doc-engine-cli

Zero-config Markdown → PDF documentation engine

Transform any README.md into a premium, print-ready PDF report — no configuration, no templates, no LaTeX.

doc-engine-cli turning a Markdown file into a PDF

pipx install doc-engine-cli

_{Built and maintained by one person, in the open. Sponsorship keeps it that way.}

Overview

doc-engine-cli is a developer-first CLI tool that converts Markdown files into professionally styled PDF documents using Typst as its rendering backend. It is designed for teams and individual developers who need high-quality documentation artifacts without the complexity of LaTeX or manual typesetting.

The tool auto-detects your README.md, extracts metadata from Git, and produces an IEEE-inspired technical document — complete with cover page, table of contents, and premium typography — in a single command.

doc-engine build

That's it. Zero configuration required.

Features

Feature	Description
Zero-Config	Auto-detects `README.md`, Git author, and document title. No setup files needed.
Seven Templates	Academic, article, book, minimal, modern, report, and technical layouts, each with a configurable accent color. Point `--template` at your own `.typ` file to go further.
Front Matter	An optional `---` metadata block sets the title, subtitle, author, template, and accent right inside the file.
Watch Mode	`--watch` rebuilds the PDF every time you save the source.
Diagrams	```mermaid and ```svg blocks are rendered as real diagrams, in pure Python — no Node, no headless browser.
Alerts	`> [!NOTE]` and friends render as coloured callouts, the way GitHub shows them.
Math	LaTeX math, inline with $…$ and display with `$$…$$`, translated into native Typst math.
Multi-File	A `doc-engine.md` manifest builds one PDF from many files, diagrams, figures, and a bibliography.
Page Sizes	A4 by default, plus A3–A6, ISO/JIS B5, and US letter, legal, and tabloid.
Project Config	A `.doc-engine.toml` keeps a team's defaults out of every document.
Rich Markdown	Embeds local images, renders GitHub task lists as real checkboxes, and turns `[^1]` footnotes into native Typst footnotes.
Error Checking	Reports source problems with line and column before compiling. A `--dry-run` mode runs the check on its own.
Non-Destructive	Never overwrites an existing PDF — writes `report (1).pdf`, `report (2).pdf`, … unless you pass `--force`.
Premium Typography	Font stacks that end in a font Typst ships, so a document looks the same in a bare container as on a laptop.
Pure Python	No external binaries required (no Pandoc, no LaTeX). Ships as a single `pip install`.
Cross-Platform	Works on Windows, macOS, and Linux with Python 3.10+.

Academic Writing

Cite with the usual [@citation-key] syntax and drop a refs.bib, references.bib, or bibliography.bib next to your document. It is picked up automatically and rendered as an IEEE-styled references section:

As shown in [@smith2020], results vary.

Point --bib at a different file, or name one in front matter, to override the search. Combine it with the academic, article, or report layout and LaTeX math for a paper that needs no LaTeX toolchain.

Quick Start

Installation

pipx install doc-engine-cli

(If you don't have pipx, you can install it via pip install pipx)

Note

Installing with a pipx older than 1.17 could crash with InvalidVersion: Invalid version: ''. That came from a dependency and was fixed upstream in mermaidx 0.9.5, so a fresh install is fine. If you are holding an older mermaidx, upgrade it, or use uv:

uv tool install doc-engine-cli

Generate Your First PDF

Navigate to any project directory containing a README.md and run:

doc-engine build

The tool will:

Auto-detect README.md in the current directory
Extract the document title from the first # heading
Read your Git user.name for the author field
Generate a README_doc.pdf with cover page, ToC, and formatted content

Explicit Options

doc-engine build path/to/file.md -o output.pdf -t "Custom Title" -a "Author Name"

Usage

Switching templates, recoloring the accent, and checking a file for errors.

Commands

doc-engine build [INPUT_FILE]   Convert a Markdown file into a PDF
doc-engine info                 Show version, repository, and what is supported
doc-engine info --json          The same, as JSON, for tools that drive the CLI
doc-engine --version            Print the version and exit
doc-engine --help               Show all commands and flags

`build` flags

Flag	Default	Description
`INPUT_FILE`	auto-detect `README.md`	Path to the Markdown file to convert.
`-o, --output`	`<input>_doc.pdf`	Output PDF path.
`-t, --title`	first `# heading`	Document title override.
`-s, --subtitle`	none	Subtitle shown under the title on the cover.
`-a, --author`	`git config user.name`	Author name override.
`--date`	today	Date shown on the cover.
`--template`	`academic`	A built-in layout (`academic`, `article`, `book`, `minimal`, `modern`, `report`, `technical`) or a path to your own `.typ` file.
`--accent`	template default	Accent color as a hex value (`#2563eb`) or a name (`blue`, `teal`, `rose`, ...).
`--paper`	`a4`	Page size: `a3`–`a6`, `iso-b5`, `jis-b5`, `us-letter`, `us-legal`, `us-tabloid`.
`--bib`	auto-detect `refs.bib`	Path to a custom `.bib` file for the bibliography.
`--pdf-standard`	off	Write an archival PDF/A file: `a-2b` or `a-3b`.
`--code-theme`	Typst default	Syntax highlighting theme: `github`, `solarized`, `monochrome`, or a path to a `.tmTheme`.
`--tall-images`	`fit`	What to do with a picture taller than a page: `fit` scales it onto one page, `split` cuts it across several.
`--fetch-images`	off	Download images linked by URL instead of rendering their alt text.
`--no-branding`	off	Hide the `doc-engine` attribution from the PDF.
`--dry-run`	off	Check the Markdown for errors and exit without writing a PDF.
`-w, --watch`	off	Rebuild automatically whenever the source file changes.
`-f, --force`	off	Overwrite the output file instead of writing a numbered copy.
`--open`	off	Open the PDF after it is generated.

Any flag can also be set in the front matter (see below); a flag on the command line always wins.

Examples

Basic — zero-config mode:

cd my-project
doc-engine build
# → Generates README_doc.pdf

Specify input and output:

doc-engine build CONTRIBUTING.md -o contributing_guide.pdf

Override metadata:

doc-engine build -t "API Reference v2.0" -a "Engineering Team"

Pick a template and accent color:

doc-engine build --template modern --accent teal
doc-engine build --template technical --accent "#7c3aed"

Check for errors before building:

doc-engine build --dry-run

Drop the engine attribution from the PDF:

doc-engine build --no-branding

Generate and open immediately:

doc-engine build --open

Rebuild on every save:

doc-engine build --watch

Use as Python module:

python -m doc_engine build README.md

Front Matter

Any Markdown file can open with a --- block to carry its own settings, so the document renders the same way for everyone — no flags to remember:

---
title: Payments API
subtitle: Integration Guide
author: Platform Team
template: technical
accent: teal
---

# Payments API

...

Supported keys: title, subtitle, author, date, template, accent, paper, and bib. A flag passed on the command line overrides the matching front-matter key, which in turn overrides the auto-detected value.

Watch Mode

Pass --watch to keep doc-engine running and rebuild the PDF whenever you save the source. It's the fastest way to tweak a template or accent and see the result:

Every file the manifest names is watched, and a save rebuilds the whole document.

doc-engine build --watch --template modern --accent teal

The output path is chosen once when watch starts, then rewritten in place on each change. Press Ctrl+C to stop.

Diagrams

Fenced blocks tagged mermaid or svg become pictures instead of code:

```mermaid
flowchart LR
    Client --> API --> Ledger
```

Mermaid is rendered through an embedded JavaScript engine, so there is no Node install and no headless browser — it stays a plain pip install. A svg block is passed straight through, since Typst draws SVG natively.

If a diagram has a syntax error, the build stops and reports Mermaid's own message rather than producing a broken document.

Math

LaTeX math is translated into native Typst math, inline with $…$ and as a display block with $$…$$:

The quadratic formula is $x = \frac{-b \pm \sqrt{b^2-4ac}}{2a}$.

$$
P(A \mid B) = \frac{P(B \mid A)\,P(A)}{P(B)}
$$

Greek letters, relations, fractions, roots, sub- and superscripts, font commands, matrices, and cases are covered. Anything unrecognized passes through with its backslash removed, which lands on the right Typst symbol most of the time.

A $ that is not math stays untouched, so prices and shell variables survive: $10, $HOME, and export $PATH all render as written.

Alerts

A blockquote that opens with a marker becomes a coloured callout, matching what GitHub shows on the page:

> [!NOTE]
> Useful information worth knowing.

> [!WARNING]
> Something that needs attention.

NOTE, TIP, IMPORTANT, WARNING, and CAUTION are all recognized. A blockquote without a marker stays an ordinary quote.

Code Themes

Code blocks are highlighted with Typst's own colours by default. --code-theme swaps that for something else:

doc-engine build --code-theme github
doc-engine build --code-theme monochrome     # for printing in black and white

Theme	Look
`github`	GitHub's light palette
`solarized`	Solarized light
`monochrome`	Greys only — keeps code legible on a black-and-white printer

Any TextMate .tmTheme file works too, so a theme from your editor can be pointed at directly:

doc-engine build --code-theme ~/themes/my-editor.tmTheme

Cross-References

Inside a manifest build, a link from one included file to another becomes a jump within the PDF rather than a link to a file the reader does not have:

For the full picture see [the data model](model.md).

That resolves to the place where model.md was merged in. Links to anything outside the build — a URL, a file that is not part of the manifest — are left exactly as they are.

Multi-File Documents

A project that has outgrown a single file lists its parts in doc-engine.md, using ordinary Markdown links so the manifest still reads as a table of contents on GitHub:

---
title: Payments Platform
subtitle: Engineering Handbook
template: report
---

- [Overview](doc/overview.md)
- [Architecture](diagrams/architecture.mmd)
- [Schema](img/schema.svg)
- [References](bib/references.bib)

Then just build:

doc-engine build

doc-engine building a multi-file document

One manifest, one command: sections, a diagram, a figure, and a bibliography.

Each entry is handled by what it is:

Entry	What happens
`.md`	Appended as a section, headings intact
`.mmd`, `.mermaid`	Rendered as a diagram at that point
`.png`, `.svg`, `.jpg`, …	Placed as a captioned figure
`.bib`	Registered as the bibliography for the document

Paths resolve against the manifest's folder, and every included file resolves its own images relative to itself — so a file builds the same way alone as it does inside the manifest. --watch follows every file the manifest names.

Project Configuration

Team defaults belong in a .doc-engine.toml next to the project, not repeated in every document:

[doc-engine]
template = "report"
accent = "teal"
paper = "us-letter"

A [tool.doc-engine] table in pyproject.toml works the same way. Precedence runs command-line flag, then front matter, then this file.

Every key it understands:

Key	Values
`template`	A built-in layout name, or a path to a `.typ` file
`paper`	`a3`–`a6`, `iso-b5`, `jis-b5`, `us-letter`, `us-legal`, `us-tabloid`
`accent`	A hex value or a colour name
`author`	Author name, used instead of the Git user
`bib`	Path to a `.bib` file
`branding`	`false` hides the `doc-engine` attribution
`code_theme`	`github`, `solarized`, `monochrome`, or a path to a `.tmTheme`
`pdf_standard`	`a-2b` or `a-3b`
`tall_images`	`fit` or `split`
`fetch_images`	`true` downloads images linked by URL

Anything else in the table is ignored, so a typo cannot quietly change how a document is built.

Large Images

A picture that does not fit the text block is scaled down until it does, so nothing is ever clipped. For a tall diagram — a top-down flowchart, a long schema — scaling it onto one page can leave it unreadable, so it can be cut across pages at full size instead:

doc-engine build --tall-images split

Archival PDFs

For documents that have to stay readable for decades:

doc-engine build --pdf-standard a-2b

a-3b is also accepted, which additionally allows embedded attachments.

Templates

doc-engine ships with seven layouts. Switch with --template <name>, and recolor any of them with --accent.

Template	Look
`academic`	Serif IEEE-style report with cover page, table of contents, and running headers. The default.
`modern`	Clean sans-serif layout with generous spacing and a left-aligned cover.
`minimal`	No cover or table of contents — a compact title block, then straight into the content.
`technical`	Bold layout with a filled accent banner and section markers. Good for engineering docs.
`book`	Classic centered title page with chapter-style section breaks.
`article`	A LaTeX paper: New Computer Modern, numbered sections, title block on page one.
`report`	Roomy and easy on the eyes — 12pt on generous leading, wide margins, lots of air.

doc-engine build --template book
doc-engine build --template modern --accent rose

Accent colors take a hex value (#0ea5e9) or one of these names: blue, sky, indigo, violet, purple, red, rose, orange, amber, green, emerald, teal, slate, black.

Bring your own template

--template also accepts a path to a .typ file, so you can ship a house style without forking the project:

doc-engine build --template ./corporate.typ

The quickest way to start is to copy one of the files in doc_engine/templates/ and edit it. A template exposes a single setup_doc entry point, and the compiler passes it the document metadata:

#let setup_doc(
  title: "",
  subtitle: "",
  author: "Anonymous",
  date: datetime.today().display(),
  bibliography_file: none,
  accent: none,
  branding: true,
  version: "",
  body,
) = { ... }

Checking for Errors

Before compiling, doc-engine scans the Markdown for problems and reports them with the exact line and column, so you can jump straight to the fix:

README.md:42:8: error: link URL must not be empty
README.md:51:1: warning: image source is empty

Errors stop the build; warnings don't. Use --dry-run to run the check on its own without producing a PDF — handy in CI:

doc-engine build --dry-run

Architecture

                    ┌─────────────┐
                    │  README.md  │
                    └──────┬──────┘
                           │
                    ┌──────▼──────┐
                    │   CLI Layer  │  click + rich
                    │  (cli.py)    │  arg parsing, git detection
                    └──────┬──────┘
                           │
              ┌────────────┼────────────┐
              │                         │
       ┌──────▼──────┐          ┌───────▼──────┐
       │  Converter   │          │   Compiler   │
       │(converter.py)│          │(compiler.py) │
       │              │          │              │
       │ Markdown AST │          │  Typst → PDF │
       │  → Typst     │          │  via typst-py│
       └──────┬──────┘          └───────┬──────┘
              │                         │
              │    ┌──────────────┐     │
              └────► templates/   ◄─────┘
                   │   *.typ      │
                   └──────┬──────┘
                          │
                   ┌──────▼──────┐
                   │  output.pdf  │
                   └─────────────┘

Pipeline

Stage	Module	Responsibility
1. Input Resolution	`cli.py`	Locate Markdown file, detect Git metadata
2. Source Checking	`linter.py`	Report empty links and unclosed fences with line/column
3. Markdown Parsing	`converter.py`	Parse Markdown AST via `mistune`, emit Typst markup
4. Template Injection	`compiler.py`	Merge converted content with the selected template
5. PDF Compilation	`compiler.py`	Compile via `typst` Python bindings

How It Works

Markdown → Typst Conversion

The converter module parses Markdown using mistune and generates equivalent Typst markup:

Markdown	Typst Output
`# Heading`	`= Heading`
`bold`	`bold`
`italic`	`_italic_`
`code`	`code`
`[text](url)`	`#link("url")[text]`
`- item`	`- item`
`1. item`	`+ item`
`- [x] task`	rendered checkbox
`text[^1]`	`#footnote[...]`
`![alt](local.png)`	`#image("local.png")`
`> blockquote`	`#block(...)`
`---`	`#line(...)`

Special characters (#, $, @, *, _, etc.) are automatically escaped to prevent Typst interpretation.

PDF Templates

Each template lives in doc_engine/templates/ and exposes the same setup_doc entry point, so the compiler can swap between them with --template. The default academic template provides:

Cover page with title, author, and date
Table of contents with depth-3 navigation
Running headers with document title and author
Page footer with page numbers and engine attribution
Code blocks with rounded corners and subtle borders
Heading hierarchy with accent-colored H2 sections

The other templates (modern, minimal, technical, book) keep the same content but change the fonts, layout, and cover. The accent color is injected at compile time, so --accent recolors any of them.

Project Structure

doc-engine-cli/
├── doc_engine/
│   ├── __init__.py          # Package version
│   ├── __main__.py          # python -m doc_engine entrypoint
│   ├── cli.py               # Click-based CLI + Git detection
│   ├── help.py              # Rich help screens
│   ├── config.py            # .doc-engine.toml project settings
│   ├── settings.py          # flag / front matter / project precedence
│   ├── frontmatter.py       # Leading --- metadata block
│   ├── manifest.py          # doc-engine.md multi-file builds
│   ├── converter.py         # Markdown → Typst transpiler
│   ├── latex.py             # LaTeX math → Typst math
│   ├── diagrams.py          # Mermaid and SVG blocks
│   ├── images.py            # Cutting pictures taller than a page
│   ├── remote.py            # Downloading linked images
│   ├── compiler.py          # Typst → PDF compilation engine
│   ├── linter.py            # Source checks (line/column reporting)
│   └── templates/
│       ├── academic.typ     # Default IEEE-style report
│       ├── article.typ      # LaTeX paper, numbered sections
│       ├── report.typ       # Roomy and legible
│       ├── modern.typ       # Clean sans-serif layout
│       ├── minimal.typ      # Compact, no cover page
│       ├── technical.typ    # Accent banner + section markers
│       └── book.typ         # Centered title page, chapter breaks
│   └── themes/
│       ├── github.tmTheme    # Syntax highlighting themes
│       ├── solarized.tmTheme
│       └── monochrome.tmTheme
├── tests/                    # 181 tests across every module
├── pyproject.toml            # Package configuration + dependencies
├── LICENSE                   # MIT License
├── .gitignore
└── README.md

Dependencies

Package	Purpose	License
`click`	CLI framework	BSD-3
`rich`	Terminal formatting and progress indicators	MIT
`mistune`	Markdown parser (pure Python)	BSD-3
`typst`	Typst compiler bindings	Apache-2.0
`mermaidx`	Mermaid rendering without Node	MIT
`pillow`	Cutting pictures taller than a page	MIT-CMU

All dependencies are pure Python — no external binaries (Pandoc, LaTeX, etc.) are required.

Development

Setup

git clone https://github.com/leonardosalasd/doc-engine-cli.git
cd doc-engine-cli
pip install -e ".[dev]"

Run Tests

python -m pytest tests/ -v

Project Commands

# Generate PDF from this project's README
python -m doc_engine build

# Run with verbose error output
python -m doc_engine build README.md -o docs_output.pdf

Docker

A container image is published to GitHub Container Registry on every release. Mount your project into /workspace and run build as usual:

docker run --rm -v "$PWD:/workspace" ghcr.io/leonardosalasd/doc-engine-cli build

The entrypoint is doc-engine, so you can pass any command or flag:

docker run --rm -v "$PWD:/workspace" ghcr.io/leonardosalasd/doc-engine-cli build --template modern --accent teal

Supported Markdown Elements

Roadmap

Sponsor

doc-engine-cli is written and maintained by one person, in the open, and it is free under the MIT licence for everyone — no paid tier, no telemetry, no upsell. If it saves you the afternoon you would have spent fighting LaTeX, you can put something behind it:

Sponsorship pays for the time that goes into the parts nobody sees: testing on Windows, chasing a rendering bug across five Python versions, answering issues, and keeping the release quality where it is.

It is entirely optional. Starring the repository, reporting a bug you hit, or telling someone the tool exists all help too, and cost nothing.

Contributing

Contributions are welcome — bug reports, documentation fixes, new templates, and features. The contributing guide covers setup, testing across Python versions, code style, and how to add a template.


Contributing guide	Setup, tests, style, pull requests
Code of conduct	Expected behavior in community spaces
Security policy	Reporting a vulnerability privately
Support	Where to ask questions and report problems

Questions belong in Discussions; bugs belong in Issues.

License

This project is licensed under the MIT License.

Built with Typst · Parsed with mistune · Styled with Rich

Name		Name	Last commit message	Last commit date
.github		.github
assets		assets
doc_engine		doc_engine
examples		examples
tests		tests
.gitignore		.gitignore
CODE_OF_CONDUCT.md		CODE_OF_CONDUCT.md
CONTRIBUTING.md		CONTRIBUTING.md
Dockerfile		Dockerfile
LICENSE		LICENSE
README.md		README.md
SECURITY.md		SECURITY.md
SUPPORT.md		SUPPORT.md
pyproject.toml		pyproject.toml

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History

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doc-engine-cli

Overview

Features

Academic Writing

Quick Start

Installation

Generate Your First PDF

Explicit Options

Usage

Commands

build flags

Examples

Front Matter

Watch Mode

Diagrams

Math

Alerts

Code Themes

Cross-References

Multi-File Documents

Project Configuration

Large Images

Archival PDFs

Templates

Bring your own template

Checking for Errors

Architecture

Pipeline

How It Works

Markdown → Typst Conversion

PDF Templates

Project Structure

Dependencies

Development

Setup

Run Tests

Project Commands

Docker

Supported Markdown Elements

Roadmap

Sponsor

Contributing

License

About

Resources

Code of conduct

Contributing

Security policy

Stars

Watchers

Forks

Releases

Packages

Contributors

Languages

`build` flags