MCP Setup Guide

How It Works

The MCP (Model Context Protocol) lets your AI assistant talk directly to Quick Viral Notes. Instead of switching between browser tabs, you stay in one conversation — ask your AI to draft notes, check your schedule, or plan your content calendar. The Chrome extension then handles the actual publishing to Substack.

Your Workflow

You + Claude / Cursor

→

MCP Server

→

QVN Database

Chrome Extension

→

Published on Substack

AI orchestrates & schedules • Extension publishes

What can you do with the MCP? View your notes dashboard, see planned and published notes, create new notes, schedule them for specific dates and times — all from within your AI conversation.

Prerequisites

You need all three of these. The workflow doesn't work without any one of them.

1. QVN Account

Sign up or sign in to Quick Viral Notes. This is where you generate your API token and where your notes live. Currently in beta — reach out to get access.

2. Chrome Extension

This is what actually publishes your notes to Substack. The MCP orchestrates, but the extension takes the action. Install from Chrome Web Store.

3. The MCP

The bridge between your AI and QVN. You'll install it into one of: Claude Desktop, Claude Code, or Cursor. Setup takes about 2 minutes.

How they fit together: Your AI client (Claude/Cursor) uses the MCP to plan and schedule notes. The Chrome extension watches for scheduled notes and publishes them to Substack at the right time. All three pieces need to be in place for the full workflow.

Which AI client should I pick? Claude Desktop is the easiest if you just want to chat and manage notes. Cursor is great if you're already coding with it. Claude Code is for terminal-based workflows.

Step 1: Get Your API Token

Your API token is what connects your AI client to your QVN account. You'll generate it once and paste it into your setup.

Go to Settings → Substack Notes MCP
Scroll down to the "Substack Notes MCP" section.
Click "Generate Token"
You'll see a token that starts with qvn_sk_. This is your API key.
Copy and save it somewhere safe
The token is only shown once. If you lose it, you can always generate a new one (which revokes the old one).

Go to Settings → Generate Token

Keep your token private. Anyone with your token can read and write to your QVN account. If you think it's been compromised, revoke it immediately from Settings and generate a new one.

Step 2: Install the MCP

Choose your AI client below and follow the instructions. Each one takes about 2 minutes.

Option A: One-Click Install (easiest)

Download the extension file from your Settings page.
Double-click the .mcpb file to open it in Claude Desktop.
Enter your API token when prompted. Claude will connect automatically.

Download Extension from Settings

Option B: Manual JSON Config

Add this to your claude_desktop_config.json:

{
  "mcpServers": {
    "substack-notes": {
      "command": "npx",
      "args": ["-y", "substack-notes-mcp", "--token", "YOUR_TOKEN_HERE"]
    }
  }
}

Replace YOUR_TOKEN_HERE with the token from Step 1. Requires Node.js.

Where is the config file?
Mac: ~/Library/Application Support/Claude/claude_desktop_config.json
Windows: %APPDATA%\Claude\claude_desktop_config.json

Run this single command in your terminal:

claude mcp add substack-notes -- npx -y substack-notes-mcp --token YOUR_TOKEN_HERE

Replace YOUR_TOKEN_HERE with your token. That's it — you're done.

Verify it works: Run claude mcp list and you should see substack-notes in the output.

Add this to your Cursor MCP settings. You can find it in Cursor Settings → MCP, or edit the file directly:

{
  "mcpServers": {
    "substack-notes": {
      "url": "https://qvn-mcp.vercel.app/mcp",
      "headers": {
        "Authorization": "Bearer YOUR_TOKEN_HERE"
      }
    }
  }
}

Replace YOUR_TOKEN_HERE with your token.

Config file location:
Project-level: .cursor/mcp.json in your project root
Global: ~/.cursor/mcp.json in your home directory

Verify it works: After saving, check Cursor Settings → MCP. You should see "substack-notes" listed with a green status dot.

Step 3: Test It Out

Once your MCP is connected, try asking your AI one of these to make sure everything works:

Try these prompts:

"Show me my notes dashboard"
"What notes do I have planned for this week?"
"Show me my recently published notes"

If you see your notes data coming back, you're all set. The AI now has full access to your QVN dashboard.

Getting "Not authenticated"? Double-check that your token starts with qvn_sk_ and that you copied it completely. If in doubt, generate a fresh token from Settings.

Video Walkthroughs

Prefer watching over reading? These three short videos cover everything from installation to daily usage.

1. How to Install the MCP Watch Video

2. How I Use It in Cursor and Claude Watch Video

3. How I Use It with Claude Desktop Watch Video

Got stuck? Email [email protected] and I'll walk you through it personally.