| Component | Purpose |
|---|---|
| Claude Code | Plugin host |
| Python 3.10 or newer | Runtime of the MCP server (runs in its own virtual environment) |
| Pandoc | EPUB and PDF export |
| xelatex | PDF export (the export command calls Pandoc with --pdf-engine=xelatex) |
Calibre (ebook-convert) |
MOBI export only, optional |
You do not need your own API key. The plugin works through the Claude access of Claude Code.
The project README names this route:
claude plugin add storyforge
The repository ships a plugin manifest (.claude-plugin/plugin.json) and a marketplace file (.claude-plugin/marketplace.json) for this. The manifest wires in the skills from skills/, the MCP server storyforge-mcp and three hooks.
After installation, the setup skill creates everything else:
/storyforge:setup
The skill works through these steps (the numbers match those in the skill):
python3, then python, then py -3, plus known install locations on Windows).~/.storyforge/venv if it is missing.requirements.txt: mcp (version 2.x), pyyaml, pymupdf, python-docx, plus a few minimum versions for security-relevant transitive packages.~/.storyforge/cache and ~/.storyforge/authors.config/config.example.yaml to ~/.storyforge/config.yaml if that file does not exist yet.pandoc --version) and print an install hint if it is missing.ebook-convert --version, only needed for MOBI).~/projekte/book-projects/projects if it is missing.Step 9 always creates
~/projekte/book-projects/projects, even if you set a differentpaths.content_rootin the config. Adjust the path afterwards in the configuration.
The setup skill doubles as the repair tool: if the MCP server does not respond, run it again.
The plugin's .mcp.json starts the server storyforge-mcp through a small wrapper that calls the virtual environment's Python.
| Platform | Wrapper | Interpreter |
|---|---|---|
| Linux, macOS | bin/run-server |
~/.storyforge/venv/bin/python3 |
| Windows | bin/run-server.cmd |
%USERPROFILE%\.storyforge\venv\Scripts\python.exe |
The three hooks also run through this wrapper. Without the virtual environment at ~/.storyforge/venv, neither the server nor the hooks run.
python3 is not foundOn Windows, python3 and python sometimes exit with code 49 and no output even though Python is installed. That is the Microsoft Store placeholder, not a missing installation. The setup skill therefore also tries py -3 and the usual install directories. If it still reports that Python is missing, install Python 3.10 or newer from python.org and enable "Add python.exe to PATH".
/storyforge:create-author My Name
/storyforge:new-book
/storyforge:help
/storyforge:create-author creates the author profile that drives every prose decision./storyforge:new-book creates the book project with its directory scaffold./storyforge:help shows all skills and the workflow.Continue with the configuration and the skills reference.