Publication Settings

Every publication has a settings page where you can fine-tune how it looks, how the AI writes for it, and what features are enabled. To get there, open a publication and click the Settings button.

Settings auto-save as you type — there’s no save button to click for most fields. Changes to text fields (name, description, author, writing tone) save automatically after a short pause.

General settings

Name

The display name of your publication. This appears in the Hot Metal dashboard and as the title on your published blog.

Description

A summary of what your publication covers. This helps the Content Scout understand your blog’s focus when searching for ideas, and helps the AI writer stay on-topic when drafting posts.

Default Author

The author name that appears on published posts. You can override this on individual posts, but the default author saves you from entering it every time.

Writing Tone

A free-text field where you can describe the tone and voice you want the AI writer to use. For example: “Skeptical tech analyst. Conversational but data-driven.” This works alongside (or instead of) a writing style selection.

Writing Style

Select a predefined writing style from the dropdown. You can choose from built-in styles or any custom styles you’ve created on the Styles page. Selecting “None (use default)” gives you a balanced, professional tone. A link to Manage Styles lets you jump directly to the Styles page to create or edit custom styles.

Publication Template

Choose the visual design for your published blog. Hot Metal includes three templates:

• Starter — Clean, minimal, content-focused design.
• Editorial — Magazine-style with serif typography and drop caps.
• Bold — Tech-forward with geometric layout and thick borders.

Template changes take effect on your live blog immediately.

RSS Feeds

Control whether your publication offers RSS and Atom feeds for subscribers. See the RSS & Atom Feeds guide for full details on feed URLs and formats.

• Partial content feed — Includes the post title and an excerpt. Encourages readers to click through to your site.
• Full content feed — Includes the complete post content in the feed itself.

You can enable both, either, or neither. Feed URLs are displayed below the toggles when at least one feed type is enabled.

Comments

Enable or disable reader comments on your posts. When comments are enabled, you can choose a moderation mode:

• Auto-approve — Comments appear on your blog immediately after passing spam and content filters.
• Require approval — Comments are held for your review before appearing on the site.

For more details on managing comments, see the Comments guide.

Danger Zone

At the bottom of the settings page, you’ll find the option to delete the publication. This permanently removes the publication along with all its topics and ideas. You’ll be asked to confirm before anything is deleted.

Deleting a publication cannot be undone, so make sure you’re certain before proceeding.