---
name: hwc-forms-validation
description: >-
  Handle Hotwire form workflows: form submission lifecycle, inline editing, validation errors, typeahead/autocomplete, modal forms, and external form controls. Prefer this skill when the core problem is correctness and UX of form interaction. Use hwc-navigation-content for pagination/tabs/filter navigation, hwc-realtime-streaming for WebSocket/Turbo Stream broadcasting, hwc-media-content for image/video/audio behavior, hwc-ux-feedback for generic loading/transition polish, and hwc-stimulus-fundamentals for framework-level Stimulus APIs not tied to forms.
---

# Forms & Validation

Implement form-centric Hotwire workflows with Turbo Frames and Stimulus.

## Core Workflow

1. Identify the form flow: create/edit, inline edit, typeahead, modal form, or external controls.
2. Wrap the form interaction scope in a Turbo Frame when validation errors must rerender in place.
3. Return `422` for validation failures and `303` for successful redirects.
4. Handle post-submit behavior with `turbo:submit-end` only when Turbo defaults are insufficient.
5. Preserve user context during rerenders (focus/caret/selection).

## Guardrails

- Keep one source of truth for input state; avoid duplicate controls across frame and non-frame DOM.
- Use the HTML `form` attribute for controls rendered outside the target `<form>` hierarchy.
- Avoid firing submit logic on every keystroke without debounce/throttle.
- Keep post-submit behavior explicit when form responses update only a frame.

## Load References Selectively

Open only the file needed for the current request.

- Inline editing: `references/2024-02-27-turbo-frames-inline-edit.md`
- Modal validation flows: `references/2024-05-21-turbo-frames-modals-validation.md`
- Typeahead search: `references/2023-11-07-turbo-frames-typeahead-search.md`
- Typeahead validation with focus handling: `references/2025-10-20-turbo-frames-typeahead-validation.md`
- External form controls in frames: `references/2026-02-03-turbo-frames-external-form.md`
- Stimulus action parameters for forms: `references/2024-01-16-stimulus-action-parameters.md`

Use `references/INDEX.md` for the full catalog.

## Escalate to Neighbor Skills

- Navigation/history/cache behavior: use `hwc-navigation-content`
- WebSocket or Turbo Stream push updates: use `hwc-realtime-streaming`
- Media upload/playback behavior: use `hwc-media-content`
- Generic UX polish (spinners/progress/transitions): use `hwc-ux-feedback`
- General Stimulus API design questions: use `hwc-stimulus-fundamentals`