release-notes-generator

Generate release notes in 3 formats (CHANGELOG.md, PR body, Slack announcement) from git commits. Automatically categorizes changes and converts technical language to user-friendly messaging. Use when preparing a production release.

Install with Tessl CLI

npx tessl i github:FlorianBruniaux/claude-code-ultimate-guide --skill release-notes-generator

What are skills?

1.37x

Quality

77%

Does it follow best practices?

Impact

92%

1.37x

Average score across 3 eval scenarios

Optimize this skill with Tessl

npx tessl skill review --optimize ./examples/skills/release-notes-generator/SKILL.md

SKILL.md

Review

Evals

Release Notes Generator

Generate comprehensive release notes in 3 formats from git commits.

When to Use This Skill

Preparing a production release (develop -> main)
Creating release PR with proper documentation
Generating Slack announcement for stakeholders
Updating CHANGELOG.md with new version
Analyzing commits since last release

What This Skill Does

Analyzes Git History: Scans commits since last release tag or specified version
Fetches PR Details: Gets PR titles, descriptions, and labels via gh api
Categorizes Changes: Groups into features, bug fixes, improvements, security, breaking changes
Generates 3 Outputs:
- CHANGELOG.md section (technical, complete)
- PR Release body (semi-technical, checklist)
- Slack message (product-focused, user-friendly)
Transforms Language: Converts technical jargon to accessible messaging
Migration Alert: Displays prominent warning if database migrations are required

How to Use

Basic Usage

Generate release notes since last release

Create release notes for version 0.18.0

With Specific Range

Generate release notes from v0.17.0 to HEAD

Preview Only

Preview release notes without writing files

Output Formats

1. CHANGELOG.md Section

Technical format for developers:

## [0.18.0] - 2025-12-08

### Objective
[1-2 sentence summary]

### New Features
#### [Feature Name] (#PR)
- **Description**: ...
- **Impact**: ...

### Bug Fixes
- **[Module]**: Description (#issue, [error-tracker] ISSUE-XX)

### Technical Improvements
#### Performance / UI/UX / Architecture
- [Description]

### Database Migrations
[If applicable]

### Statistics
- PRs: X
- Features: Y
- Bugs: Z

2. PR Release Body

Uses template from .github/PULL_REQUEST_TEMPLATE/release.md:

Objective summary
Features with specs links
Bug fixes with error tracker references
Improvements by category
Migration instructions
Deployment checklist

3. Slack Announcement

Product-focused format from .github/COMMUNICATION_TEMPLATE/slack-release.md:

PR link included for traceability
Non-technical language
Focus on user impact (end-users, admins, stakeholders)
Emojis for readability
Statistics summary

Workflow Integration

This skill integrates with the release workflow:

1. Analyze commits: git log <last-tag>..HEAD
2. Determine version number (MAJOR.MINOR.PATCH)
3. Generate 3 outputs
4. Create PR develop -> main with "Release" label
5. Update CHANGELOG.md
6. After merge: create git tag
7. Generate Slack announcement

Tech-to-Product Transformation

The skill automatically transforms technical language:

Technical	Product
"N+1 query optimization with DataLoader"	"Faster list loading"
"AI embeddings implementation with pgvector"	"New intelligent search"
"Fix scope permissions in getPermissionScope()"	"Fixed access permissions bug"
"Migration webpack -> Turbopack"	Do not communicate
"React hooks refactoring"	Do not communicate
"Fix N+1 in user loaders"	"Performance improvement"
"Add retry logic for DB connection errors"	"Better connection stability"

Commit Categories

Commits are categorized by conventional commit prefix:

Prefix	Category	Include in Slack?
`feat:`	New Features	Yes
`fix:`	Bug Fixes	Yes (if user-facing)
`perf:`	Performance	Yes (simplified)
`security:`	Security	Yes
`refactor:`	Architecture	No
`chore:`	Maintenance	No
`docs:`	Documentation	No
`test:`	Tests	No
`style:`	Style	No

Console Output Format

When generating release notes, ALWAYS display a clear summary in the console with:

Migration Alert (CRITICAL)

If migrations are detected, display prominently:

╔══════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════╗
║  ⚠️  [WARNING] DATABASE MIGRATIONS REQUIRED                      ║
╠══════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════╣
║                                                                  ║
║  This release contains X migration(s):                           ║
║                                                                  ║
║  • 20251210123456_add_feature_description                        ║
║  • 20251211094532_update_status_enum                             ║
║                                                                  ║
║  Action required BEFORE deployment:                              ║
║  → Run: [migration-command]                                      ║
║                                                                  ║
╚══════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════╝

If NO migrations:

✅ [OK] No database migrations required

Detection Method

Check for new migration files since last release:

# Find new migrations since last tag
git diff <last-tag>..HEAD --name-only -- migrations/

Example

User: "Generate release notes since v0.17.0"

Output:

Analyzing commits from v0.17.0 to HEAD...

Found:
- 15 commits
- 8 PRs merged
- 2 new features
- 5 bug fixes
- 3 improvements

╔══════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════╗
║  ⚠️  [WARNING] DATABASE MIGRATIONS REQUIRED                      ║
╠══════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════╣
║  This release contains 1 migration(s):                           ║
║  • 20251208143021_add_user_preferences                           ║
║  Action required: [migration-command]                             ║
╚══════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════╝

--- CHANGELOG.md Section ---
[Technical format output]

--- PR Release Body ---
[Semi-technical format output]

--- Slack Announcement ---
[Product-focused format output]

Write to files? (CHANGELOG.md, clipboard for PR/Slack)

Commands Used

# Get last release tag
git tag --sort=-v:refname | head -n 1

# List commits since tag
git log <tag>..HEAD --oneline --no-merges

# Get PR details
gh api repos/{owner}/{repo}/pulls/{number}

# Get commit details
git show --stat <sha>

Tips

Run from repository root
Ensure gh CLI is authenticated
Review generated content before publishing
Adjust product language for your audience
Use --preview to see output without writing

Reference Files

assets/changelog-template.md - CHANGELOG section template
assets/slack-template.md - Slack announcement template
references/tech-to-product-mappings.md - Transformation rules
references/commit-categories.md - Categorization rules

Related Skills

github-actions-templates - For CI/CD workflows
changelog-generator - Original inspiration (ComposioHQ)

Repository: FlorianBruniaux/claude-code-ultimate-guide
Commit: 352e748
Last updated: about 5 hours ago
Created: about 5 hours ago

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