Blog Log

The Problem

Developers do interesting work but rarely document it. By the time you sit down to write a blog post, you’ve forgotten the key decisions, the blockers you hit, and those breakthrough moments that made everything click. Manual documentation feels like extra work, so it doesn’t happen.

The Solution

BlogLog captures your development narrative in real-time with zero friction. It wraps your existing workflow—git commits become timeline entries, quick CLI commands capture thoughts and breakthroughs, and a web interface handles longer conversations. When you’re ready, AI transforms your raw timeline into a polished blog post.

Key Features

CLI-First Design

# Your normal workflow, enhanced:
bl commit "add authentication component"  # Logs + commits
bl note "need to refactor this later"     # Quick thought
bl win "figured out the shared pattern!"  # Breakthrough
bl blocker "Supabase auth timing out"     # Stuck point

Web Interface

• Project Init: Markdown-friendly forms for defining your project’s purpose and goals
• Timeline View: Auto-refreshing chronological view of all captures
• Conversation Capture: Paste design discussions with AI, get automatic summaries
• Scratchpad: Persistent notes that don’t clutter your timeline
• Blog Generation: AI-powered transformation from timeline to narrative

Multi-Project Support

Each project gets its own .bloglog/ directory. Switch contexts naturally—the tool auto-detects which project you’re working in based on your current directory.

Tech Stack

• CLI: Node.js with Commander.js
• Web: Next.js 14 (App Router)
• Storage: JSON files (git-friendly, human-readable)
• AI: Anthropic Claude API for summary and generation

The Meta Story

BlogLog is my first project built with Claude Code - an agentic coding tool that writes code based on natural language instructions. The irony wasn’t lost on me: I was learning Claude Code by building a tool that documents learning.

The entire development session - from initial concept to working prototype - took about 90 minutes. Claude Code scaffolded the project structure, implemented the CLI commands, built the Next.js interface, and handled all the plumbing. I directed, reviewed, and refined.

But here’s the thing: I was also capturing the entire process using the tool we were building. Every commit, every breakthrough, every design decision went into BlogLog’s timeline. The tool documented its own creation.

Design Philosophy

Zero Friction: If capturing requires extra steps, it won’t happen. bl commit replaces git commit -m, so there’s no additional cognitive load. Quick captures (note, win, blocker) are single commands.

Habit Formation: The tool appears in your command history (up arrow works). You see it in your flow. It becomes automatic.

Context Preservation: Timestamps, git hashes, and structured data mean your timeline is always coherent, even months later.

AI as Assistant: The AI doesn’t write your blog post - it structures and turns your raw captures into narrative. You maintain authorship.

Lessons Learned

About Claude Code

• Reading a comprehensive CLAUDE.md file upfront pays huge dividends
• Letting the AI scaffold structure first, then filling in features, works well
• The feedback loop is fast - you see results in minutes, not hours
• You still need to understand what you’re building (this isn’t magic)

About Tool Design

• The smallest friction kills adoption
• Wrapping existing workflows (like git commit) is more powerful than adding new ones
• Multi-project support was essential for real use
• Starting with CLI before web was the right call

About Meta-Programming

• Building a documentation tool while documenting building the documentation tool is delightfully recursive
• The dogfooding starts immediately - you find UX issues fast
• It’s genuinely useful: I used BlogLog to capture building BlogLog

What’s Next

Current version handles the core workflow well, but there are obvious enhancements:

• Git hooks: Auto-prompt for bl captures after commits
• Rich timeline: Show diffs, file changes, time spent
• Template system: Different blog styles (technical deep-dive, project retrospective, learning log)
• Export formats: Markdown, HTML, even Twitter threads
• Collaboration: Share timelines, comment on entries

But the MVP works. I’m using it. That’s the real test.

Try It

npm install -g bloglog
cd your-project
bl init  # Opens web interface for project setup
bl commit "your first captured commit"

Then visit localhost:3001 to see your timeline come to life.

Built in January 2026 as an experiment in meta-programming and agentic development. The tool that documents its own creation.