Continuity Check

Ask questions only when the review scope or desired update behavior is genuinely unclear.

Files To Read

Always read:

• story.yaml
• the target chapter or chapters in 05_draft/

Read these when present and relevant:

• 03_characters/*
• 02_story/timeline.md
• 02_story/worldbuilding.md
• 02_story/open_loops.md
• 02_story/chapter_list.md
• 04_outline/*
• 07_continuity/canon_facts.yaml
• 07_continuity/entities.yaml
• 07_continuity/locations.yaml
• 07_continuity/unresolved_threads.yaml

Files To Write

Write or update as needed:

• 06_review/chapter_XX.review.md
• 07_continuity/canon_facts.yaml
• 07_continuity/entities.yaml
• 07_continuity/locations.yaml
• 07_continuity/unresolved_threads.yaml

If the continuity check covers several chapters, it may also create or update a broader review note if the project already uses one.

Language Rules

This skill depends on story.yaml as the source of truth for project metadata.

• Read story.language before writing narrative review notes.
• Keep file and folder names in English.
• Write markdown review notes in the selected story language.
• Keep YAML keys in English.
• Write human-readable YAML values with correct orthography, accents, and normal Unicode for the selected language unless the project has an explicit alternate convention.
• If story.language is missing, gather it before writing narrative review notes.

Classification Rules

Every finding should be classified as one of these:

• real contradiction: the text conflicts with established canon or with another chapter;
• ambiguity: the text is unclear, but not conclusively inconsistent;
• new canon fact: the chapter introduces a new fact that should be recorded;
• open thread update: the chapter opens, advances, resolves, or reframes an unresolved thread.

Do not collapse these categories into a single undifferentiated error list.

Procedure

1. Read the target chapter or chapter range and extract canon-relevant facts.
2. Compare those facts against existing continuity files and relevant story documents.
3. Check for inconsistencies in areas such as:
   • chronology;
   • injuries and physical state;
   • locations and travel logic;
   • character knowledge;
   • world rules;
   • objects and possessions;
   • relationships and loyalties;
   • unresolved promises or threads.
4. Classify each finding as contradiction, ambiguity, new canon fact, or open-thread update.
5. Update continuity YAML files only when the text provides strong enough support.
6. If evidence is weak or conflicting, leave the uncertainty visible instead of hard-coding a false fact.
7. Add a continuity section to the chapter review file when useful and when the project workflow benefits from keeping chapter-specific findings close to the draft.

Update Rules For Continuity Files

When updating YAML files:

• preserve existing valid data unless the new text clearly supersedes it;
• prefer additive updates over destructive rewrites;
• record uncertainty explicitly when the project already has a pattern for provisional facts;
• avoid inventing normalized data that the story never states.

Typical targets:

• canon_facts.yaml for stable factual statements;
• entities.yaml for people, organizations, objects, and other named entities;
• locations.yaml for place facts and spatial constraints;
• unresolved_threads.yaml for open promises, mysteries, and obligations.

Output Requirements

The output should include:

• scope reviewed;
• contradictions found;
• ambiguities found;
• new canon facts recorded;
• unresolved thread changes;
• recommended corrections or follow-up actions.

If a chapter-specific review file is updated, the continuity findings should be concise and actionable rather than repetitive.

Quality Bar

The resulting continuity check should allow another agent or editor to answer:

• what facts are now considered stable canon;
• which issues are true contradictions versus just unclear writing;
• what continuity records changed;
• what still needs manual attention before more drafting.

Output

After running the skill, provide:

• a short summary of the continuity check;
• the main contradictions or ambiguities detected;
• which continuity files were updated;
• the recommended next step, usually a targeted draft fix or the next chapter workflow step.

Definition Of Done

This skill is done when:

• the requested scope has been checked against stored canon;
• contradictions, ambiguities, and new facts are clearly separated;
• the continuity YAML files are updated where justified;
• any review notes respect story.language;
• the project's continuity state is more reliable than before the check.

Restrictions

• Do not invent facts just to complete YAML entries.
• Do not overwrite established canon without clear textual support.
• Do not treat ambiguity as confirmed contradiction.
• Do not ignore open narrative promises that affect future chapters.

Example Invocation

Use $continuity-check to review chapters 6 and 7, detect contradictions in timeline and character knowledge, and update the canon files where the text is clear enough.