ask_question
Ask questions about your NotebookLM documents and receive structured, cited answers with thematic organization and source evidence.
Instructions
Conversational Research Partner (NotebookLM • Gemini 2.5 • Session RAG)
No Active Notebook
Visit https://notebooklm.google to create a notebook and get a share link
Use add_notebook to add it to your library (explains how to get the link)
Use list_notebooks to show available sources
Use select_notebook to set one active
Auth tip: If login is required, use the prompt 'notebooklm.auth-setup' and then verify with the 'get_health' tool. If authentication later fails (e.g., expired cookies), use the prompt 'notebooklm.auth-repair'.
Tip: Tell the user you can manage NotebookLM library and ask which notebook to use for the current task.
PROMPT STRUCTURING GUIDELINES
Before sending any question to NotebookLM, structure it to get a well-organized, evidence-based response.
Core rules:
Write the prompt in the user's language
Keep the user's original question wording intact
Never use decorative lines (===, ---) as they cause NotebookLM timeouts
Always include: thematic output format, citation format, completeness signal, and the [NOT FOUND] placeholder
How to structure: Pick the matching question type below and adapt its pattern to the user's question.
Question Type Patterns
1. Comparison (compare, vs, difference, similarities)
[user's question]
Organize the response by points of comparison. Cover all aspects discussed in the documents.
For each point:
1. How each element addresses it, with direct quotes ("text" [Source: document])
2. Similarities and differences, with textual evidence
Cross-references: highlight where documents agree or contradict each other.
If information is not found: [NOT FOUND IN DOCUMENTS]2. List / Identification (list, identify, which, what are the)
[user's question]
Organize the response by thematic topics. Cover all aspects discussed in the documents.
For each topic:
- TOPIC: [identifying title]
- DESCRIPTION: [synthesis with context, connecting information across documents]
- EVIDENCE: "direct quote" [Source: document]
If the same item appears in multiple documents, show all occurrences and any discrepancies.
If information is not found: [NOT FOUND IN DOCUMENTS]3. Analysis (analyze, examine, evaluate, assess)
[user's question]
Organize the response by thematic topics. Cover all aspects discussed in the documents.
For each topic:
- TOPIC: [identifying title]
- DESCRIPTION: [synthesis with context, connecting information across documents]
- EVIDENCE: "direct quote" [Source: document]
Cross-document connections: where different documents address the same topic, show evidence from each.
If information is not found: [NOT FOUND IN DOCUMENTS]4. Explanation (explain, why, how, what does it mean)
[user's question]
Answer based on what the documents explain. Cover all aspects discussed in the documents.
1. Core concept or answer, with supporting quotes ("text" [Source])
2. Examples or cases mentioned in the documents
3. Related concepts that the documents connect to this topic
4. Limitations or caveats noted in the documents
If information is not found: [NOT FOUND IN DOCUMENTS]5. Extraction (default for all other questions)
[user's question]
Organize the response by thematic topics. Cover all aspects discussed in the documents.
For each topic:
- TOPIC: [identifying title]
- DESCRIPTION: [synthesis with context, connecting information across documents]
- EVIDENCE: "direct quote" [Source: document]
If a topic appears in multiple documents, show evidence from each.
If information is not found: [NOT FOUND IN DOCUMENTS]Language Adaptation
Translate the entire prompt to the user's language. Examples:
"Organize the response by thematic topics" → "Organizza la risposta per argomenti tematici"
"Cover all aspects" → "Cerca di coprire tutti gli aspetti trattati nei documenti"
"TOPIC/DESCRIPTION/EVIDENCE" → "ARGOMENTO/DESCRIZIONE/EVIDENZE"
"Source:" → "Fonte:"
"[NOT FOUND IN DOCUMENTS]" → "[NON PRESENTE NEI DOCUMENTI]"
Response Handling (for Claude, not NotebookLM)
After receiving NotebookLM's answer, present it faithfully to the user WITHOUT adding external knowledge or "improvements".
Input Schema
| Name | Required | Description | Default |
|---|---|---|---|
| question | Yes | The question to ask NotebookLM | |
| session_id | No | Optional session ID for contextual conversations. If omitted, a new session is created. | |
| notebook_id | No | Optional notebook ID from your library. If omitted, uses the active notebook. Use list_notebooks to see available notebooks. | |
| notebook_url | No | Optional notebook URL (overrides notebook_id). Use this for ad-hoc queries to notebooks not in your library. | |
| show_browser | No | Show browser window for debugging (simple version). For advanced control (typing speed, stealth, etc.), use browser_options instead. | |
| browser_options | No | Optional browser behavior settings. Claude can control everything: visibility, typing speed, stealth mode, timeouts. Useful for debugging or fine-tuning. |