release-bump

Release Bump

Goal

Finalize the changelog draft, bump the version across all tracked files, and create a tagged release commit. After this skill runs, the repo has a clean release commit and tag ready to push.

Prerequisites

• gh CLI installed and authenticated (gh auth status).
• bumpversion installed (pip install bumpversion or available in the project venv).
• The [Unreleased] section of CHANGELOG.md should already contain the release narrative. If it's empty or stale, run the draft-release-notes skill first.

Workflow

1. Verify the working tree is clean (except CHANGELOG.md which may have the draft).

   git status --porcelain
   

   Only CHANGELOG.md (and optionally .agents/ files) should be modified. If there are other uncommitted changes, stop and ask the user to commit or stash them first.

2. Determine the bump level.

   Ask the user if not specified: patch, minor, or major. Check the current version:

   grep '^current_version' .bumpversion.cfg
   

3. Stamp the changelog.

   Read the current [Unreleased] content from CHANGELOG.md. Compute the new version (based on bump level and current version). Then:

   a. Replace the ## [Unreleased] section body with an empty placeholder. b. Insert a new stamped section immediately after ## [Unreleased]:

   ## [Unreleased]
   
   ## [X.Y.Z] - YYYY-MM-DD
   
   <the content that was in [Unreleased]>
   

   c. Update the reference links at the bottom of the file:

   • Change the [Unreleased] link to compare against the new tag
   • Add a new link for the new version

   [Unreleased]: https://github.com/jamiepine/voicebox/compare/vX.Y.Z...HEAD
   [X.Y.Z]: https://github.com/jamiepine/voicebox/compare/vPREVIOUS...vX.Y.Z
   

4. Stage the changelog.

   git add CHANGELOG.md
   

5. Run bumpversion.

   bumpversion --allow-dirty <patch|minor|major>
   

   The --allow-dirty flag is needed because CHANGELOG.md is already staged. bumpversion will:

   • Update version strings in all tracked files (see .bumpversion.cfg)
   • Create a commit with message Bump version: X.Y.Z -> A.B.C
   • Create a tag vA.B.C