Skip to main content

Story-Driven Development

Created by Aaron Prill (with Claude Code as his trusty sidekick of course), Storyline started with a simple question: how do you maintain structure and traceability when working with AI coding assistants? As Claude Code became more capable, it became clear that the bottleneck wasn't the AI—it was the workflow.

Product requirements would get lost in context. Features would be partially implemented. There was no clear path from "we need this feature" to "this code implements that requirement." Storyline solves this by creating a structured pipeline that both humans and AI can follow.

Unlike generic spec-driven tools that treat AI as an external code generator, Storyline is built natively on Claude Code's skill system. Storyline operates entirely within your Claude Code terminal session (or the integrated VS Code plugin for Claude Code) — where slash commands invoke skills that understand your project context, maintain state across sessions, and produce commits linked to their source requirements. It's spec-driven development designed for how Claude Code actually works, not bolted on afterward.

The Pipeline

Storyline implements a complete story-driven development workflow. It transforms product requirements documents into working code through clear, traceable steps: Epic → Story → Spec → Implementation.

Each stage produces structured markdown files that feed into the next. When code is generated, it links back to the original requirements. When requirements change, you can trace which code needs to be updated.

The result is a development process that works the way you think—in stories and requirements—while letting Claude Code handle the implementation details.

Principles

Full Traceability

Every line of code traces back to its original requirement. PRD to epic to story to spec to implementation—nothing gets lost.

Structured Flexibility

Use the full epic pipeline for major features, or standalone stories for quick tasks. The workflow adapts to your needs.

Claude Code Native

Built specifically for Claude Code users. Slash commands, skills, and workflows that integrate seamlessly.

You Stay in Control

Commits are created automatically but never auto-pushed. Review changes before they go anywhere.

Open Source

Storyline is free and open source under the MIT license. It's built on the Claude Code skill system and leverages the excellent cc-resources framework.

Contributions are welcome! Whether it's new workflow stages, template improvements, or documentation—we'd love your help making story-driven development better for everyone.

Get Started

Install Storyline with a single command and start building with structure.