Using Claude Code with XenT: A Content Creator Guide

Using Claude Code with XenT: A Content Creator’s Guide

Content creation shouldn’t be slowed down by tedious frontmatter management and manual SEO optimization. XenT is designed to work seamlessly with Claude Code, transforming your blogging workflow from administrative burden to pure creative focus.

Why Claude Code + XenT?

The Traditional Blogging Problem:

  • Inconsistent tag usage across posts
  • Forgetting required frontmatter fields
  • Writing poor excerpts that don’t drive engagement
  • Manual SEO optimization guesswork
  • Time spent on formatting instead of writing

The Claude Code Solution:

  • Automated frontmatter generation with proper structure
  • Consistent tag and category management
  • SEO-optimized descriptions and excerpts
  • Content auditing and maintenance automation
  • Template-driven post creation

Essential Claude Code Workflows

1. Creating a New Blog Post

Instead of manually crafting frontmatter, let Claude Code handle the structure:

Prompt Example:

Create a new blog post about implementing dark mode in Astro.
The post should cover CSS custom properties, theme switching logic,
and user preference persistence. Generate proper frontmatter following
XenT standards.

Claude Code Response:

---
title: 'Implementing Dark Mode in Astro: Complete Guide'
description: 'Learn to build robust dark mode functionality in Astro using CSS custom properties, theme switching logic, and persistent user preferences'
date: 2025-09-22
tags: ['astro', 'dark-mode', 'css', 'frontend', 'tutorial']
categories: ['Development']
draft: true
---

2. Tiered Content Management System

XenT provides a comprehensive three-tier taxonomy management system that balances cost with capability:

Tier 1: Quick Mechanical Analysis (Token-Efficient)

Audit Content Health:

npm run content:audit

Provides instant analysis of:

  • Tag frequency and usage patterns
  • Single-use tags that could be removed
  • Similar tags that might be consolidated
  • Category distribution
  • Posts missing required fields

Basic Cleanup:

npm run content:clean

Performs mechanical fixes with automatic backup:

  • Standardizes quote usage in frontmatter
  • Consolidates obvious similar tags
  • Fixes category field inconsistencies
  • Removes redundant tags

Tier 2: Semantic Analysis (Moderate Cost, High Capability)

Intelligent Taxonomy Review:

npm run content:analyze

Generates Claude Code prompts with post metadata for semantic analysis:

  • Extracts titles, descriptions, excerpts, and current taxonomy
  • Provides context without reading full content
  • Generates structured prompts for intelligent consolidation
  • Balances capability with token efficiency

Usage: Copy the generated prompt into Claude Code for intelligent tag consolidation and category optimization.

Tier 3: Deep Content Analysis (High Cost, Maximum Capability)

For comprehensive overhauls, work directly with Claude Code using batched content reading. Best for major taxonomy restructuring when semantic understanding of full content is needed.

SEO Optimization:

Review the excerpt and description for [post-name].md:
- Is the description 150-160 characters for optimal SEO?
- Does the excerpt engage readers without spoiling content?
- Are there opportunities to include target keywords naturally?

3. Frontmatter Standardization

Bulk Frontmatter Updates:

Scan src/content/posts/ and identify posts missing:
- excerpt fields
- proper category assignment
- consistent tag formatting
Generate a plan to standardize all frontmatter.

XenT Content Standards

Frontmatter Structure

XenT uses a specific frontmatter schema that Claude Code understands:

---
title: 'Clear, Descriptive Title' # Required
description: 'SEO meta description' # Required, 150-160 chars
date: 2025-09-22
tags: ['tag1', 'tag2', 'tag3'] # Optional, max 5
categories: ['Category'] # Optional, usually 1
license: 'CC-BY-4.0' # Optional, overrides global default
draft: true # Claude Code defaults to true
---

Tag Taxonomy

Common Tags:

  • Content Types: tutorial, guide, analysis, review
  • Technologies: astro, typescript, css, javascript
  • Topics: performance, seo, accessibility, design

Tag Guidelines:

  • Use lowercase for consistency
  • Prefer existing tags over creating new ones
  • Maximum 5 tags per post
  • Use specific over generic when possible

Category System

Primary Categories:

  • Development: Technical tutorials, coding guides
  • Design: UI/UX, visual design, typography
  • Documentation: Theme guides, setup instructions
  • Analysis: Performance reviews, comparisons

Keep categories broad - use tags for specificity.

Content Licensing Management

XenT includes a comprehensive content licensing system that displays license information in post footers. Claude Code can help you manage licensing efficiently across your content.

Global License Configuration

Set a default license in your configuration that applies to all posts:

// user.config.ts
defaults: {
  license: 'CC-BY-4.0', // Your preferred default
}

Common License Options:

  • CC-BY-4.0 - Creative Commons Attribution
  • CC-BY-SA-4.0 - Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike
  • CC-BY-NC-4.0 - Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial
  • All Rights Reserved - Traditional copyright
  • Custom text - Any licensing terms you prefer

Per-Post License Management

Override the global default for specific posts using frontmatter:

---
title: 'Special Post'
license: 'All Rights Reserved' # Override for this post only
---

Claude Code Assistance:

Review my blog posts and suggest appropriate licensing for:
- Technical tutorials (encourage sharing)
- Personal stories (protect privacy)
- Client work samples (commercial restrictions)
- Open source guides (maximum freedom)

Creative Commons Integration

XenT automatically detects Creative Commons licenses and displays official CC badges:

  • Supported formats: CC-BY-4.0, CC-BY-SA-4.0, CC-BY-NC-4.0, etc.
  • Visual badges: Official Creative Commons button graphics
  • Clickable links: Direct to license terms on creativecommons.org
  • Accessibility: Proper alt text for screen readers

License Audit with Claude Code

Bulk License Review:

Scan src/content/posts/ and analyze:
- Posts missing explicit licensing
- Inconsistent license terminology
- Posts that should have different licensing
- Opportunities to use Creative Commons licensing

Generate a licensing strategy for my content.

License Strategy Planning:

Help me develop a content licensing policy:
- Default license for technical content
- Restrictions for personal/sensitive posts
- Commercial usage considerations
- Attribution requirements for shared content

Hiding License Information

Sometimes license display isn’t needed:

---
title: 'Internal Post'
license: '' # Empty string hides license
---

Use cases for hidden licenses:

  • Corporate/internal content
  • Work-in-progress posts
  • Portfolio samples with complex licensing
  • Legal/sensitive content

Advanced Claude Code Techniques

1. Content Series Management

Creating Post Series:

I'm writing a 5-part series on "Building Modern Web Applications".
Generate frontmatter for each post with:
- Consistent naming pattern
- Progressive difficulty tags
- Cross-references between posts
- Proper publication scheduling

2. SEO Content Optimization

Keyword Integration:

Review this post draft and suggest:
- Natural keyword integration opportunities
- Internal linking possibilities to existing posts
- Meta description improvements
- Title optimization for search intent

3. Content Calendar Planning

Strategic Content Planning:

Based on existing posts in src/content/posts/, suggest:
- Content gaps in current topics
- Popular tag combinations to explore
- Seasonal content opportunities
- Advanced topics for established themes

Workflow Automation

Daily Content Tasks

Morning Content Review:

  1. Ask Claude to scan for posts with missing excerpts
  2. Review recent posts for tag consistency
  3. Check for broken internal links or references
  4. Identify content update opportunities

Post-Writing Checklist:

  1. Generate SEO-optimized frontmatter
  2. Create engaging excerpt that drives clicks
  3. Validate tag consistency with existing content
  4. Confirm category alignment
  5. Set appropriate content license (or use global default)
  6. Check meta description length and appeal

Maintenance Workflows

Weekly Content Audit (Automated):

# Quick health check using built-in tools
npm run content:audit
npm run content:clean

# Semantic analysis when needed
npm run content:analyze
# Copy output to Claude Code for advanced recommendations

Monthly Deep Analysis:

Work with Claude Code directly for comprehensive review:
1. Identify posts with poor excerpt engagement
2. Find opportunities for content updates
3. Suggest internal linking improvements
4. Review tag usage patterns for consolidation
5. Analyze content gaps and expansion opportunities

Recommended Workflow:

  1. Start with automated tools for quick wins
  2. Use semantic analysis for intelligent improvements
  3. Escalate to full content analysis for major overhauls
  4. Apply changes systematically with proper backups

Best Practices

Effective Claude Code Prompts

Be Specific: ❌ “Fix my blog post” ✅ “Review this post’s frontmatter for XenT compliance and suggest excerpt improvements”

Provide Context: ❌ “Generate tags” ✅ “Generate tags for this TypeScript tutorial, considering existing tags: [list current tags]”

Request Structured Output: ❌ “Help with SEO” ✅ “Provide SEO recommendations in this format: Title optimization, Description improvements, Excerpt enhancement”

Content Quality Guidelines

Excerpts That Convert:

  • Focus on reader benefit, not post structure
  • Create curiosity without spoiling conclusions
  • Use active voice and strong verbs
  • Keep within 100-150 characters

Tag Strategy:

  • Review existing tags before creating new ones
  • Use consistent spelling and capitalization
  • Group related concepts under primary tags
  • Regularly audit and consolidate similar tags

Theme Configuration with Claude Code

XenT’s TypeScript-based configuration system is perfectly suited for Claude Code assistance. Instead of manually editing configuration files, Claude can help you set up and optimize your theme settings.

Configuration Structure

XenT organizes configuration across focused files:

  • src/config/site.ts - Site metadata, SEO, social links
  • src/config/ui.ts - Theme appearance, sidebar, navigation
  • src/config/features.ts - Feature toggles, integrations
  • src/config/content.ts - Content display preferences

Common Configuration Tasks

Initial Theme Setup:

Help me configure XenT for a technical blog focused on web development.
I need:
- Dark mode enabled by default
- Google Analytics 4 integration
- KaTeX for math rendering
- Sidebar with social links to GitHub and Twitter
- Clean, minimal design aesthetic

Analytics Integration:

Configure Google Analytics 4 for my XenT theme. My tracking ID is GA_MEASUREMENT_ID.
Set up proper privacy controls and ensure GDPR compliance.

Feature Customization:

Review my current XenT configuration and suggest optimizations for:
1. Page load performance
2. SEO improvements
3. User experience enhancements
4. Accessibility compliance

Configuration Best Practices

Security First:

  • Store sensitive data (API keys, tracking IDs) in .env files
  • Never commit secrets to version control
  • Use environment variables for production settings

Type Safety:

  • Leverage TypeScript interfaces for configuration validation
  • Claude Code understands your configuration schema
  • Catch configuration errors before deployment

Performance Optimization:

  • Claude can identify unused features to disable
  • Optimize bundle sizes by removing unnecessary integrations
  • Configure caching and CDN settings appropriately

Integration with XenT Features

Content Collections

XenT’s content collection system at src/content/config.ts defines the schema Claude Code follows:

const postsSchema = z.object({
  title: z.string(),
  description: z.string(),
  excerpt: z.string().optional(),
  date: z.date(),
  tags: z.array(z.string()).optional(),
  categories: z.array(z.string()).optional(),
  draft: z.boolean().default(false),
});

Claude Code understands this structure and ensures all generated frontmatter complies with the schema.

Dynamic Routing

Posts are automatically available at /posts/[slug]/ without configuration. Claude Code can:

  • Generate SEO-friendly slugs from titles
  • Ensure URL consistency across related posts
  • Create proper internal linking between posts

Search Integration

XenT includes full-text search via Fuse.js. Claude Code can optimize content for search by:

  • Identifying keyword opportunities in content
  • Suggesting internal linking strategies
  • Optimizing excerpt text for search result previews

Troubleshooting Common Issues

Frontmatter Validation Errors

Issue: “Invalid date format” Solution: Ensure dates follow YYYY-MM-DD format exactly

Issue: “Missing required fields”
Solution: Claude Code can scan and identify missing required frontmatter

Tag Inconsistencies

Issue: Similar tags created separately Solution: Regular Claude Code audits identify consolidation opportunities

Issue: Tags not appearing in tag pages Solution: Verify tag spelling matches exactly across all posts

Conclusion

Claude Code transforms XenT from a theme into a complete content management system. By leveraging Claude’s understanding of your content standards, taxonomy, and SEO requirements, you can focus on writing while automation handles the administrative aspects of blogging.

The combination creates a powerful workflow where content creation becomes efficient, consistent, and optimized for both search engines and reader engagement.

Next Steps:

  1. Set up regular Claude Code content audits
  2. Establish your preferred tag taxonomy
  3. Create content templates for common post types
  4. Implement systematic SEO review processes

Start small with frontmatter generation, then gradually incorporate more advanced content management workflows as you become comfortable with Claude Code’s capabilities.