How "Ask the author" answers

“Ask the author” is a comment box that replies. It is not me, and it does not pretend to know things I did not write down.

What the model sees

Three things: the persona from src/config.ts, the text of the current post, and the reader’s question with the last few exchanges. The persona is a paragraph in the first person that sets the voice and the rule that matters most: answer only from the post provided.

persona: 'You are Mika Tan, the author of this blog. Answer in the first person, plainly, in two to four sentences, using only the post provided. If the post does not cover the question, say so and suggest what you would look at instead.'

Why it stops at the post

A blog post is a bounded thing. Letting the model answer from general knowledge would make the box sound confident about topics I never covered, in my name. Keeping it to the post keeps it honest: when a reader asks something the post does not answer, the reply says so, and that is a signal to me about what to write next.

Follow-ups

The box keeps the last four exchanges, so “and on Windows?” works after “how do I install it?”. Nothing is stored anywhere: close the panel and the thread is gone. OneTag AI keeps token counts per key, not the text.

Changing the voice

Edit the persona. Keep the “only from the post” sentence unless you have a reason to drop it. Short and specific beats long and friendly.