PENNY -- Prose Engine for Narrative, Notes, and Yarns

Your AI co-author for Obsidian. PENNY processes editorial annotations in your novel chapters, revises prose while enforcing your voice rules, and manages versioned drafts -- all without leaving Obsidian. It uses Claude (via the Anthropic API) to rewrite, expand, cut, adjust tone, fix dialogue, and more, guided by your style guide and voice tests.

What PENNY Does

• Process editorial annotations -- Drop %% REWRITE: more tension here %% into your chapter and PENNY rewrites that passage for you.
• Multi-provider LLM support -- Use Anthropic Claude (cloud) for maximum quality, Ollama (local) for privacy and zero cost, or both at once with model routing.
• Model routing by complexity -- Simple tasks (CUT, PACING) can use a fast/cheap model while complex tasks (REWRITE, DIALOG) get the strongest model. Configure per-tier or use one model for everything.
• Enforce voice consistency -- PENNY reads your style guide and voice tests before every revision so the output sounds like your book, not a chatbot.
• Manage chapter versions -- Every revision creates a new numbered version (ch-05.v1.md, ch-05.v2.md, ...) with full history preserved.
• Generate review notes -- After processing, PENNY writes a review file summarizing what changed, word count deltas, and voice compliance flags.
• Scaffold new novel projects -- One command creates the entire directory structure, templates, and config file for a new book.
• Handle git commits -- Auto-generate descriptive commit messages for your writing sessions and push when you are ready.

Quick Start

1. Install PENNY from Obsidian's Community Plugins browser (Settings > Community plugins > Browse > search "PENNY").
2. Configure a provider in Settings > PENNY > Providers: enter your Anthropic API key, or point PENNY at a running Ollama instance, or both.
3. Choose your model routing in Settings > PENNY > Model Routing (or leave the defaults).
4. Open a chapter file and add an annotation anywhere in the prose: %% REWRITE: more tension here %%
5. Open the command palette (Ctrl/Cmd + P) and run PENNY: Process this chapter.
6. PENNY creates a new version of the chapter in the same folder. Open it and review the changes.

Documentation

Guide	Description
Getting Started	First-time setup walkthrough
Annotation Guide	How to write annotations with examples
Configuration	Every setting explained
Project Structure	Vault layout and what goes where
Versioning	How chapter versions work
Voice Enforcement	Voice rules, tests, and compliance
Git Workflow	Commit and push integration
Troubleshooting	Common issues and fixes
API Costs	Understanding usage and costs

Requirements

• Obsidian 1.5.0 or later
• At least one LLM provider:
  • Anthropic API key -- get one at console.anthropic.com (cloud, paid per token)
  • Ollama -- install from ollama.com (local, free, runs on your machine)
  • Or both, for hybrid routing (e.g. local models for simple edits, Claude for complex work)
• Desktop only -- PENNY uses Node.js for git operations and is not available on Obsidian Mobile

Installation

From Community Plugins (Recommended)

1. Open Obsidian Settings > Community plugins.
2. Turn off Restricted mode if prompted.
3. Click Browse and search for "PENNY".
4. Click Install, then Enable.

Manual Installation

1. Download main.js, manifest.json, and styles.css from the latest release.
2. Create a folder called penny inside your vault's .obsidian/plugins/ directory.
3. Copy the three files into that folder.
4. Restart Obsidian and enable PENNY in Settings > Community plugins.

Commands

All commands are available from the command palette (Ctrl/Cmd + P).

Command	Description
PENNY: Initialize project	Scaffold a new novel project structure in the vault
PENNY: Process this chapter	Process all annotations in the active file
PENNY: Process all chapters	Process all annotated chapters in the current book
PENNY: Dry run	Show what would change without making any modifications
PENNY: Migrate chapters	One-time migration from flat chapter files to versioned folder structure
PENNY: Show status	Display annotation counts and version info for the active file
PENNY: New chapter	Create a new chapter file from template in the active book folder
PENNY: New character	Create a new character file from template
PENNY: Commit progress	Stage chapter and review changes, commit with auto-generated message
PENNY: Push	Push commits to remote
PENNY: Commit and push	Commit then push in one action

Annotation Reference

Annotations are Obsidian comments with a tag and instruction. Place them inline or between paragraphs.

%% TAG: your instruction here %%

Tag	Purpose	Processed?
REWRITE	Rewrite the surrounding passage	Yes
EXPAND	Add depth, detail, or length	Yes
CUT	Remove or condense	Yes
TONE	Adjust voice or mood	Yes
DIALOG	Rework dialogue for voice, realism, or subtext	Yes
PLOT	Fix continuity or plot concerns	Yes (if specific)
PACING	Adjust pacing (too fast or too slow)	Yes
CHARACTER	Fix character voice or behavior	Yes
NOTE	Author's note to self	No -- passed through unchanged
RESEARCH	Needs fact-checking	No -- passed through, flagged in review

See the Annotation Guide for full syntax, scope rules, and examples.

Configuration

PENNY is configured through the Obsidian settings tab (Settings > PENNY) and optionally through a PENNY.md file at the root of your project folder for per-project overrides.

Key settings:

• Providers -- Configure Anthropic (API key) and/or Ollama (endpoint URL). Test connection buttons verify setup.
• Model routing -- Assign a provider + model to each complexity tier (Light, Standard, Heavy), or use one model for everything.
• Project structure paths -- Tell PENNY where your drafts, characters, style guide, outlines, and wiki live.
• Voice rules -- Custom rules injected into every revision prompt.
• Behavior -- Auto-process on save, verbose logging, file patterns.

See Configuration for complete documentation of every setting.

License

MIT