draft-release-notes
Use this skill to draft or update the [Unreleased] section of CHANGELOG.md from the actual changes since the last tag. Run this at any point during development to keep a working copy of the release narrative. Does NOT bump versions or create tags.
Best for Maintainers managing projec…Works with GitHubLow risk
⌘source
- author
@jamiepine- language
- TypeScript
★21kstars
2.4kforks
Apr 19, 2026
✦overview.md
Key Features
- ·Updates the [Unreleased] section of CHANGELOG.md
- ·Uses real changes since the last Git tag
- ·Generates a narrative release story
- ·Non-destructive working copy
- ·Can be run multiple times during development
- ·Does not bump versions or create tags
Use Cases
- →Preparing release notes for an upcoming software version
- →Keeping a running changelog updated during active development
- →Generating a draft narrative from commit history and PR data
- →Reviewing changes made since the last release before finalizing notes
Best for
- ✓Maintainers managing project changelogs
- ✓Teams practicing continuous delivery
Not ideal for
- !Projects without a CHANGELOG.md file
- !One-off release note generation without Git history
FAQs
name
draft-release-notes
description
Use this skill to draft or update the [Unreleased] section of CHANGELOG.md from the actual changes since the last tag. Run this at any point during development to keep a working copy of the release narrative. Does NOT bump versions or create tags.
Draft Release Notes
Goal
Update the [Unreleased] section at the top of CHANGELOG.md with a narrative release story based on the real changes since the last tag. This is a non-destructive working copy — run it as many times as you want during development.
Workflow
-
Identify the last release tag and gather changes.
LAST_TAG=$(git tag --list "v*" --sort=-v:refname | head -n 1) echo "Last tag: $LAST_TAG"Then collect raw material from three sources:
a. Commit log since last tag:
git log --oneline "$LAST_TAG"..HEADb. GitHub-generated release notes preview (PR titles, new contributors):
gh api repos/:owner/:repo/releases/generate-notes \ -f tag_name="vNEXT" \ -f target_commitish="$(git rev-parse HEAD)" \ -f previous_tag_name="$LAST_TAG" \ --jq '.body'c. Diff stat for theme analysis:
git diff --stat "$LAST_TAG"..HEAD -
Draft the release narrative.
Write markdown for the
[Unreleased]section following the format below. Do not include the## [Unreleased]heading itself — just the body content.
$install
1-click copynpx skills add jamiepine/voicebox --skill draft-release-notesSafety assessment
★
Clarity score
How clear and easy to understand the SKILL.md instructions are, rated from 1 to 5.
5/ 5
excellentVery clear and well structured, with almost no room for misunderstanding.
◎
Actionability score
How directly an agent can act on the SKILL.md instructions, rated from 1 to 5.
5/ 5
very highHighly actionable with clear, concrete steps that an agent can follow directly.