lifter

Converts compile-time type instances to their Nim literal constructor syntax for macro code generation.

Example

type Person = object
  name: string
  age: int

import pkg/lifter

macro buildPerson(): untyped =
  # Create an instance at compile-time
  let someone = Person(name: "Alice", age: 30)
  # Convert it to AST syntax: Person(name: "Alice", age: 30)
  result = someone.lift()

let alice = buildPerson()
echo alice  # Person(name: "Alice", age: 30)

What it does

Takes a type instance that exists at compile-time (in a macro) and generates the Nim source code needed to construct it. This is useful for:

• Embedding compile-time computed values into generated code
• Code generation from configuration objects
• Macro-based serialization/deserialization

API

proc toNimLiteral*[T](x: T): string
  # Converts a value to its Nim literal string representation
  # Example: Point(x: 10, y: 20) -> "Point(x: 10, y: 20)"

proc lift*[T](item: T): NimNode
  # Converts a value directly to a NimNode
  # Equivalent to: parseExpr(item.toNimLiteral)

No macro invocation needed! Just call lift() or toNimLiteral() directly on any type.

Supported Types

• ✅ Objects, ref objects, ptr objects
• ✅ Strings (with proper escaping)
• ✅ Sequences
• ✅ Primitives (int, float, bool, etc.)
• ❌ NimNode (raises ValueError)

Roadmap

• Support for tables/sets
• Support for tuples
• Reverse lifting (AST → object instances)
• Custom serialization hooks