Diataxis Documentation Skill

Implements the Diataxis documentation framework (also known as Divio) for organizing and writing project documentation.

Core Concepts

The Diataxis framework categorizes documentation into four types based on two axes:

The Four Types

1. Tutorials - Learning-oriented, hands-on lessons
   • Goal: Help a beginner achieve basic competence
   • Form: A lesson with exercises
   • Analogy: Teaching a child to cook
2. How-to Guides - Task-oriented, problem-solving steps
   • Goal: Show how to solve a specific problem
   • Form: A series of steps
   • Analogy: A recipe in a cookbook
3. Reference - Information-oriented, technical descriptions
   • Goal: Describe the machinery
   • Form: Dry, accurate description
   • Analogy: Encyclopedia article
4. Explanation - Understanding-oriented, conceptual discussions
   • Goal: Illuminate a topic
   • Form: Discursive explanation
   • Analogy: An article on culinary history

Invocation

/claude-skills:diataxis                    # Interactive — asks what you want to do
/claude-skills:diataxis scaffold           # Create docs folder structure
/claude-skills:diataxis write              # Write a new document (interactive)
/claude-skills:diataxis write tutorial     # Write a tutorial
/claude-skills:diataxis audit              # Audit existing docs

Execution

When this skill is invoked:

Step 1: Parse operation from $ARGUMENTS

Step 2: Load the appropriate operation file

Read(file_path: "${CLAUDE_PLUGIN_ROOT}/skills/diataxis/operations/<operation>.md")

Step 3: Execute the operation

Step 4: Report results

Operations

Scaffold

File: operations/scaffold.md When: User wants to create a docs structure for a project

Creates the standard Diataxis directory structure with README templates.

Write

File: operations/write.md When: User wants to write new documentation

Guides through writing a document of the appropriate type with structure templates.

Audit

File: operations/audit.md When: User wants to analyze existing documentation

Scans existing docs and categorizes them, identifies gaps and misplacements.

Directory Structure Created

docs/
├── README.md              # Documentation index
├── tutorials/
│   └── README.md          # Tutorial guidelines
├── how-to/
│   └── README.md          # How-to guidelines
├── reference/
│   └── README.md          # Reference guidelines
└── explanation/
    └── README.md          # Explanation guidelines

References

• references/framework.md — Detailed Diataxis framework explanation
• references/templates.md — Templates for each documentation type
• references/anti-patterns.md — Common mistakes and how to avoid them

Auto-Loading

This skill should be loaded proactively when the user:

• Asks to write, create, or add documentation
• Mentions tutorials, how-to guides, reference docs, or explanations
• Wants to organize or restructure existing docs
• Creates a new project and needs documentation structure
• Asks about documentation best practices
• Writes or edits files in a docs/ directory

Trigger phrases:

• "write documentation", "create docs", "document this"
• "add a tutorial", "write a how-to guide"
• "reference documentation", "API docs"
• "organize the docs", "restructure documentation"
• "README", "docs folder", "documentation structure"

Load the skill early to ensure documentation follows Diataxis principles from the start.

See Also

• Diataxis Documentation
• /claude-skills:compound — Document solutions (pairs with how-to guides)