Reference meta template

When to use

• Shelf: resources/reference/meta/<area>/
• kind: reference, meta, or capability inventory
• Diátaxis mode: reference (lookup, not narrative)
• Readers served: authors and agents needing canonical capability lists (plugins, components, IA)

Design rationale

• Reference docs are lookup tables — purpose in one paragraph, then inventory (Diátaxis reference).
• Table-first inventory — parallel facts belong in tables, not prose (Google reference documentation).
• Usage section short — how to apply this reference when authoring; link to writing-style for voice (authoring capabilities pattern).
• Related links — reference pages sit in a graph; outbound links reduce duplication.

Copy-paste skeleton

---
title: "<Reference title>"
description: One sentence — what this page inventories or defines.
kind: reference
status: current
tags: [reference, meta]
---

## Purpose

&lt;Who reads this and when — 2 sentences max.&gt;

## Inventory

| Item | Status | Notes |
| --- | --- | --- |
| … | current | … |

## Usage

&lt;3–5 bullets — when to update this page, what wins on conflict (code vs doc).&gt;

## Related

- [Writing style](/zajlibrary/authoring/content-system/resources/reference/writing-style/)
- [Content architecture](/zajlibrary/authoring/content-system/resources/reference/content-architecture/)

Anti-patterns

• Do not duplicate AGENTS.md constitution — link instead.
• Do not teach tutorials on reference meta pages.

Worked example

• Authoring capabilities

Sources

• Diátaxis — Reference documentation — lookup-oriented structure.
• Google developer documentation style guide — Reference documents — tables and consistent entry format.
• Write the Docs — Documentation types — reference vs guide distinction.
• Writing style → Doc-type spines