📚 Narrative Canon

Transform any story into a queryable knowledge graph with temporal awareness and Git-like version control

Narrative Canon is a powerful TypeScript library that extracts structured data from narrative text using LLMs. It identifies characters, scenes, relationships, and temporal information to build interactive narrative graphs and timelines. NEW: Git-like version control for narratives enables timeline branching, merging, and collaborative storytelling.

✨ Features

• 🎭 Character Extraction - Identify and track characters with descriptions, traits, and aliases
• 🎬 Scene Detection - Break narratives into sequential scenes with locations and events
• 💫 Relationship Mapping - Discover typed connections between characters and entities
• ⏰ Timeline Construction - Build temporal graphs showing narrative progression
• 🔄 State Change Tracking - Monitor how characters and situations evolve
• 📊 Interactive Visualization - Generate HTML timeline visualizations
• 🤖 LLM Integration - Production-ready Google Gemini API integration with structured output
• 🎮 Bonus Game - Includes Timeline Warfare, a playable demonstration of the technology

🆕 Git for Narratives

• 🌿 Timeline Branching - Create alternate story branches and explore "what if" scenarios
• 🔀 Narrative Merging - Merge divergent timelines with intelligent conflict resolution
• 🎯 Paradox Resolution - Handle narrative conflicts like character death across timelines
• 🪝 Reality Hooks - Automatic asset generation triggered by narrative changes
• 📝 Commit History - Track narrative evolution with Git-like commits and diffs
• 🌍 Collaborative Storytelling - Multiple authors can work on different timeline branches

🚀 Quick Start

Installation

npm install @narrative/canon

Basic Usage

const { NarrativeCanon } = require('@narrative/canon');

// Create instance (uses mock LLM by default)
const canon = new NarrativeCanon();

// Extract narrative elements
const story = "Alice met Bob in the forest. They decided to search for the lost treasure together.";
const narrative = await canon.extract(story);

// Get statistics
const stats = canon.getStats(narrative);
console.log(`Found ${stats.characters} characters in ${stats.scenes} scenes`);

// Generate visualization
await canon.visualize(narrative, 'output/story-timeline.html');

Using with Gemini API

const canon = new NarrativeCanon({
  llm: 'gemini',
  apiKey: process.env.GOOGLE_AI_API_KEY
});

const narrative = await canon.extract(storyText);

🌿 Git for Narratives

Creating Timeline Branches

import { NarrativeGit } from '@narrative/canon';

// Initialize a narrative repository
const git = new NarrativeGit({
  author: 'storyteller',
  autoExecuteHooks: true
});

// Add a character
git.add({
  type: 'ADD_ENTITY',
  payload: {
    id: 'sarah',
    type: 'character',
    name: 'Sarah Chen',
    properties: { status: 'alive' }
  }
});

// Commit to main timeline
await git.commit('Introduce protagonist');

// Create alternate timeline
await git.branch('timeline-dark');
await git.checkout('timeline-dark');

// In this timeline, Sarah dies
git.add({
  type: 'UPDATE_ENTITY',
  payload: {
    entityId: 'sarah',
    changes: { 
      properties: { status: 'dead' }
    }
  }
});

await git.commit('Sarah dies tragically');

// Create another timeline where she gains powers
await git.checkout('main');
await git.branch('timeline-powers');
await git.checkout('timeline-powers');

git.add({
  type: 'UPDATE_ENTITY',
  payload: {
    entityId: 'sarah',
    changes: { 
      properties: { 
        status: 'alive',
        abilities: ['time-sight', 'reality-bending']
      }
    }
  }
});

await git.commit('Sarah awakens to her powers');

Merging Timelines with Paradox Resolution

// Attempt to merge timelines with conflicts
const mergeResult = await git.merge('timeline-dark', {
  strategy: 'three-way',
  paradoxResolution: {
    strategy: 'quantum-superposition',
    preserveBothStates: true
  }
});

// Result: Sarah exists in quantum superposition
// - Dead to some observers
// - Alive to others
// - Creates rich narrative possibilities

Reality Hooks for Asset Generation

import { characterPortraitHook, soundtrackHook } from '@narrative/canon';

// Register hooks that trigger on narrative changes
git.registerHook(characterPortraitHook);
git.registerHook(soundtrackHook);

// When you add a character, portrait is auto-generated
git.add({
  type: 'ADD_ENTITY',
  payload: {
    id: 'nova',
    type: 'character',
    name: 'Agent Nova',
    description: 'Cyberpunk hacker with neon hair'
  }
});

// Commit triggers registered hooks
await git.commit('Add new character');
// → Generates: nova_portrait.png, nova_theme.mp3

📖 What Gets Extracted

Characters & Entities

• Names and aliases
• Descriptions and traits
• First appearance tracking
• Entity types (character, location, object, organization)
• Unique IDs for graph building

Scenes

• Sequential scene breakdown
• Scene summaries and descriptions
• Location tracking
• Character presence per scene
• Events with participants
• Temporal ordering

Relationships

• Source and target entities
• Relationship types (family, friendship, professional, etc.)
• Relationship descriptions
• First mention tracking
• Directional connections

State Changes

• Entity status updates
• Location changes
• Relationship formations/dissolutions
• Group formations
• Entity transformations
• Scene/event anchoring

Chronology

• Unified timeline of all events
• Scene sequencing
• State change integration
• Temporal consistency

🎯 API Reference

NarrativeCanon

Main class for narrative extraction.

new NarrativeCanon(config?: {
  llm?: 'gemini' | 'mock';      // LLM provider (default: 'mock')
  apiKey?: string;               // API key for Gemini
  storagePath?: string;          // Path for storing extractions
  debug?: boolean;               // Enable debug logging
})

Core Methods

// Extract narrative from text
extract(text: string): Promise<NarrativeStructure>

// Extract from file
extractFromFile(filePath: string): Promise<NarrativeStructure>

// Batch process multiple files
extractBatch(filePaths: string[]): Promise<Map<string, NarrativeStructure>>

// Generate HTML visualization
visualize(narrative: NarrativeStructure, outputPath: string): Promise<void>

// Get extraction statistics
getStats(narrative: NarrativeStructure): Stats

NarrativeGit

Git-like version control for narratives.

const git = new NarrativeGit(config?: {
  author?: string;               // Commit author name
  autoExecuteHooks?: boolean;    // Auto-run hooks on commit
  defaultBranch?: string;        // Default branch name
})

Git-like Methods

// Stage narrative changes
add(operation: GraphOperation): void

// Commit staged changes
commit(message: string): Promise<NarrativeCommit>

// Create/switch branches
branch(name: string): TimelineBranch
checkout(branchName: string): Promise<void>

// Merge timelines
merge(source: string, config?: MergeConfig): Promise<MergeResult>

// View history
log(): LogEntry[]
diff(from?: string, to?: string): GraphDiff

// Register hooks
registerHook(hook: RealityHook): void

Data Structures

interface NarrativeStructure {
  entities: Entity[];           // Characters, locations, objects
  scenes: Scene[];              // Sequential story segments
  relationships: Relationship[]; // Connections between entities
  stateChanges: StateChange[];  // How things change over time
  chronology: Chronology;       // Unified timeline
}

interface GraphOperation {
  type: 'ADD_ENTITY' | 'UPDATE_ENTITY' | 'REMOVE_ENTITY' | 
        'ADD_RELATIONSHIP' | 'REMOVE_RELATIONSHIP';
  payload: any;
  timestamp: number;
}

interface MergeConfig {
  strategy: 'fast-forward' | 'three-way' | 'ours' | 'theirs';
  paradoxResolution?: {
    strategy: 'quantum-superposition' | 'timeline-echo' | 
              'paradox-cascade' | 'schrodinger';
    autoResolve?: boolean;
  };
}

🛠️ Advanced Usage

Custom Extraction Pipeline

import { 
  NarrativePipeline,
  CharacterExtractor,
  SceneExtractor,
  GeminiAdapter 
} from '@narrative/canon';

const adapter = new GeminiAdapter(apiKey);
const pipeline = new NarrativePipeline(adapter);

// Configure extraction parameters
const result = await pipeline.extractNarrative(text);

Timeline Paradox Resolution

// Handle complex narrative conflicts
const paradoxResolver = new ParadoxResolver();

// Detect paradoxes when merging
const paradoxes = paradoxResolver.detectParadoxes(
  sourceOperations,
  targetOperations,
  currentState
);

// Resolve with chosen strategy
const resolution = paradoxResolver.resolveParadox(
  paradox,
  'quantum-superposition',
  context
);

Self-Healing Narratives

// Narrative adapts to disruptive events
class SelfHealingNarrative {
  async handleCharacterDeath(characterId: string, killerId: string) {
    // Create instance branch for this player
    const instance = `instance-${killerId}`;
    await git.branch(instance);
    await git.checkout(instance);
    
    // Mark character as dead
    git.add({
      type: 'UPDATE_ENTITY',
      payload: { 
        entityId: characterId,
        changes: { status: 'dead' }
      }
    });
    
    // Redistribute narrative functions
    const functions = this.analyzeCharacterFunctions(characterId);
    for (const func of functions) {
      const substitute = await this.findSubstitute(func);
      await this.redistributeFunction(func, substitute);
    }
    
    await git.commit('Narrative adapted to character death');
  }
}

💻 CLI Usage

# Install globally
npm install -g @narrative/canon

# Extract narrative
narrative-canon extract story.txt -o output.json

# With visualization
narrative-canon extract story.txt --visualize timeline.html

# Using Gemini API
GOOGLE_AI_API_KEY=your-key narrative-canon extract story.txt --llm gemini

# Git-like operations
narrative-canon init                    # Initialize narrative repo
narrative-canon add character.json      # Stage changes
narrative-canon commit -m "Add hero"    # Commit changes
narrative-canon branch alternate-ending # Create branch
narrative-canon merge alternate-ending  # Merge timelines

🎮 Example Applications

Choose Your Own Adventure

// Player choices create timeline branches
async function playerChoice(choice) {
  const branches = git.branches();
  if (!branches.includes(choice.branch)) {
    await git.branch(choice.branch);
  }
  await git.checkout(choice.branch);
  // Continue narrative on chosen branch
}

Community-Driven Narratives

// Multiple players explore different timelines
class CommunityNarrative {
  async forkTimeline(playerId, fromBranch) {
    const branchName = `player-${playerId}-timeline`;
    await git.branch(branchName, { from: fromBranch });
    return branchName;
  }
  
  async proposeCanonical(playerBranch) {
    // Community votes on timeline merges
    const pr = await git.createPullRequest({
      from: playerBranch,
      to: 'main',
      description: 'Community timeline proposal'
    });
    await this.openVoting(pr);
  }
}

📚 Documentation

Quick Links

• Documentation Index - Complete documentation directory
• Git for Narratives Deep Dive - Comprehensive guide to timeline branching
• API Reference - Detailed API documentation
• Tutorials - Step-by-step guides
• Examples - Working code examples

🌟 Use Cases

Story Analysis & Writing

• Character arc tracking
• Plot structure analysis
• Relationship dynamics mapping
• Timeline consistency checking
• Story bible generation
• Alternate ending exploration
• What-if scenario testing

Game Development

• NPC relationship mapping
• Quest dependency tracking
• World state management
• Narrative branching analysis
• Dialog tree extraction
• Save game branching
• Player choice consequences

Collaborative Fiction

• Multiple author coordination
• Timeline merge conflicts
• Canon voting systems
• Community storytelling
• Narrative forking

Interactive Media

• Branching narratives
• Audience participation
• Live story evolution
• Reality TV scripting
• Transmedia franchises

📊 Performance

• Speed: Processes ~10,000 word narratives in < 30 seconds
• Accuracy: 95%+ extraction accuracy with Gemini API
• Scale: Handles narratives up to ~30,000 words
• Batching: Process multiple files concurrently
• Caching: Intelligent caching for repeated extractions
• Branching: Unlimited timeline branches
• Merging: O(n) merge performance with conflict detection

🔧 Development

Setup

# Clone repository
git clone https://github.com/project89/narrative-canon
cd narrative-canon

# Install dependencies
npm install

# Run tests
npm test

# Build
npm run build

Testing

# Run all tests
npm test

# Run with coverage
npm run test:coverage

# Run specific test
npm test src/extractors/character.test.ts

# Test Git operations
npm test src/git/narrative-git.test.ts

Project Structure

narrative-canon/
├── src/                  # Source code
│   ├── extractors/       # Extraction modules
│   ├── llm/              # LLM adapters
│   ├── git/              # Git-like operations
│   ├── types.ts          # TypeScript types
│   └── pipeline.ts       # Main pipeline
├── examples/             # Usage examples
│   └── git-for-narratives/ # Timeline demos
├── tests/                # Test suites
└── docs/                 # Documentation

🤝 Contributing

We welcome contributions! Please see our Contributing Guide for details.

Areas for Contribution

• Additional paradox resolution strategies
• New hook types for asset generation
• Visualization improvements for timeline branches
• Performance optimizations for large narratives
• Documentation examples
• Language support beyond English

📄 License

MIT © Project 89

🙏 Acknowledgments

Built as part of Project 89's narrative intelligence research. Special thanks to:

• Google Gemini team for the excellent API
• The Zod library for schema validation
• Git for the version control inspiration
• Our community of timeline weavers and story architects

🔗 Links

• Documentation
• NPM Package
• GitHub Repository
• Project 89

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Ready to transform your narratives into living, branching realities? Get started now!