Plugin Creator

Official docs: https://code.claude.com/docs/en/plugins.md, https://code.claude.com/docs/en/plugins-reference.md, https://code.claude.com/docs/en/plugin-marketplaces.md. Fetch when unsure about manifest schema, distribution, or recent features.

Overview

Create and manage Claude Code plugins with proper structure, manifests, and marketplace integration. This skill provides workflows, automation scripts, and reference documentation for plugin development.

Prerequisites

• python3 for the bundled scripts

When to Use This Skill

Trigger this skill when:

• Creating new plugins for a marketplace
• Adding or modifying plugin components (commands, skills, agents, hooks)
• Updating plugin versions
• Working with plugin or marketplace manifests
• Setting up local plugin testing
• Publishing plugins to marketplaces

Quick Start

Creating a New Plugin

Use the create_plugin.py script to generate plugin structure:

python3 ${CLAUDE_SKILL_DIR}/scripts/create_plugin.py plugin-name \
  --marketplace-root /path/to/marketplace \
  --author-name "Your Name" \
  --author-email "your.email@example.com" \
  --description "Plugin description" \
  --keywords "keyword1,keyword2" \
  --category "productivity"

This automatically:

• Creates plugin directory structure
• Generates plugin.json manifest
• Creates README template
• Updates marketplace.json

Bumping Plugin Version

Use bump_version.py to update versions in both manifests:

python3 ${CLAUDE_SKILL_DIR}/scripts/bump_version.py plugin-name major|minor|patch \
  --marketplace-root /path/to/marketplace

Semantic versioning rules:

• major: Breaking changes (1.0.0 → 2.0.0)
• minor: New features, refactoring (1.0.0 → 1.1.0)
• patch: Bug fixes, docs only (1.0.0 → 1.0.1)

Plugin Development Workflow

1. Create Plugin Structure

Manual approach if not using create_plugin.py:

mkdir -p plugins/plugin-name/.claude-plugin
mkdir -p plugins/plugin-name/commands
mkdir -p plugins/plugin-name/skills

2. Create Plugin Manifest

File: plugins/plugin-name/.claude-plugin/plugin.json

{
  "name": "plugin-name",
  "version": "0.1.0",
  "description": "Plugin description",
  "author": {
    "name": "Your Name",
    "email": "your.email@example.com"
  },
  "keywords": ["keyword1", "keyword2"]
}

3. Register in Marketplace

Update .claude-plugin/marketplace.json by adding to plugins array:

{
  "name": "plugin-name",
  "source": "./plugins/plugin-name",
  "description": "Plugin description",
  "version": "0.1.0",
  "keywords": ["keyword1", "keyword2"],
  "category": "productivity"
}

4. Add Plugin Components

Create components in their respective directories:

Commands: commands/ - Markdown files with frontmatter Skills: skills/ - Subdirectories containing SKILL.md Agents: agents/ - Markdown agent definitions Hooks: hooks/hooks.json - Event handler configurations MCP Servers: .mcp.json - External tool integrations

5. Local Testing

# Add marketplace
/plugin marketplace add /path/to/marketplace-root

# Install plugin
/plugin install plugin-name@marketplace-name

# After changes: uninstall, reinstall, restart Claude Code
/plugin uninstall plugin-name@marketplace-name
/plugin install plugin-name@marketplace-name

Plugin Structure Patterns

Framework Plugin

For framework-specific guidance (React, Vue, Nuxt):

plugins/framework-name/
├── .claude-plugin/plugin.json
├── skills/
│   └── framework-name/
│       ├── SKILL.md              # Quick reference
│       └── references/           # Library patterns
├── commands/
│   └── prime/
│       ├── components.md
│       └── framework.md
└── README.md

Utility Plugin

For tools and commands:

plugins/utility-name/
├── .claude-plugin/plugin.json
├── commands/
│   ├── action1.md
│   └── action2.md
└── README.md

Domain Plugin

For domain-specific knowledge:

plugins/domain-name/
├── .claude-plugin/plugin.json
├── skills/
│   └── domain-name/
│       ├── SKILL.md
│       ├── references/
│       │   ├── schema.md
│       │   └── policies.md
│       └── scripts/
│           └── automation.py
└── README.md

Command Naming Convention

Commands use subdirectory-based namespacing with : separator:

• File: commands/namespace/command.md → /namespace:command
• File: commands/simple.md → /simple

Examples:

• commands/prime/vue.md → /prime:vue
• commands/docs/generate.md → /docs:generate

Version Management

Critical: Always update version in BOTH locations:

1. plugins/<name>/.claude-plugin/plugin.json
2. .claude-plugin/marketplace.json (matching entry)

Use bump_version.py to automate this.

Git Workflow

Use conventional commits:

git commit -m "feat: add new plugin"
git commit -m "fix: correct plugin manifest"
git commit -m "docs: update plugin README"
git commit -m "feat!: breaking change to plugin API"

Resources

This skill includes detailed reference documentation:

references/plugin-structure.md

Complete plugin directory structure, manifest schema, component types, and path requirements.

references/marketplace-schema.md

Marketplace manifest format, plugin entry schema, source specifications, and team distribution setup.

references/workflows.md

Step-by-step workflows for creating plugins, version bumping, local testing, publishing, and common plugin patterns.

scripts/create_plugin.py

Automates plugin creation with proper structure and manifest generation.

scripts/bump_version.py

Updates version in both plugin.json and marketplace.json simultaneously.

Key References

When Claude needs detailed information about specific aspects:

• Plugin structure details: Read references/plugin-structure.md
• Marketplace schema: Read references/marketplace-schema.md
• Development workflows: Read references/workflows.md

These references provide comprehensive information without cluttering the main skill context.