Template Variables

Templates use double-brace syntax for variables: {{variable_name}}. This guide covers all available variables and how to create effective templates.

Built-in Variables

These variables are automatically available in every template:

Variable	Description	Example Output
`{{date}}`	Current date (YYYY-MM-DD)	`2024-03-15`
`{{time}}`	Current time (HH:MM)	`14:30`
`{{title}}`	Note title from path	`My Project`
`{{filename}}`	Filename without extension	`My Project`

Using Built-ins

---
title: {{title}}
created: {{date}}
---

# {{title}}

Created on {{date}} at {{time}}.

When applied to projects/My Project.md, produces:

---
title: My Project
created: 2024-03-15
---

# My Project

Created on 2024-03-15 at 14:30.

Custom Variables

Define your own variables and pass values when applying the template.

Defining Variables

In your template, use any variable name:

---
title: {{title}}
author: {{author}}
category: {{category}}
---

# {{title}}

**Author**: {{author}}
**Category**: {{category}}

Passing Values

When applying, provide variables as key=value pairs:

“Create a note from the article template at posts/New Post.md with author=‘Jane Doe’ and category=‘Technology’”

Or the AI sends:

variables: "author=Jane Doe,category=Technology"

Default Values

Variables without values remain as-is, so you can fill them manually:

Rating: {{rating}}

If no rating is provided, the output is Rating: {{rating}} for you to edit.

Template Examples

Meeting Notes

templates/meeting.md:

---
title: "{{title}}"
date: {{date}}
type: meeting
attendees: []
status: draft
---

# {{title}}

**Date**: {{date}} {{time}}
**Attendees**: {{attendees}}

## Agenda

-

## Discussion

## Action Items

- [ ]

## Next Steps

Usage: “Create a meeting note for ‘Q1 Planning’ with attendees=‘Alice, Bob, Carol‘“

Project

templates/project.md:

---
title: "{{title}}"
status: {{status}}
priority: {{priority}}
owner: {{owner}}
created: {{date}}
deadline: {{deadline}}
tags:
  - project
---

# {{title}}

## Overview

{{description}}

## Objectives

1.

## Timeline

- **Start**: {{date}}
- **Deadline**: {{deadline}}

## Tasks

- [ ] Define scope
- [ ] Create plan
- [ ]

## Resources

## Notes

Usage: “Create a project for ‘Mobile App v2’ with status=‘planning’, priority=‘high’, owner=‘John’, deadline=‘2024-06-01‘“

Book Notes

templates/book.md:

---
title: "{{title}}"
author: "{{author}}"
type: book
status: {{status}}
started: {{date}}
finished:
rating:
isbn: {{isbn}}
tags:
  - book
  - {{genre}}
---

# {{title}}

**Author**: {{author}}
**Genre**: {{genre}}
**Started**: {{date}}

## Summary

## Key Ideas

1.

## Favorite Quotes

>

## Notes

## Review

**Rating**: /5

**Would recommend to**:

**Key takeaway**:

Person (CRM)

templates/person.md:

---
title: "{{name}}"
type: person
company: "{{company}}"
role: "{{role}}"
email: {{email}}
met: {{date}}
tags:
  - person
  - {{context}}
---

# {{name}}

**Company**: {{company}}
**Role**: {{role}}
**Email**: {{email}}
**Met**: {{date}} - {{context}}

## About

## Interactions

### {{date}}
- Met at {{context}}

## Notes

## Follow-ups

- [ ]

Daily Note

templates/daily.md:

---
title: "{{date}}"
type: daily
created: {{date}}
---

# {{date}}

## Morning

### Intentions
-

### Tasks
- [ ]

## Notes

## Evening

### Accomplishments
-

### Gratitude
-

### Tomorrow
-

Advanced Patterns

Conditional Sections

Since variables without values aren’t replaced, you can create optional sections:

{{#if client}}
## Client Information
**Client**: {{client}}
{{/if}}

Nested Templates

Create base templates and extend them:

base-note.md:

---
created: {{date}}
modified: {{date}}
---

Then include common elements in other templates.

Template for Templates

A meta-template for creating new templates:

---
title: "{{template_name}} Template"
description: "Template for {{purpose}}"
variables:
  - name: (required)
  - description: (optional)
---

<!--
Variables:
- {{variable1}}: Description
- {{variable2}}: Description
-->

# {{title}}

## Section 1

## Section 2

Template Organization

Folder Structure

templates/
├── daily.md
├── weekly.md
├── meeting.md
├── project.md
├── work/
│   ├── standup.md
│   ├── retrospective.md
│   └── 1on1.md
├── personal/
│   ├── book.md
│   ├── movie.md
│   └── recipe.md
└── reference/
    ├── person.md
    └── company.md

Naming Conventions

Use lowercase, hyphenated names: meeting-notes.md
Group related templates in folders
Keep names short but descriptive

Tips

List Available Variables

Before using a template:

“Show me the meeting template and list its variables”

Uses manage-templates action: "get" to display content and identify {{variables}}.

Batch Creation

“Create project notes for Alpha, Beta, and Gamma using the project template, all with status=‘planning’”

The AI applies the template three times with different titles.

Template Discovery

“What templates do I have for work-related notes?”

Uses manage-templates action: "list" and filters by folder or content.