Novel research

Novel Research

Research any world-building, historical, or thematic topic using live web search and ingest findings into the story wiki.

Step 1: Parse input

Accept a free-form topic as the argument. If none given, ask the user what to research. Store as TOPIC.

Step 2: Load wiki context

Read ./wiki/world.md, ./wiki/themes.md, ./wiki/characters.md, ./wiki/project.md. Store as EXISTING_WIKI to avoid duplicating known facts.

Step 3: Web research

Use WebSearch with 2-3 different query phrasings of TOPIC to find concrete factual detail, historical analogs, and how writers have handled the topic.

Use WebFetch to read the 3 most relevant URLs in full.

Synthesize findings into three categories:

World Facts — sensory and physical details that could ground scenes (look, sound, smell, feel, human behavioral response)

Thematic Resonances — how this topic connects to Ashen Crown's existing themes (reference ./wiki/themes.md)

Craft Notes — techniques and approaches from other writers worth knowing

Step 4: Present and confirm

Show the synthesized findings to the user with sources listed. Ask: "Should I add any of these to the wiki? Say 'all', 'just world facts', 'just themes', or specify."

Step 5: Ingest into wiki

Append approved content to the correct files under a ## Research: [TOPIC] header.

• World Facts → ./wiki/world.md
• Thematic Resonances + Craft Notes → ./wiki/themes.md
• Character-relevant facts → also ./wiki/characters.md

Step 6: Report

Print completion summary showing topic, sources read, and wiki files updated. New wiki facts will automatically enrich the next /novel-write run.