Today I published my first plugin on WordPress.org: TOCguide. It is a Gutenberg Table of Contents block with an optional Reading Guide. No accounts, no tracking, no outside APIs. The listing is live at version 1.6.3.
This is a slightly shorter Dev.to version of a longer write-up on my site. The full notes are here: How I published my first WordPress.org plugin with Cursor, Git, and AI.
Why AI mattered for finishing this
I am a dad of twins. I also have a full-time job and a freelance WordPress side gig. Evenings and weekends are short. Shipping a Plugin Directory product the old way — every PHPCS pass, every readme tweak, every packaging step — would have sat on a list for years.
I used AI tools on purpose: Cursor (including cloud agents on the repo), Grok Bot for site and content work around matthummel.com, and normal Git + GitHub Actions so the machine checks stayed honest. I am not saying AI replaces judgment. I am saying it compressed weeks of typing and rework into hours I actually had.
People are right to be careful with AI. Used poorly, it invents APIs, ships insecure PHP, and fights the WordPress.org guidelines. Used with rules, reviews, and CI, it can raise daily output without lowering the bar. Feedback and pushback are welcome in the comments.
What TOCguide is
TOCguide is a single-purpose block plugin. Display name TOCguide. Slug, folder, text domain, shortcode, and CSS prefix are all tocguide. That one identity mattered for WordPress.org guideline 17 and for long-term support.
- Standard TOC: heading levels, nested lists, five Block Styles, sticky/collapse, scroll-spy, smooth scroll offset, auto-insert,
[tocguide]shortcode, accessible<nav> - Optional Reading Guide: section previews, density bars, read-time badges, reading progress, author notes, localStorage reactions and citations — all from post content and meta, not remote services
- Builder fallbacks for Elementor, Bricks, and HTML-based themes
- License: GPLv2 or later. Privacy: no phone-home Docs: matthummel-pa.github.io/tocguide Source: github.com/matthummel-pa/tocguide
The setup in brief
Cursor rules and cloud agents. Under .cursor/rules/ I keep always-on rules for block coding, brand typography, and the WordPress.org Plugin Directory FAQ plus the 18 guidelines. A CLAUDE.md file states the product intent in plain language. Cloud agents handled large slices as pull requests. I still read every PR. The agent drafts. I decide what merges.
Git and GitHub Actions. CI on push and pull request runs lint, build, PHP lint, and PHPCS. Tags like v1.6.2 fire a Release workflow that builds the plugin zip with @wordpress/scripts plugin-zip and attaches it to a GitHub Release. That zip is what goes through SVN to the directory after review.
Block architecture. TOCguide is a dynamic block: block.json (apiVersion 3), save.js returns null, and src/render.php prints the nav. Heading maps live in TOCguide_Headings so render stays thin.
Where Grok Bot fits. Cursor owns the plugin code. Grok Bot owns a different lane for me: site drafts, Rank Math, media, and turning repo facts into readable posts. Same person reviewing both. Different tools for code vs. site content.
An honest take on AI
What helped:
- Written rules in the repo so agents follow Gutenberg and WordPress.org constraints
- CI as a second reviewer that never gets tired of PHPCS or lint
- Cloud agents for packaging and repetitive compliance edits while I was with the kids or on client work What still needs a human:
- Product taste (what belongs in free vs later)
- Security and escaping reviews
- Reading the official guidelines yourself before you argue with a reviewer
- Saying no when a suggestion would phone home, load a CDN script, or lock features behind a paywall on .org I am not claiming AI is magic. I am claiming that for a busy parent shipping a first directory plugin, the time cost used to be the blocker — and tooling that respects WordPress standards can change that. If your experience differs, I want to hear it.
Try it
If you build plugins with AI, or you refuse to, leave a comment. What worked, what broke review, what you would never trust an agent with.
— Matt Hummel
