Document Generator Skill#

Generate professional Word (.docx), Excel (.xlsx), and PDF documents with comprehensive formatting support including fonts, colors, tables, images, layouts, and more.

When to Use This Skill#

Use this skill when the user needs to:

• Create Word documents with rich formatting (headings, paragraphs, tables, images, styles)
• Generate Excel spreadsheets with formulas, styling, and data
• Export content to PDF format with professional layouts
• Work with document templates and fill them with data
• Create reports, invoices, data exports, or any formatted document output

Core Capabilities#

Word Documents (.docx)#

• Text formatting: font family, size, color, bold, italic, underline
• Paragraph styles: alignment, spacing, indentation
• Tables with custom styling and borders
• Images with positioning and sizing
• Headers and footers
• Page layout: margins, orientation, page size
• Bullet and numbered lists
• Hyperlinks

Excel Spreadsheets (.xlsx)#

• Cell formatting: font, size, color, background
• Formulas and calculations
• Multiple sheets
• Column widths and row heights
• Cell borders and alignment
• Number formatting (currency, percentage, dates)
• Merged cells
• Freeze panes

PDF Documents (.pdf)#

• Text with custom fonts, sizes, and colors
• Paragraphs with alignment
• Tables with styling
• Images
• Page layout and margins
• Multi-page documents
• Headers and footers

How to Use#

Step 1: Understand the Requirements#

Ask clarifying questions if needed:

• What type of document? (Word/Excel/PDF)
• What content should it contain?
• Any specific formatting requirements?
• Should it use a template?
• Where should the output be saved?

Step 2: Choose the Right Script#

The skill provides three main scripts in the scripts/ directory:

• generate_word.py - For Word documents
• generate_excel.py - For Excel spreadsheets
• generate_pdf.py - For PDF documents

Each script accepts a JSON configuration that describes the document structure and content.

Step 3: Prepare the Configuration#

Create a JSON configuration file that describes the document. The structure varies by document type - see the reference files for detailed schemas:

• references/word_schema.md - Word document configuration
• references/excel_schema.md - Excel spreadsheet configuration
• references/pdf_schema.md - PDF document configuration

Step 4: Generate the Document#

Run the appropriate script with the configuration:

bash

python document-generator/scripts/generate_word.py config.json output.docx
python document-generator/scripts/generate_excel.py config.json output.xlsx
python document-generator/scripts/generate_pdf.py config.json output.pdf

Step 5: Verify and Iterate#

Check the generated document and make adjustments to the configuration if needed.

Working with Templates#

All three document types support template-based generation:

1. Word Templates: Use existing .docx files and replace placeholders
2. Excel Templates: Use existing .xlsx files and fill in data
3. PDF Templates: Define reusable layouts in the configuration

To use a template, include a template field in your configuration pointing to the template file path.

Configuration Examples#

Simple Word Document#

json

{
  "page_setup": {
    "margins": {"top": 1, "bottom": 1, "left": 1, "right": 1}
  },
  "content": [
    {
      "type": "heading",
      "text": "Monthly Report",
      "level": 1
    },
    {
      "type": "paragraph",
      "text": "This is the report content.",
      "font": {"name": "Arial", "size": 11}
    }
  ]
}

Simple Excel Spreadsheet#

json

{
  "sheets": [
    {
      "name": "Sales Data",
      "data": [
        ["Product", "Quantity", "Price", "Total"],
        ["Widget A", 10, 25.50, "=B2*C2"],
        ["Widget B", 5, 30.00, "=B3*C3"]
      ],
      "formatting": {
        "header_row": 0,
        "column_widths": [15, 10, 10, 10]
      }
    }
  ]
}

Simple PDF Document#

json

{
  "page_setup": {
    "size": "A4",
    "margins": {"top": 20, "bottom": 20, "left": 20, "right": 20}
  },
  "content": [
    {
      "type": "text",
      "text": "Invoice #12345",
      "font": {"name": "Helvetica-Bold", "size": 18}
    },
    {
      "type": "paragraph",
      "text": "Thank you for your business.",
      "font": {"name": "Helvetica", "size": 12}
    }
  ]
}

Best Practices#

1. Start Simple: Begin with basic formatting and add complexity as needed
2. Use Templates: For recurring document types, create templates to save time
3. Validate Data: Check that data types match expected formats (numbers, dates, etc.)
4. Test Incrementally: Generate documents frequently during development to catch issues early
5. Handle Errors Gracefully: Provide clear error messages if configuration is invalid

Troubleshooting#

Missing Dependencies: If scripts fail, ensure required Python packages are installed:

bash

pip install python-docx openpyxl reportlab Pillow

Font Issues: If custom fonts don't work, verify the font name is correct and available on the system.

Image Problems: Ensure image paths are absolute or relative to the script execution directory.

Excel Formulas: Use Excel formula syntax (e.g., =SUM(A1:A10)) as strings in the data array.

Advanced Features#

For complex documents, refer to the detailed reference files:

• references/word_schema.md - Complete Word configuration options
• references/excel_schema.md - Complete Excel configuration options
• references/pdf_schema.md - Complete PDF configuration options

These references include examples of:

• Complex table layouts
• Image positioning and sizing
• Advanced styling and themes
• Multi-page layouts
• Template variable substitution
• Conditional formatting