blog-post-formatter

Format blog content into properly structured markdown files for the Next.js portfolio website. All blog posts are stored in _posts/ directory and automatically processed by the site's MDX system.

Quick Reference

• •File location: _posts/{slug}.md (slug is kebab-case of title)
• •Frontmatter format: See references/post-structure.md
• •Template: See assets/template.md

Workflow

1. Format Existing Content

When user provides raw blog content:

1. •

   Extract or generate title:

   • •If first line is a heading (H1), use it as title
   • •If content starts with text, extract first sentence or generate from content
   • •Ensure title is clear and descriptive
2. •

   Generate excerpt:

   • •Extract first meaningful paragraph (150-200 characters)
   • •Remove markdown formatting from excerpt
   • •If no suitable paragraph, generate summary from first few sentences
   • •Keep excerpt concise and engaging
3. •

   Set metadata:

   • •Date: Use current date in YYYY-MM-DD format if not provided
   • •Author: Default to 'Santosh Rai' (wrapped in single quotes)
   • •Title: Wrap in single quotes in frontmatter
4. •

   Format content:

   • •Do NOT include an H1 heading in the content (the page component already displays the title from frontmatter)
   • •Start content directly with paragraphs or H2 headings
   • •Preserve user's original markdown formatting
   • •Validate markdown syntax (code blocks, lists, links)
5. •

   Generate filename:

   • •Convert title to kebab-case (lowercase, hyphens for spaces)
   • •Remove special characters, keep only alphanumeric and hyphens
   • •Example: "Understanding JavaScript" → understanding-javascript.md
6. •

   Save file: Write to _posts/{slug}.md

2. Create New Post

When user provides topic/title:

1. •

   Generate frontmatter:

   • •Use provided title or generate from topic
   • •Create excerpt placeholder or generate from topic description
   • •Set date to current date
   • •Set author to 'Santosh Rai'
2. •

   Create structure:

   • •Do NOT add an H1 heading (the page component already displays the title from frontmatter)
   • •Start content directly with paragraphs or H2 headings
   • •Add placeholder sections or basic outline
   • •Use template from assets/template.md as starting point
3. •

   Save file: Write to _posts/{slug}.md

3. Auto-Generation Rules

Excerpt generation:

• •Extract first paragraph (up to 200 characters)
• •Remove markdown syntax (links, bold, code)
• •If paragraph is too short, include next sentence
• •Ensure excerpt is complete and grammatically correct

Title to slug conversion:

• •Convert to lowercase
• •Replace spaces with hyphens
• •Remove special characters (keep only alphanumeric and hyphens)
• •Remove leading/trailing hyphens
• •Examples:
  • •"What is JavaScript?" → what-is-javascript
  • •"Design Patterns With VBA" → design-patterns-with-vba
  • •"Simple calculator in javascript using MVC pattern" → simple-calculator-in-javascript-using-mvc-pattern

Date format: Always use YYYY-MM-DD (e.g., '2024-01-20')

Frontmatter Format

All posts must include this exact frontmatter structure:

---
title: 'Post Title'
excerpt: 'Brief description'
date: 'YYYY-MM-DD'
author: 'Santosh Rai'
---

Important: All values must be wrapped in single quotes.

Validation

Before saving, verify:

• •Frontmatter has all required fields (title, excerpt, date, author)
• •Date is in YYYY-MM-DD format
• •All frontmatter values are wrapped in single quotes
• •Content does NOT start with an H1 heading (title is displayed from frontmatter)
• •Filename is valid kebab-case slug
• •File will be saved in _posts/ directory

Examples

Example 1: Format existing content

User: "Here's my blog post about JavaScript closures..."

Output: Creates _posts/javascript-closures.md with:
- Title extracted/generated from content
- Excerpt from first paragraph
- Current date
- Properly formatted markdown

Example 2: Create new post

User: "Create a blog post about React hooks"

Output: Creates _posts/react-hooks.md with:
- Title: "React Hooks"
- Generated excerpt about React hooks
- Current date
- Basic structure starting with content (no H1 heading)

Reference Files

• •Post structure details: See references/post-structure.md for complete format specification and examples
• •Template: See assets/template.md for reusable blog post template

Integration

The formatted files integrate automatically with the existing blog system:

• •lib/mdx.ts reads all .md files from _posts/
• •Posts are sorted by date (newest first)
• •Individual posts accessible at /blog/[slug]
• •Blog listing at /blog displays all posts