DOCX Skill

Purpose

Provides expertise in programmatic Word document creation and manipulation. Handles document generation, template filling, style management, and batch document processing using python-docx and JavaScript libraries.

When to Use

• Generating Word documents programmatically
• Filling document templates with data
• Modifying existing .docx files
• Extracting content from Word documents
• Applying styles and formatting
• Creating mail merge workflows
• Converting data to formatted documents

Quick Start

Invoke this skill when:

• Generating Word documents programmatically
• Filling document templates with data
• Modifying existing .docx files
• Extracting content from Word documents
• Automating document workflows

Do NOT invoke when:

• Writing document content (use document-writer)
• Creating PDFs (use pdf-skill)
• Creating spreadsheets (use xlsx-skill)
• Creating presentations (use pptx-skill)

Decision Framework

Library Selection:
├── Python backend → python-docx
├── Node.js backend → docx (npm)
├── Browser-based → docx.js
├── Complex templates → docxtemplater
└── Simple text extraction → mammoth

Task Type:
├── Generate from scratch → Build document programmatically
├── Fill template → Use placeholder replacement
├── Modify existing → Load, edit, save
└── Batch processing → Loop with template

Core Workflows

1. Document Generation (python-docx)

1. Create Document object
2. Add heading with level
3. Add paragraphs with text
4. Apply styles (built-in or custom)
5. Add tables if needed
6. Insert images
7. Save document

2. Template Processing

1. Load template document
2. Find placeholders ({{variable}})
3. Replace with actual values
4. Handle conditional sections
5. Process repeating sections
6. Save as new document

3. Batch Document Generation

1. Load template once
2. Iterate over data records
3. Clone template for each
4. Fill placeholders
5. Generate unique filenames
6. Save each document

Best Practices

• Use paragraph styles, not direct formatting
• Create templates with placeholders for reuse
• Handle missing placeholder values gracefully
• Preserve original template, save to new file
• Test with complex content (tables, images)
• Validate output opens correctly

Anti-Patterns

Anti-Pattern	Problem	Correct Approach
Direct formatting	Hard to maintain	Use styles
Modifying template	Corrupts original	Save to new file
No error handling	Fails on bad input	Validate data first
Hardcoded paths	Not portable	Use relative paths
Ignoring encoding	Character issues	Use UTF-8 strings