Convert markdown to Word documents (DOCX) with support for track changes, insertions, deletions, and comments. This is useful for generating legal documents, contracts with redlines, and collaborative review documents.
Quick Start
# Submit request
curl -X POST https://www.datalab.to/api/v1/create-document \
-H "X-API-Key: $DATALAB_API_KEY" \
-H "Content-Type: application/json" \
-d '{
"markdown": "# Contract\n\nThis agreement is between <ins data-revision-author=\"Editor\" data-revision-datetime=\"2024-01-15T10:00:00Z\">Acme Corp</ins> and the client.",
"output_format": "docx"
}'
# Poll for results (use request_check_url from response)
curl https://www.datalab.to/api/v1/create-document/REQUEST_ID \
-H "X-API-Key: $DATALAB_API_KEY"
The SDK does not currently have a dedicated create_document() method. Use the REST API directly.
How It Works
- Send markdown content with optional track changes markup
- The API converts it to a DOCX file with proper Word formatting
- Track changes tags become native Word revision marks
- The DOCX file is returned as a base64-encoded string
Track Changes Markup
Insertions
Mark inserted text with <ins> tags:
<ins data-revision-author="John Doe" data-revision-datetime="2024-01-15T10:00:00Z">newly added text</ins>
| Attribute | Required | Description |
|---|
data-revision-author | Yes | Author name for the insertion |
data-revision-datetime | Yes | ISO 8601 timestamp (e.g., 2024-01-15T10:00:00Z) |
Deletions
Mark deleted text with <del> tags:
<del data-revision-author="Jane Smith" data-revision-datetime="2024-01-15T11:00:00Z">removed text</del>
| Attribute | Required | Description |
|---|
data-revision-author | Yes | Author name for the deletion |
data-revision-datetime | Yes | ISO 8601 timestamp |
<comment> tags:
<comment data-comment-author="Reviewer" data-comment-datetime="2024-01-15T12:00:00Z" text="Please verify this clause">annotated text</comment>
| Attribute | Required | Description |
|---|
data-comment-author | Yes | Author/reviewer name |
text | Yes | The comment text |
data-comment-datetime | No | ISO 8601 timestamp (defaults to current time) |
data-comment-initial | No | Author initials (auto-generated from name if omitted) |
Parameters
| Parameter | Type | Required | Description |
|---|
markdown | string | Yes | Markdown content with optional track changes markup |
output_format | string | No | Output format (currently only docx is supported) |
webhook_url | string | No | Webhook URL to notify when processing completes |
Response
The response follows the standard async pattern — submit, then poll:
Initial response:
{
"success": true,
"request_id": "abc123",
"request_check_url": "https://www.datalab.to/api/v1/create-document/abc123"
}
| Field | Type | Description |
|---|
status | string | processing or complete |
success | bool | Whether document creation succeeded |
output_format | string | docx |
output_base64 | string | Base64-encoded DOCX file |
runtime | float | Processing time in seconds |
page_count | int | Pages in the generated document |
cost_breakdown | object | Cost details |
error | string | Error message if creation failed |
Full Example
A contract with insertions, deletions, and reviewer comments:
import requests, json, time, base64, os
headers = {"X-API-Key": os.getenv("DATALAB_API_KEY")}
markdown = """# Service Agreement
## Parties
This agreement is between <ins data-revision-author="Legal" data-revision-datetime="2024-06-01T09:00:00Z">Acme Corporation ("Provider")</ins> and <del data-revision-author="Legal" data-revision-datetime="2024-06-01T09:00:00Z">the Client</del><ins data-revision-author="Legal" data-revision-datetime="2024-06-01T09:00:00Z">GlobalTech Inc. ("Client")</ins>.
## Terms
The service period begins on <comment data-comment-author="Reviewer" text="Confirm start date with finance">January 1, 2025</comment> and continues for <del data-revision-author="Legal" data-revision-datetime="2024-06-01T10:00:00Z">12</del><ins data-revision-author="Legal" data-revision-datetime="2024-06-01T10:00:00Z">24</ins> months.
## Payment
The total contract value is <ins data-revision-author="Finance" data-revision-datetime="2024-06-02T14:00:00Z">$150,000</ins> payable in quarterly installments.
"""
response = requests.post(
"https://www.datalab.to/api/v1/create-document",
json={"markdown": markdown, "output_format": "docx"},
headers=headers
)
check_url = response.json()["request_check_url"]
while True:
result = requests.get(check_url, headers=headers).json()
if result["status"] == "complete":
docx_bytes = base64.b64decode(result["output_base64"])
with open("service_agreement.docx", "wb") as f:
f.write(docx_bytes)
print(f"Document saved ({result['page_count']} pages)")
break
time.sleep(2)
Use Cases
- Legal document generation — create contracts with tracked revisions
- Contract redlining — mark up agreements with insertions and deletions
- Collaborative review — add reviewer comments to documents
- Document automation — generate Word documents from templates with dynamic content
Next Steps
