kata-add-issue

Capture an idea, task, or issue that surfaces during a Kata session as a structured issue for later work.

Enables "thought -> capture -> continue" flow without losing context or derailing current work.

@.planning/STATE.md **If the user invoked with "todo" vocabulary** (e.g., "add todo", "capture todo", "new todo"):

Display:

Note: "todos" are now "issues". Using /kata-add-issue.

Then proceed with the action (non-blocking).

Check if legacy `.planning/todos/` exists and needs migration:

if [ -d ".planning/todos/pending" ] && [ ! -d ".planning/todos/_archived" ]; then
  # Create new structure
  mkdir -p .planning/issues/open .planning/issues/closed

  # Copy pending todos to open issues
  cp .planning/todos/pending/*.md .planning/issues/open/ 2>/dev/null || true

  # Copy done todos to closed issues
  cp .planning/todos/done/*.md .planning/issues/closed/ 2>/dev/null || true

  # Archive originals
  mkdir -p .planning/todos/_archived
  mv .planning/todos/pending .planning/todos/_archived/ 2>/dev/null || true
  mv .planning/todos/done .planning/todos/_archived/ 2>/dev/null || true

  echo "Migrated todos to issues format"
fi

Migration is idempotent: presence of _archived/ indicates already migrated.

```bash mkdir -p .planning/issues/open .planning/issues/closed ``` ```bash find .planning/issues/open -maxdepth 1 -name "*.md" 2>/dev/null | xargs -I {} grep "^area:" {} 2>/dev/null | cut -d' ' -f2 | sort -u ```

Note existing areas for consistency in infer_area step.

**With arguments:** Use as the title/focus. - `/kata-add-issue Add auth token refresh` -> title = "Add auth token refresh"

Without arguments: Analyze recent conversation to extract:

• The specific problem, idea, or task discussed
• Relevant file paths mentioned
• Technical details (error messages, line numbers, constraints)

Formulate:

• title: 3-10 word descriptive title (action verb preferred)
• problem: What's wrong or why this is needed
• solution: Approach hints or "TBD" if just an idea
• files: Relevant paths with line numbers from conversation
• provenance: (optional) Origin of the issue - "local" (default), "github:owner/repo#N", or other external reference

Infer area from file paths:

Path pattern	Area
src/api/*, api/*	api
src/components/*, src/ui/*	ui
src/auth/*, auth/*	auth
src/db/*, database/*	database
tests/*, __tests__/*	testing
docs/*	docs
.planning/*	planning
scripts/*, bin/*	tooling
No files or unclear	general

Use existing area from step 2 if similar match exists.

```bash find .planning/issues/open -maxdepth 1 -name "*.md" -exec grep -l -i "[key words from title]" {} + 2>/dev/null ```

If potential duplicate found:

1. Read the existing issue
2. Compare scope

If overlapping, use AskUserQuestion:

• header: "Duplicate?"
• question: "Similar issue exists: [title]. What would you like to do?"
• options:
  • "Skip" - keep existing issue
  • "Replace" - update existing with new context
  • "Add anyway" - create as separate issue

```bash timestamp=$(date "+%Y-%m-%dT%H:%M") date_prefix=$(date "+%Y-%m-%d") ```

Generate slug from title (lowercase, hyphens, no special chars).

Write to .planning/issues/open/${date_prefix}-${slug}.md:

---
created: [timestamp]
title: [title]
area: [area]
provenance: [provenance or "local"]
files:
  - [file:lines]
---

## Problem

[problem description - enough context for future Claude to understand weeks later]

## Solution

[approach hints or "TBD"]

**Check GitHub integration:**

GITHUB_ENABLED=$(node scripts/kata-lib.cjs read-config "github.enabled" "false")

If GITHUB_ENABLED=false: Log "Local-only issue (GitHub integration disabled)" and skip to next step.

If GITHUB_ENABLED=true:

1. Check if already synced:

   • Read the just-created local file's frontmatter
   • If provenance already contains github:, skip (already synced)

2. Create backlog label (idempotent):

   gh label create "backlog" --description "Kata backlog issues" --force 2>/dev/null || true
   

3. Build issue body file: Write to /tmp/issue-body.md:

   ## Problem
   
   [problem section from local file]
   
   ## Solution
   
   [solution section from local file]
   
   ---
   
   _Created via Kata `/kata-add-issue`_
   

4. Create GitHub Issue:

   ISSUE_URL=$(gh issue create \
     --title "$TITLE" \
     --body-file /tmp/issue-body.md \
     --label "backlog" 2>/dev/null)
   

5. Extract issue number and update provenance:

   if [ -n "$ISSUE_URL" ]; then
     ISSUE_NUMBER=$(echo "$ISSUE_URL" | grep -oE '[0-9]+$')
     REPO_NAME=$(gh repo view --json nameWithOwner --jq '.nameWithOwner' 2>/dev/null)
     # Update local file's frontmatter with provenance
     # provenance: github:owner/repo#N
   fi
   

6. Update local file frontmatter:

   • Read the local issue file
   • Replace provenance: local with provenance: github:${REPO_NAME}#${ISSUE_NUMBER}
   • Write updated file

Non-blocking error handling: All GitHub operations are wrapped to warn but continue on failure. Local file creation is never blocked by GitHub failures.

if ! gh auth status &>/dev/null; then
  echo "Warning: gh CLI not authenticated. GitHub sync skipped."
fi

If `.planning/STATE.md` exists:

1. Count issues: find .planning/issues/open -maxdepth 1 -name "*.md" 2>/dev/null | wc -l
2. Update "### Pending Issues" under "## Accumulated Context"

Commit the issue and any updated state:

Check planning config:

COMMIT_PLANNING_DOCS=$(node scripts/kata-lib.cjs read-config "commit_docs" "true")
git check-ignore -q .planning 2>/dev/null && COMMIT_PLANNING_DOCS=false

If COMMIT_PLANNING_DOCS=false: Skip git operations, log "Issue saved (not committed - commit_docs: false)"

If COMMIT_PLANNING_DOCS=true (default):

git add .planning/issues/open/[filename]
[ -f .planning/STATE.md ] && git add .planning/STATE.md
git commit -m "$(cat <<'EOF'
docs(issue): capture issue - [title]

Area: [area]
EOF
)"

Confirm: "Committed: docs(issue): capture issue - [title]"

``` Issue saved: .planning/issues/open/[filename]

[title] Area: [area] Files: [count] referenced GitHub: #[number] (if synced, otherwise "local only")

---

Would you like to:

1. Continue with current work
2. Add another issue
3. View all issues (/kata-check-issues)

</step>

</process>

<output>
- `.planning/issues/open/[date]-[slug].md`
- Updated `.planning/STATE.md` (if exists)
- GitHub Issue #N with `backlog` label (if github.enabled=true)
</output>

<anti_patterns>
- Don't create issues for work in current plan (that's deviation rule territory)
- Don't create elaborate solution sections - captures ideas, not plans
- Don't block on missing information - "TBD" is fine
</anti_patterns>

<success_criteria>
- [ ] Directory structure exists
- [ ] Issue file created with valid frontmatter
- [ ] Problem section has enough context for future Claude
- [ ] No duplicates (checked and resolved)
- [ ] Area consistent with existing issues
- [ ] STATE.md updated if exists
- [ ] Issue and state committed to git
- [ ] GitHub Issue created with backlog label (if github.enabled=true)
- [ ] Provenance field set in local file (if GitHub synced)
</success_criteria>