Awesome-Agent-Skills-for-Empirical-Research latex-to-quarto

Converts LaTeX article-class .tex documents to Quarto .qmd format for multi-format publishing (HTML, PDF, Word). Use when asked to convert, port, migrate, or translate a .tex LaTeX file to Quarto; when porting an academic paper or manuscript from LaTeX to Quarto; when a .tex document needs to render to HTML, Word, or Typst PDF. Covers preamble → YAML front matter, section headings, text formatting, math, citations (natbib/biblatex), cross-references, figures, tables, lists, footnotes, hyperlinks, and special characters.

install

source · Clone the upstream repo

git clone https://github.com/brycewang-stanford/Awesome-Agent-Skills-for-Empirical-Research

Claude Code · Install into ~/.claude/skills/

T=$(mktemp -d) && git clone --depth=1 https://github.com/brycewang-stanford/Awesome-Agent-Skills-for-Empirical-Research "$T" && mkdir -p ~/.claude/skills && cp -r "$T/skills/22-christopherkenny-skills/skills/latex-to-quarto" ~/.claude/skills/brycewang-stanford-awesome-agent-skills-for-empirical-research-latex-to-quarto && rm -rf "$T"

manifest: skills/22-christopherkenny-skills/skills/latex-to-quarto/SKILL.md

source content

LaTeX to Quarto Conversion

Convert a full LaTeX

.tex

article to a Quarto

.qmd

document that renders correctly to HTML, PDF (Typst or LaTeX), and Word. This skill handles the entire conversion pipeline: preamble extraction, document structure, and all inline/block transformations.

This skill writes the output file (overwriting the input or writing to a second path). Before writing, tell the user what file will be changed and remind them that

git diff

or file history can recover the original.

Input Arguments

Position Required Description

Yes

Path to the input

.tex

file (e.g.,

paper/paper.tex

)

Output

.qmd

path. Defaults to same directory,

.qmd

extension.

Example invocations:

/latex-to-quarto paper/paper.tex
/latex-to-quarto paper/paper.tex paper/paper.qmd

Quick Navigation: Use Which Reference

Task	Reference File
`\documentclass` , `\usepackage` , `\title` , `\author` → YAML	01-preamble-yaml.md
`\begin{document}` , `\maketitle` , `\begin{abstract}` , `\appendix`	02-document-structure.md
`\textbf` , `\emph` , `\texttt` , `\footnote` , `\href`	03-text-formatting.md
`equation` , `align` , `gather` , inline math delimiters	04-math.md
`\cite` , `\citep` , `\citet` , natbib/biblatex commands	05-citations.md
`\label` , `\ref` , `\autoref` , `\eqref` , prefix mapping	06-cross-references.md
`\includegraphics` , `figure` environment, subfigures	07-figures.md
`tabular` , `table` , `booktabs` , `\multicolumn`	08-tables.md
`\section` , `\subsection` , `itemize` , `enumerate`	09-sections-lists.md
Special characters, `\newpage` , `verbatim` , `\input`	10-misc.md

Step-by-Step Workflow

1. Parse Arguments

Identify the input

.tex

path (arg 1) and output path (arg 2). If arg 2 is omitted, replace the

.tex

extension with

.qmd

in the same directory.

2. Read the File

Use the

Read

tool to load the full

.tex

file. Hold the entire content in memory — you will produce one complete

.qmd

file at the end.

3. Extract and Convert the Preamble

Everything before

\begin{document}

is the preamble. Extract:

```
\documentclass
```
options → YAML
```
format:
```
settings

\title{}

\author{}

\date{}

→ YAML

title:

author:

date:

\bibliography{file}

\addbibresource{file}

→ YAML

bibliography:

Package hints (
```
geometry
```
,
```
setspace
```
,
```
natbib
```
,
```
biblatex
```
) → YAML format options

See 01-preamble-yaml.md for the full mapping table.

4. Strip Document Wrapper

Remove

\begin{document}

and

\end{document}

. Remove

\maketitle

(title is rendered from YAML automatically). Convert

\begin{abstract}...\end{abstract}

to YAML

abstract:

. See 02-document-structure.md.

5. Apply All Body Transformations

Work through the full document body and apply every applicable rule. Key principles:

Preserve math regions: Never alter content inside
```
$...$
```
or
```
$$...$$
```
except to move
```
\label{}
```
outside display math and convert delimiters (
```
$...$
```
→
```
$...$
```
).
Handle nesting:
```
\textbf{\emph{text}}
```
→
```
***text***
```
. Process inner commands first.
Be complete: Scan the entire file. Fix every instance of each pattern, not just the first.
Apply all categories: Work through every reference file. A single paragraph may require rules from multiple categories.

Apply reference files in this order (structural → inline):

09-sections-lists.md — headings and lists
05-citations.md — citations
06-cross-references.md — labels and references
07-figures.md — figures
08-tables.md — tables
04-math.md — math environments and delimiters
03-text-formatting.md — inline formatting
10-misc.md — special characters and remaining patterns

6. Assemble the QMD File

Combine:

YAML front matter (between
```
---
```
delimiters)
Converted document body (blank line after closing
```
---
```
)

7. Write the Output File

Use the

Write

tool to write the complete

.qmd

file in one pass. Do not use

Edit

for individual substitutions — a single full write ensures nothing is missed.

8. Report to the User

Tell the user:

Output path written
Summary of conversions by category (citation count, figure count, table count, etc.)
Items requiring manual review with approximate line numbers
Reminder to run
```
quarto render
```
to verify the output

Key Conceptual Differences: LaTeX vs. Quarto

Preamble → YAML Front Matter

LaTeX uses a

\documentclass

preamble; Quarto uses YAML front matter between

---

% LaTeX preamble
\documentclass[12pt,a4paper]{article}
\usepackage[margin=1in]{geometry}
\title{My Paper}
\author{Jane Doe}
\date{\today}
\bibliography{refs}

# Quarto YAML front matter
---
title: "My Paper"
author: "Jane Doe"
date: today
bibliography: refs.bib
format:
  html: default
  pdf:
    documentclass: article
    papersize: a4
    fontsize: 12pt
    geometry: margin=1in
---

Math Content Is Preserved as LaTeX

Unlike conversion to Typst, Quarto uses LaTeX math directly. Inline

\(...\)

→

$...$

; display

\[...\]

→

$$...$$

. Math content (operators, symbols, matrices) stays unchanged.

Citations Use Pandoc Bracket Syntax

\citep{key}

→

[@key]

;

\citet{key}

→

@key

. The

.bib

file is referenced in YAML and left unchanged.

Cross-References Use

@label

Not

\ref{}

\ref{fig:map}

→

@fig-map

. Labels move from standalone

\label{}

commands into element attribute blocks

{#fig-map}

Minimal Conversion Example

Input (

paper.tex

\documentclass[12pt]{article}
\usepackage{natbib}
\title{My Study}
\author{Jane Doe}
\date{2025}
\begin{document}
\maketitle
\begin{abstract}
We examine the effect of X on Y.
\end{abstract}
\section{Introduction}
Prior work \citep{smith2020} shows that $x > 0$.
See Figure~\ref{fig:map} for an overview.
\begin{figure}[h]
  \centering
  \includegraphics[width=0.8\textwidth]{figs/map.pdf}
  \caption{Study region.}
  \label{fig:map}
\end{figure}
\bibliography{refs}
\end{document}

Output (

paper.qmd

---
title: "My Study"
author: "Jane Doe"
date: 2025
bibliography: refs.bib
---

## Abstract

We examine the effect of X on Y.

# Introduction

Prior work [@smith2020] shows that $x > 0$.
See @fig-map for an overview.

![Study region.](figs/map.pdf){#fig-map width=80% fig-align="center"}

Patterns Requiring Manual Review

Flag these in your report with a suggested fix but no automatic conversion:

Pattern	Suggested Quarto Equivalent
`\begin{theorem}` , `\begin{proof}` , `\begin{lemma}`	`::: {.callout-note}` div, or install a theorem extension
`\newcommand{}{}` / `\renewcommand{}{}`	Inline the macro expansion throughout; flag remaining uses
`\input{file}` / `\include{file}`	Inline contents or use `{{< include file.qmd >}}` shortcode
`\vspace{}` / `\hspace{}`	Remove or replace with CSS; no direct Quarto equivalent
`\multicolumn{}{}{}` in tables	Requires manual table restructuring
TikZ / PGF diagrams	Remove or replace with Mermaid/Observable JS
Beamer `\begin{frame}`	Switch to `format: revealjs` with `##` slide headings
`\bibliographystyle{}`	Remove; use `csl:` in YAML if a specific citation style is needed
Multiple `\label` in one `align` block	Each labeled row may need its own equation block

What to Preserve Unchanged

LaTeX math content inside
```
$...$
```
and
```
$$...$$
```
File paths in
```
\includegraphics
```
and
```
\bibliography
```
(adjust extension if needed)
Existing
```
@ref
```
and
```
[@citation]
```
patterns already in correct Quarto form
Content inside
```
\begin{verbatim}...\end{verbatim}
```
(convert to fenced block, keep content)