-09) — verified concept guides and AI cover composition
 
 - Add an explicit concept-guide draft workflow: select one transferable reader

package/README.md

@@ -1,7 +1,7 @@
 # devlog
 
-<!-- >>> press:masthead v0.9.0 sha256:4b48a8031589 GENERATED by @natjswenson/press, do not edit -->
-**NS** · NATE SWENSON · CLAUDE CODE + CODEX SKILL · PRESS v0.9.0 · linkedin.com/in/natejswenson
+<!-- >>> press:masthead v0.10.0 sha256:b950ecf78f98 GENERATED by @natjswenson/press, do not edit -->
+**NS** · NATE SWENSON · CLAUDE CODE + CODEX SKILL · PRESS v0.10.0 · linkedin.com/in/natejswenson
 
 ---
 <!-- <<< press:masthead -->

package/SKILL.md

@@ -19,6 +19,10 @@ apps by capability rather than assuming Claude MCP tool names exist.
 
 # /devlog — Release How-To Generator
 
+<!-- press:runtime -->
+In Claude Code, load `/press`; in Codex, load `$press`; then follow the shared PRESS terminal/UI contract from `brand/agent-ui.md`. Do not copy or override that contract here.
+<!-- press:runtime -->
+
 In the default Generate mode, you turn each **new version release** (a semver git tag) in the user's projects into a
 published blog post, written in **the user's own voice**, and pushed to the GitHub repo
 configured in `~/.claude/skills/devlog/config.json`.
@@ -392,9 +396,12 @@ The `--clone` flag always points at the CONTENT ROOT: `<abs-tmp>/<repo-name>` wh
 `targetDir` is empty, `<abs-tmp>/<repo-name>/<targetDir>` when it's set. Git commands
 always run against the clone root `<abs-tmp>/<repo-name>` regardless.
 
-In this legacy Generate path, each release also gets a cover image, composed inline in this same loop right before that
-release's own `publish-entry` call — a self-contained HTML/CSS (or inline SVG) document,
-rasterized locally, never sent to any external service:
+In this Generate path, each release also gets a cover image, created inline in this same loop right before that
+release's own `publish-entry` call. In Codex, the dominant artwork MUST come from the native
+image-generation tool as a persisted raster source; wireframes, hand-authored SVG, CSS drawings,
+and title-only placeholders are not covers. The deterministic compositor may add PRESS typography
+around that generated artwork, but it must never substitute for native image generation.
+The cover must carry a custom illustration or other meaningful visual material; a cover that just re-renders the title in large text is a failure.
 
 ```bash
 mktemp -d    # → record the absolute path, e.g. /var/folders/.../tmp.abc
@@ -415,24 +422,17 @@ Per release:
    returns the style guide, icon catalog, and up to 3 reference cover paths. **Read
    only the single most recent reference image** (image reads are the expensive part;
    open another only if you're genuinely unsure the new cover is distinct). On
-   `{"error": "style-guide-missing"}`: skip cover composition for this release entirely
-   and proceed straight to publish-entry with no `--cover` flag.
-   Never block publish on a missing style guide.
-2. **Compose** using ONLY this release's title/tags/summary/`## Shipped` text
-   (never the raw draft file, never `## Changelog`) plus the style guide and icon catalog. A
-   cover that just re-renders the title in large text is a failure — find the one
-   concrete mechanism this release is actually about (not the project name, not "a bug
-   fix") and draw ONE custom inline-SVG illustration of it as the dominant visual
-   element; title/kicker stay secondary; two releases should never produce visually
-   similar covers. Follow the style guide's hero-zone grid contract: the illustration
-   lives in a `#hero-zone` container at exactly `x:150 y:425 width:1300 height:400`
-   (render-cover mechanically enforces this), one of two slots (single centered hero,
-   or two-node before/after), interior points snapped to a 25px grid; catalog icons
-   never go inside `#hero-zone` (optional small accent glyph near the kicker only,
-   bottom edge above y:400). Write the document with the Write tool to
-   `'<abs-scratch>/<key>/<version>.html'` — full `<!DOCTYPE html>` document, sized
-   `html, body { margin:0; width:1600px; height:900px; }`, font referenced only as
-   `font-family: 'DevlogCoverFont', sans-serif`.
+   `{"error": "style-guide-missing"}`: stop this release and report that publication is
+   blocked. A release entry is not publishable without a cover and agent handoff.
+2. **Generate and compose.** Use ONLY this release's title/tags/summary/`## Shipped` text
+   (never the raw draft file, never `## Changelog`) plus the style guide and icon catalog to
+   brief the native image-generation tool. Request artwork only: one concrete mechanism,
+   no lettering, labels, numbers, logos, fake code, UI, wireframe, gradients, or watermark.
+   Persist and inspect the exact returned raster, then use `compose-art-cover` to add local
+   PRESS typography. Do not draw the dominant art as inline SVG or CSS. A cover that just
+   re-renders the title in large text is a failure. Match the established backfill look:
+   flat cream paper, monochrome technical engraving, black/gray ink, restrained crosshatching,
+   a quiet left field for the headline, and at most one small orange accent.
 3. **Rasterize.**
    `npx -y @natjswenson/devlog@latest render-cover '<abs-scratch>/<key>/<version>.html' --project '<key>' --slug '<version>' --out '<abs-scratch>'`
    The HTML is the source of truth and **survives the render**: to fix a visual

package/bin/devlog.js

@@ -1126,15 +1126,18 @@ async function cmdCommitCovers(rest) {
   // routinely runs well after the backfill/review session that produced the staging dir,
   // and reusing an hours-or-days-old clone would risk mutating a manifest that's since
   // moved on.
-  const cloneDir = mkdtempSync(join(tmpdir(), 'devlog-commit-covers-'));
+  const repoDir = mkdtempSync(join(tmpdir(), 'devlog-commit-covers-'));
   const branch = config.branch || 'main';
   const cloneUrl = `https://github.com/${config.targetRepo}.git`;
-  const cloneResult = spawnSync('git', ['clone', '--depth=1', '--branch', branch, cloneUrl, cloneDir], { encoding: 'utf8' });
+  const cloneResult = spawnSync('git', ['clone', '--depth=1', '--branch', branch, cloneUrl, repoDir], { encoding: 'utf8' });
   if (cloneResult.status !== 0) {
-    rmSync(cloneDir, { recursive: true, force: true });
+    rmSync(repoDir, { recursive: true, force: true });
     emitJSON({ error: 'clone-failed', message: cloneResult.stderr || 'git clone failed' }, 1);
     return;
   }
+  // Manifests live under the configured content root; git operations still run
+  // from the repository root.
+  const cloneDir = join(repoDir, config.targetDir || '');
 
   const summary = { written: [], skipped: [], failed: [], missingManifest: [] };
   let bulkForceOverwriteCount = 0;
@@ -1199,20 +1202,20 @@ async function cmdCommitCovers(rest) {
       ['commit', '-m', `chore(devlog): add ${summary.written.length} cover image(s)`],
     ];
     for (const args of steps) {
-      const r = spawnSync('git', ['-C', cloneDir, ...args], { encoding: 'utf8' });
+      const r = spawnSync('git', ['-C', repoDir, ...args], { encoding: 'utf8' });
       if (r.status !== 0) {
         emitJSON({ ok: false, ...summary, bulkForceOverwriteCount, error: 'git-commit-failed', message: r.stderr }, 1);
         return;
       }
     }
-    const push = spawnSync('git', ['-C', cloneDir, 'push', '--no-tags', 'origin', branch], { encoding: 'utf8' });
+    const push = spawnSync('git', ['-C', repoDir, 'push', '--no-tags', 'origin', branch], { encoding: 'utf8' });
     if (push.status !== 0) {
       emitJSON({ ok: false, ...summary, bulkForceOverwriteCount, error: 'git-push-failed', message: push.stderr }, 1);
       return;
     }
   }
 
-  rmSync(cloneDir, { recursive: true, force: true });
+  rmSync(repoDir, { recursive: true, force: true });
   emitJSON({ ok: summary.failed.length === 0, ...summary, bulkForceOverwriteCount });
 }
 

package/image-style/style-guide.example.md

@@ -11,8 +11,9 @@ are how a from-scratch visual language stays consistent from post to post.
 
 ## What you're composing
 
-A single self-contained HTML document (inline `<style>`, inline SVG for any artwork) that
-renders, at exactly 1600×900px, as a cover image for one dev log entry. Compose from these
+A single PRESS editorial cover that renders, at exactly 1600×900px, as a cover image for
+one dev log entry. In Codex, the dominant image is a native generated raster illustration;
+the local compositor adds the typography and layout. Compose from these
 fields only — never open the post's raw markdown file, never reference any section other
 than `## Shipped` (no `## Changelog`, no gotchas, no sources):
 - `title`
@@ -34,11 +35,11 @@ Before writing any HTML, do this thinking step explicitly:
    key that doesn't fit, a git tag being distrusted like any other user input, one broken
    link in a chain, a filter separating signal from noise, a clock catching a stale
    timestamp, two paths diverging and one being cut off.
-3. Design ONE illustration — built from inline SVG shapes (lines, arcs, polygons,
-   simple geometric forms) — that depicts that concept. Not a photo, not a stock icon,
-   not a screenshot: a small original line-art scene, **editorial line art in ink with
-   sparing orange**, in the spirit of a newspaper diagram or a technical schematic, using
-   only the palette below.
+3. Design ONE native raster illustration that depicts that concept. Not a photo, stock
+   icon, screenshot, UI, wireframe, or geometric placeholder: a detailed original
+   **monochrome technical engraving in black and warm gray ink on flat cream paper**, in
+   the spirit of a historical engineering plate or newspaper field illustration, with at
+   most one small vermilion/orange focal accent. The art must look printed, not painterly.
 4. That illustration is the dominant visual element of the cover — roughly half the
    canvas, not a thumbnail in the corner. Title, kicker, and summary text support it;
    they do not replace it.
@@ -151,10 +152,10 @@ For the two-node slot specifically: the accent icon's presence must not be read
   `DevlogCoverFont` finishes loading. That's resolving a name the browser already has, not
   embedding or fetching a file — no different in kind from the fallback this rule already
   requires.
-- No external resources of any kind — no `<link>`, no `@import`, no remote `<img src>`,
-  no web fonts, no raster images. All artwork is inline SVG built from basic shapes
-  (`<path>`, `<circle>`, `<rect>`, `<line>`, `<polygon>`, `<polyline>`) — everything must
-  be inline HTML/CSS/SVG, hand-composed, not fetched or embedded from anywhere.
+- The final cover must be self-contained and offline-renderable. Native raster artwork is
+  persisted locally and embedded by `compose-art-cover`; no remote images or web fonts.
+  Typography is rendered locally and the generated artwork is never replaced by inline
+  SVG, CSS shapes, a wireframe, or a title-only placeholder.
 
 ## Visual direction
 
@@ -165,7 +166,7 @@ site, not a marketing graphic and not a repeated template.
 
 ### Palette
 
-<!-- >>> press:palette v0.9.0 sha256:5904c52d4168 GENERATED by @natjswenson/press, do not edit -->
+<!-- >>> press:palette v0.10.0 sha256:5904c52d4168 GENERATED by @natjswenson/press, do not edit -->
 - **Paper** `#F5F0E6` — Warm cream. Flat — never gradiented, never textured.
 - **Ink** `#181510` — Near-black. Text, headlines, and every structural rule.
 - **Dim** `#6E675C` — Muted secondary text; the serif commentary voice's color.
@@ -176,9 +177,10 @@ site, not a marketing graphic and not a repeated template.
   survives, and only inside a terminal element. Never on paper.
 <!-- <<< press:palette -->
 
-Prefer flat, limited color and solid/line fills over gradients or smooth shading — the
-render is compressed with lossy PNG palette quantization afterward, and gradients band
-visibly under that compression while flat fills don't.
+Prefer flat, limited color and solid/line fills over gradients or smooth shading. Native
+art should be predominantly cream paper plus black/gray engraving lines, with no broad
+color wash, no saturated palette, and no painterly digital lighting. The only bright color
+is the single small orange accent permitted by the accent law below.
 
 ### The accent law, carried to covers
 
@@ -304,7 +306,8 @@ summary as on-image text.
   cursor, no bare `_` suffix, no stray `$` prompt as decoration. The dark palette now
   belongs to exactly one place, the `.term` panel, and only when it's real code.
 - Don't embed a photograph, stock image, or anything requiring an external fetch — the
-  illustration is drawn from inline SVG primitives, not sourced from anywhere.
+  illustration is native-generated raster artwork persisted locally and embedded by the
+  compositor, never a hand-authored SVG substitute.
 - Don't reference any font file other than the bundled `'DevlogCoverFont'` — the serif
   and display voices lean on this rendering host's own system fonts, never a file you
   fetch or embed yourself.

package/package.json

@@ -1,6 +1,6 @@
 {
   "name": "@natjswenson/devlog",
-  "version": "0.14.0",
+  "version": "0.14.1",
   "description": "Release dev log generator — Claude Code skill + preview app for publishing version-release dev logs, written in your voice, to your site",
   "license": "MIT",
   "author": "Nate Swenson",

package/skill-invariants.json

@@ -72,9 +72,9 @@
       "rationale": "Cover composition must draw only from title/tags/summary/## Shipped \u2014 never the raw draft or Changelog \u2014 losing this line reopens off-scope content leaking into an auto-composed image."
     },
     {
-      "id": "cover-never-blocks-publish",
-      "pattern": "[Nn]ever block[\\s\\S]{0,10}publish on a missing style guide",
-      "rationale": "A missing/uninstalled style guide must degrade gracefully (no cover this run), never abort the whole publish."
+      "id": "cover-required-before-publish",
+      "pattern": "publication is[\\s\\S]{0,5}blocked",
+      "rationale": "A missing/uninstalled style guide must stop the release so Generate mode cannot publish an entry without its required cover."
     },
     {
       "id": "cover-review-gate",