diff --git a/.changeset/fix-template-scaffold-bugs.md b/.changeset/fix-template-scaffold-bugs.md
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..7f3a833
--- /dev/null
+++ b/.changeset/fix-template-scaffold-bugs.md
@@ -0,0 +1,13 @@
+---
+"@jspsych/new-plugin": patch
+"@jspsych/new-extension": patch
+"@jspsych/new-timeline": patch
+---
+
+Fix several defects in the generated scaffold:
+
+- CITATION.cff no longer stuffs the full author name into the `family-names`, `given-names`, and `name-particle` fields, and no longer leaves unsubstituted `{email}`/`{softwareUrl}`/`{title}` placeholders. These are now clean fill-in fields (new-plugin and new-extension).
+- The generated README "Loading" snippet now imports from the scoped npm package name (e.g. `@jspsych-contrib/plugin-x`) and closes the in-browser `<script>` tag (new-plugin and new-extension).
+- The example `index.html` now loads the local build as a live `<script>` instead of leaving it commented out inside the "once published" block, so examples work out of the box.
+- new-timeline now builds the browser bundle as `dist/index.browser.min.js` (via a `tsup.config.ts`) to match the `unpkg` field and the other packages, instead of `dist/index.global.js`.
+- Generated packages now include a `.gitignore` (ignoring `dist/` and `node_modules/`). The template ships as `gitignore` and is renamed during scaffolding to avoid npm rewriting it to `.npmignore` on publish.
diff --git a/packages/new-extension/src/cli.js b/packages/new-extension/src/cli.js
index 04d1927..bceb02d 100755
--- a/packages/new-extension/src/cli.js
+++ b/packages/new-extension/src/cli.js
@@ -245,7 +245,10 @@ async function processAnswers(answers) {
   const gitRootHttpsUrl = getGitHttpsUrl(gitRootUrl);
 
   function processTemplate() {
-    return src(`${templatesDir}/extension-template-${answers.language}/**/*`)
+    return src(`${templatesDir}/extension-template-${answers.language}/**/*`, {
+      dot: true,   // Includes hidden files too
+      nodir: false // Includes directories
+    })
       .pipe(replace("{npmPackageName}", npmPackageName))
       .pipe(replace("{author}", answers.author))
       .pipe(replace("{authorUrl}", answers.authorUrl))
@@ -259,6 +262,15 @@ async function processAnswers(answers) {
       .pipe(replace("{gitRootHttpsUrl}", gitRootHttpsUrl))
       .pipe(replace("{documentationUrl}", answers.readmePath))
       .pipe(replace("{packageDir}", packageDir))
+      .pipe(
+        // npm renames a literal ".gitignore" to ".npmignore" when this package is
+        // published, so the template ships as "gitignore" and is restored here.
+        rename((p) => {
+          if (p.basename === "gitignore" && p.extname === "") {
+            p.basename = ".gitignore";
+          }
+        })
+      )
       .pipe(dest(destPath));
   }
 
@@ -270,8 +282,8 @@ async function processAnswers(answers) {
           "{publishingComment}\n",
           answers.isContribRepo
             ? // prettier-ignore
-              `<!-- Once this extension package is published, it can be loaded via\n<script src="https://unpkg.com/@jspsych-contrib/${packageName}"></script>\n<script src="../dist/index.browser.js"></script> -->\n`
-            : `<!-- Load the published extension package here, e.g.\n<script src="https://unpkg.com/${packageName}"></script>\n<script src="../dist/index.browser.js"></script> -->\n`
+              `<!-- Once this extension package is published, you can load it from a CDN instead:\n<script src="https://unpkg.com/@jspsych-contrib/${packageName}"></script> -->\n`
+            : `<!-- Once this extension package is published, you can load it from a CDN instead:\n<script src="https://unpkg.com/${packageName}"></script> -->\n`
         )
       )
       .pipe(dest(`${destPath}/examples`));
@@ -311,8 +323,8 @@ async function processAnswers(answers) {
             ? // prettier-ignore
               answers.language == "ts"
               ? // prettier-ignore
-                `## Loading\n\n### In browser\n\n\`\`\`html\n<script src="https://unpkg.com/@jspsych-contrib/${packageName}">\n\`\`\`\n\n### Via NPM\n\n\`\`\`\nnpm install ${npmPackageName}\n\`\`\`\n\n\`\`\`js\nimport ${globalName} from "${packageName}";\n\`\`\``
-              : `## Loading\n\n### In browser\n\n\`\`\`html\n<script src="https://unpkg.com/@jspsych-contrib/${packageName}">\n\`\`\`\n\n### Via NPM\n\n\`\`\`\nnpm install ${npmPackageName}\n\`\`\``
+                `## Loading\n\n### In browser\n\n\`\`\`html\n<script src="https://unpkg.com/@jspsych-contrib/${packageName}"></script>\n\`\`\`\n\n### Via NPM\n\n\`\`\`\nnpm install ${npmPackageName}\n\`\`\`\n\n\`\`\`js\nimport ${camelCaseName} from "${npmPackageName}";\n\`\`\``
+              : `## Loading\n\n### In browser\n\n\`\`\`html\n<script src="https://unpkg.com/@jspsych-contrib/${packageName}"></script>\n\`\`\`\n\n### Via NPM\n\n\`\`\`\nnpm install ${npmPackageName}\n\`\`\``
             : `## Loading\n\n*Enter instructions for loading the extension package here.*`
         )
       )
diff --git a/packages/new-extension/templates/extension-template-js/CITATION.cff b/packages/new-extension/templates/extension-template-js/CITATION.cff
index 9ff27fd..e7dc4d6 100644
--- a/packages/new-extension/templates/extension-template-js/CITATION.cff
+++ b/packages/new-extension/templates/extension-template-js/CITATION.cff
@@ -1,41 +1,41 @@
 cff-version: 1.2.0
 message: "If you use this software, please cite it as below."
 authors:
-- family-names: "{author}"  # Replace with last name
-  given-names: "{author}"   # Replace with first name
-  name-particle: "{author}" # Replace with name particle(s)
+- family-names: ""  # Replace with last name
+  given-names: ""   # Replace with first name
+  # name-particle: ""  # Optional: name particle(s), e.g. "de", "van"
   orcid: "https://orcid.org/0000-0000-0000-0000"  # Replace with ORCID
-# More  authors can be listed here in the same format as above
+# More authors can be listed here in the same format as above
 contact:  # Contact person for this extension
-- family-names: "{author}"
-  given-names: "{author}"
-  email: "{email}"          # Replace with contact person's email
+- family-names: ""  # Replace with last name
+  given-names: ""   # Replace with first name
+  email: ""         # Replace with contact person's email
   orcid: "https://orcid.org/0000-0000-0000-0000"  # Replace with contact person's ORCID
 title: "{globalName}"
 version: 0.0.0
 doi: 10.5281/zenodo.1234    # Replace with DOI
 date-released: 2000-01-01
-url: "{softwareUrl}"        # Replace with URL to this extension
+url: ""                     # Replace with URL to this extension
 
 # If you wish to cite a paper on this extension instead, you can use the following template:
 preferred-citation:
   authors:
-  - family-names: "{author}"
-    given-names: "{author}"
-    name-particle: "{author}"
+  - family-names: ""  # Replace with last name
+    given-names: ""   # Replace with first name
+    # name-particle: ""  # Optional: name particle(s)
     orcid: "https://orcid.org/0000-0000-0000-0000"
   # More authors can be listed here in the same format as above
   date-published: 2023-05-11
-  doi: 10.21105/joss.12345 
+  doi: 10.21105/joss.12345
   issn: 1234-5678
   issue: 01
   journal: Journal for Open Source Software
   publisher:
     name: Open Journals
   start: 0001
-  title: "{title}"
+  title: ""                  # Replace with the title of the publication
   type: article               # Other options include: book, pamphlet, conference-paper...
-  url: "{linkToPublicationInJournal}"
+  url: ""                     # Replace with URL to the publication
   volume: 1
 
-# More information on the preffered-citation CFF format can be found at https://docs.github.com/en/repositories/managing-your-repositorys-settings-and-features/customizing-your-repository/about-citation-files#citing-something-other-than-software
\ No newline at end of file
+# More information on the preffered-citation CFF format can be found at https://docs.github.com/en/repositories/managing-your-repositorys-settings-and-features/customizing-your-repository/about-citation-files#citing-something-other-than-software
diff --git a/packages/new-extension/templates/extension-template-js/gitignore b/packages/new-extension/templates/extension-template-js/gitignore
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..763301f
--- /dev/null
+++ b/packages/new-extension/templates/extension-template-js/gitignore
@@ -0,0 +1,2 @@
+dist/
+node_modules/
\ No newline at end of file
diff --git a/packages/new-extension/templates/extension-template-ts/CITATION.cff b/packages/new-extension/templates/extension-template-ts/CITATION.cff
index 9ff27fd..e7dc4d6 100644
--- a/packages/new-extension/templates/extension-template-ts/CITATION.cff
+++ b/packages/new-extension/templates/extension-template-ts/CITATION.cff
@@ -1,41 +1,41 @@
 cff-version: 1.2.0
 message: "If you use this software, please cite it as below."
 authors:
-- family-names: "{author}"  # Replace with last name
-  given-names: "{author}"   # Replace with first name
-  name-particle: "{author}" # Replace with name particle(s)
+- family-names: ""  # Replace with last name
+  given-names: ""   # Replace with first name
+  # name-particle: ""  # Optional: name particle(s), e.g. "de", "van"
   orcid: "https://orcid.org/0000-0000-0000-0000"  # Replace with ORCID
-# More  authors can be listed here in the same format as above
+# More authors can be listed here in the same format as above
 contact:  # Contact person for this extension
-- family-names: "{author}"
-  given-names: "{author}"
-  email: "{email}"          # Replace with contact person's email
+- family-names: ""  # Replace with last name
+  given-names: ""   # Replace with first name
+  email: ""         # Replace with contact person's email
   orcid: "https://orcid.org/0000-0000-0000-0000"  # Replace with contact person's ORCID
 title: "{globalName}"
 version: 0.0.0
 doi: 10.5281/zenodo.1234    # Replace with DOI
 date-released: 2000-01-01
-url: "{softwareUrl}"        # Replace with URL to this extension
+url: ""                     # Replace with URL to this extension
 
 # If you wish to cite a paper on this extension instead, you can use the following template:
 preferred-citation:
   authors:
-  - family-names: "{author}"
-    given-names: "{author}"
-    name-particle: "{author}"
+  - family-names: ""  # Replace with last name
+    given-names: ""   # Replace with first name
+    # name-particle: ""  # Optional: name particle(s)
     orcid: "https://orcid.org/0000-0000-0000-0000"
   # More authors can be listed here in the same format as above
   date-published: 2023-05-11
-  doi: 10.21105/joss.12345 
+  doi: 10.21105/joss.12345
   issn: 1234-5678
   issue: 01
   journal: Journal for Open Source Software
   publisher:
     name: Open Journals
   start: 0001
-  title: "{title}"
+  title: ""                  # Replace with the title of the publication
   type: article               # Other options include: book, pamphlet, conference-paper...
-  url: "{linkToPublicationInJournal}"
+  url: ""                     # Replace with URL to the publication
   volume: 1
 
-# More information on the preffered-citation CFF format can be found at https://docs.github.com/en/repositories/managing-your-repositorys-settings-and-features/customizing-your-repository/about-citation-files#citing-something-other-than-software
\ No newline at end of file
+# More information on the preffered-citation CFF format can be found at https://docs.github.com/en/repositories/managing-your-repositorys-settings-and-features/customizing-your-repository/about-citation-files#citing-something-other-than-software
diff --git a/packages/new-extension/templates/extension-template-ts/gitignore b/packages/new-extension/templates/extension-template-ts/gitignore
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..763301f
--- /dev/null
+++ b/packages/new-extension/templates/extension-template-ts/gitignore
@@ -0,0 +1,2 @@
+dist/
+node_modules/
\ No newline at end of file
diff --git a/packages/new-plugin/src/cli.js b/packages/new-plugin/src/cli.js
index 31d7146..e89eb9d 100755
--- a/packages/new-plugin/src/cli.js
+++ b/packages/new-plugin/src/cli.js
@@ -245,7 +245,10 @@ async function processAnswers(answers) {
   const gitRootHttpsUrl = getGitHttpsUrl(gitRootUrl);
 
   function processTemplate() {
-    return src(`${templatesDir}/plugin-template-${answers.language}/**/*`)
+    return src(`${templatesDir}/plugin-template-${answers.language}/**/*`, {
+      dot: true,   // Includes hidden files too
+      nodir: false // Includes directories
+    })
       .pipe(replace("{npmPackageName}", npmPackageName))
       .pipe(replace("{author}", answers.author))
       .pipe(replace("{authorUrl}", answers.authorUrl))
@@ -259,6 +262,15 @@ async function processAnswers(answers) {
       .pipe(replace("{gitRootHttpsUrl}", gitRootHttpsUrl))
       .pipe(replace("{documentationUrl}", answers.readmePath))
       .pipe(replace("{packageDir}", packageDir))
+      .pipe(
+        // npm renames a literal ".gitignore" to ".npmignore" when this package is
+        // published, so the template ships as "gitignore" and is restored here.
+        rename((p) => {
+          if (p.basename === "gitignore" && p.extname === "") {
+            p.basename = ".gitignore";
+          }
+        })
+      )
       .pipe(dest(destPath));
   }
 
@@ -270,8 +282,8 @@ async function processAnswers(answers) {
           "{publishingComment}\n",
           answers.isContribRepo
             ? // prettier-ignore
-              `<!-- Once this plugin package is published, it can be loaded via\n<script src="https://unpkg.com/@jspsych-contrib/${packageName}"></script>\n<script src="../dist/index.browser.js"></script> -->\n`
-            : `<!-- Load the published plugin package here, e.g.\n<script src="https://unpkg.com/${packageName}"></script>\n<script src="../dist/index.browser.js"></script> -->\n`
+              `<!-- Once this plugin package is published, you can load it from a CDN instead:\n<script src="https://unpkg.com/@jspsych-contrib/${packageName}"></script> -->\n`
+            : `<!-- Once this plugin package is published, you can load it from a CDN instead:\n<script src="https://unpkg.com/${packageName}"></script> -->\n`
         )
       )
       .pipe(dest(`${destPath}/examples`));
@@ -311,8 +323,8 @@ async function processAnswers(answers) {
             ? // prettier-ignore
               answers.language == "ts"
               ? // prettier-ignore
-                `## Loading\n\n### In browser\n\n\`\`\`html\n<script src="https://unpkg.com/@jspsych-contrib/${packageName}">\n\`\`\`\n\n### Via NPM\n\n\`\`\`\nnpm install ${npmPackageName}\n\`\`\`\n\n\`\`\`js\nimport ${globalName} from "${packageName}";\n\`\`\``
-              : `## Loading\n\n### In browser\n\n\`\`\`html\n<script src="https://unpkg.com/@jspsych-contrib/${packageName}">\n\`\`\`\n\n### Via NPM\n\n\`\`\`\nnpm install ${npmPackageName}\n\`\`\``
+                `## Loading\n\n### In browser\n\n\`\`\`html\n<script src="https://unpkg.com/@jspsych-contrib/${packageName}"></script>\n\`\`\`\n\n### Via NPM\n\n\`\`\`\nnpm install ${npmPackageName}\n\`\`\`\n\n\`\`\`js\nimport ${camelCaseName} from "${npmPackageName}";\n\`\`\``
+              : `## Loading\n\n### In browser\n\n\`\`\`html\n<script src="https://unpkg.com/@jspsych-contrib/${packageName}"></script>\n\`\`\`\n\n### Via NPM\n\n\`\`\`\nnpm install ${npmPackageName}\n\`\`\``
             : `## Loading\n\n*Enter instructions for loading the plugin package here.*`
         )
       )
diff --git a/packages/new-plugin/templates/plugin-template-js/CITATION.cff b/packages/new-plugin/templates/plugin-template-js/CITATION.cff
index 9ff27fd..505fba5 100644
--- a/packages/new-plugin/templates/plugin-template-js/CITATION.cff
+++ b/packages/new-plugin/templates/plugin-template-js/CITATION.cff
@@ -1,41 +1,41 @@
 cff-version: 1.2.0
 message: "If you use this software, please cite it as below."
 authors:
-- family-names: "{author}"  # Replace with last name
-  given-names: "{author}"   # Replace with first name
-  name-particle: "{author}" # Replace with name particle(s)
+- family-names: ""  # Replace with last name
+  given-names: ""   # Replace with first name
+  # name-particle: ""  # Optional: name particle(s), e.g. "de", "van"
   orcid: "https://orcid.org/0000-0000-0000-0000"  # Replace with ORCID
-# More  authors can be listed here in the same format as above
-contact:  # Contact person for this extension
-- family-names: "{author}"
-  given-names: "{author}"
-  email: "{email}"          # Replace with contact person's email
+# More authors can be listed here in the same format as above
+contact:  # Contact person for this plugin
+- family-names: ""  # Replace with last name
+  given-names: ""   # Replace with first name
+  email: ""         # Replace with contact person's email
   orcid: "https://orcid.org/0000-0000-0000-0000"  # Replace with contact person's ORCID
 title: "{globalName}"
 version: 0.0.0
 doi: 10.5281/zenodo.1234    # Replace with DOI
 date-released: 2000-01-01
-url: "{softwareUrl}"        # Replace with URL to this extension
+url: ""                     # Replace with URL to this plugin
 
-# If you wish to cite a paper on this extension instead, you can use the following template:
+# If you wish to cite a paper on this plugin instead, you can use the following template:
 preferred-citation:
   authors:
-  - family-names: "{author}"
-    given-names: "{author}"
-    name-particle: "{author}"
+  - family-names: ""  # Replace with last name
+    given-names: ""   # Replace with first name
+    # name-particle: ""  # Optional: name particle(s)
     orcid: "https://orcid.org/0000-0000-0000-0000"
   # More authors can be listed here in the same format as above
   date-published: 2023-05-11
-  doi: 10.21105/joss.12345 
+  doi: 10.21105/joss.12345
   issn: 1234-5678
   issue: 01
   journal: Journal for Open Source Software
   publisher:
     name: Open Journals
   start: 0001
-  title: "{title}"
+  title: ""                  # Replace with the title of the publication
   type: article               # Other options include: book, pamphlet, conference-paper...
-  url: "{linkToPublicationInJournal}"
+  url: ""                     # Replace with URL to the publication
   volume: 1
 
-# More information on the preffered-citation CFF format can be found at https://docs.github.com/en/repositories/managing-your-repositorys-settings-and-features/customizing-your-repository/about-citation-files#citing-something-other-than-software
\ No newline at end of file
+# More information on the preffered-citation CFF format can be found at https://docs.github.com/en/repositories/managing-your-repositorys-settings-and-features/customizing-your-repository/about-citation-files#citing-something-other-than-software
diff --git a/packages/new-plugin/templates/plugin-template-js/examples/index.html b/packages/new-plugin/templates/plugin-template-js/examples/index.html
index 8813615..4e8faa1 100644
--- a/packages/new-plugin/templates/plugin-template-js/examples/index.html
+++ b/packages/new-plugin/templates/plugin-template-js/examples/index.html
@@ -4,7 +4,7 @@
     <title>{globalName} Example</title>
     <script src="https://unpkg.com/jspsych"></script>
     {publishingComment}
-    <script src="../dist/index.browser.js"></script>
+    <script src="../dist/index.browser.min.js"></script>
     <link rel="stylesheet" href="https://unpkg.com/jspsych/css/jspsych.css" />
   </head>
 
diff --git a/packages/new-plugin/templates/plugin-template-js/gitignore b/packages/new-plugin/templates/plugin-template-js/gitignore
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..763301f
--- /dev/null
+++ b/packages/new-plugin/templates/plugin-template-js/gitignore
@@ -0,0 +1,2 @@
+dist/
+node_modules/
\ No newline at end of file
diff --git a/packages/new-plugin/templates/plugin-template-ts/CITATION.cff b/packages/new-plugin/templates/plugin-template-ts/CITATION.cff
index 9ff27fd..505fba5 100644
--- a/packages/new-plugin/templates/plugin-template-ts/CITATION.cff
+++ b/packages/new-plugin/templates/plugin-template-ts/CITATION.cff
@@ -1,41 +1,41 @@
 cff-version: 1.2.0
 message: "If you use this software, please cite it as below."
 authors:
-- family-names: "{author}"  # Replace with last name
-  given-names: "{author}"   # Replace with first name
-  name-particle: "{author}" # Replace with name particle(s)
+- family-names: ""  # Replace with last name
+  given-names: ""   # Replace with first name
+  # name-particle: ""  # Optional: name particle(s), e.g. "de", "van"
   orcid: "https://orcid.org/0000-0000-0000-0000"  # Replace with ORCID
-# More  authors can be listed here in the same format as above
-contact:  # Contact person for this extension
-- family-names: "{author}"
-  given-names: "{author}"
-  email: "{email}"          # Replace with contact person's email
+# More authors can be listed here in the same format as above
+contact:  # Contact person for this plugin
+- family-names: ""  # Replace with last name
+  given-names: ""   # Replace with first name
+  email: ""         # Replace with contact person's email
   orcid: "https://orcid.org/0000-0000-0000-0000"  # Replace with contact person's ORCID
 title: "{globalName}"
 version: 0.0.0
 doi: 10.5281/zenodo.1234    # Replace with DOI
 date-released: 2000-01-01
-url: "{softwareUrl}"        # Replace with URL to this extension
+url: ""                     # Replace with URL to this plugin
 
-# If you wish to cite a paper on this extension instead, you can use the following template:
+# If you wish to cite a paper on this plugin instead, you can use the following template:
 preferred-citation:
   authors:
-  - family-names: "{author}"
-    given-names: "{author}"
-    name-particle: "{author}"
+  - family-names: ""  # Replace with last name
+    given-names: ""   # Replace with first name
+    # name-particle: ""  # Optional: name particle(s)
     orcid: "https://orcid.org/0000-0000-0000-0000"
   # More authors can be listed here in the same format as above
   date-published: 2023-05-11
-  doi: 10.21105/joss.12345 
+  doi: 10.21105/joss.12345
   issn: 1234-5678
   issue: 01
   journal: Journal for Open Source Software
   publisher:
     name: Open Journals
   start: 0001
-  title: "{title}"
+  title: ""                  # Replace with the title of the publication
   type: article               # Other options include: book, pamphlet, conference-paper...
-  url: "{linkToPublicationInJournal}"
+  url: ""                     # Replace with URL to the publication
   volume: 1
 
-# More information on the preffered-citation CFF format can be found at https://docs.github.com/en/repositories/managing-your-repositorys-settings-and-features/customizing-your-repository/about-citation-files#citing-something-other-than-software
\ No newline at end of file
+# More information on the preffered-citation CFF format can be found at https://docs.github.com/en/repositories/managing-your-repositorys-settings-and-features/customizing-your-repository/about-citation-files#citing-something-other-than-software
diff --git a/packages/new-plugin/templates/plugin-template-ts/examples/index.html b/packages/new-plugin/templates/plugin-template-ts/examples/index.html
index 8813615..4e8faa1 100644
--- a/packages/new-plugin/templates/plugin-template-ts/examples/index.html
+++ b/packages/new-plugin/templates/plugin-template-ts/examples/index.html
@@ -4,7 +4,7 @@
     <title>{globalName} Example</title>
     <script src="https://unpkg.com/jspsych"></script>
     {publishingComment}
-    <script src="../dist/index.browser.js"></script>
+    <script src="../dist/index.browser.min.js"></script>
     <link rel="stylesheet" href="https://unpkg.com/jspsych/css/jspsych.css" />
   </head>
 
diff --git a/packages/new-plugin/templates/plugin-template-ts/gitignore b/packages/new-plugin/templates/plugin-template-ts/gitignore
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..763301f
--- /dev/null
+++ b/packages/new-plugin/templates/plugin-template-ts/gitignore
@@ -0,0 +1,2 @@
+dist/
+node_modules/
\ No newline at end of file
diff --git a/packages/new-timeline/src/cli.js b/packages/new-timeline/src/cli.js
index 6c490e6..1f2fa0e 100755
--- a/packages/new-timeline/src/cli.js
+++ b/packages/new-timeline/src/cli.js
@@ -245,7 +245,10 @@ async function processAnswers(answers) {
   const gitRootHttpsUrl = getGitHttpsUrl(gitRootUrl);
 
   function processTemplate() {
-    return src(`${templatesDir}/timeline-template-${answers.language}/**/*`)
+    return src(`${templatesDir}/timeline-template-${answers.language}/**/*`, {
+      dot: true,   // Includes hidden files too
+      nodir: false // Includes directories
+    })
       .pipe(replace("{npmPackageName}", npmPackageName))
       .pipe(replace("{author}", answers.author))
       .pipe(replace("{authorUrl}", answers.authorUrl))
@@ -258,6 +261,15 @@ async function processAnswers(answers) {
       .pipe(replace("{gitRootHttpsUrl}", gitRootHttpsUrl))
       .pipe(replace("{documentationUrl}", answers.readmePath))
       .pipe(replace("{packageDir}", packageDir))
+      .pipe(
+        // npm renames a literal ".gitignore" to ".npmignore" when this package is
+        // published, so the template ships as "gitignore" and is restored here.
+        rename((p) => {
+          if (p.basename === "gitignore" && p.extname === "") {
+            p.basename = ".gitignore";
+          }
+        })
+      )
       .pipe(dest(destPath));
   }
 
@@ -269,8 +281,8 @@ async function processAnswers(answers) {
           "{publishingComment}\n",
           answers.isTimelinesRepo
             ? // prettier-ignore
-              `<!-- Once this timeline package is published, it can be loaded via\n<script src="https://unpkg.com/@jspsych-timelines/${packageName}"></script> -->\n`
-            : `<!-- Load the published timeline package here, e.g.\n<script src="https://unpkg.com/${packageName}"></script>\n<script src="../dist/index.browser.js"></script> -->\n`
+              `<!-- Once this timeline package is published, you can load it from a CDN instead:\n<script src="https://unpkg.com/@jspsych-timelines/${packageName}"></script> -->\n`
+            : `<!-- Once this timeline package is published, you can load it from a CDN instead:\n<script src="https://unpkg.com/${packageName}"></script> -->\n`
         )
       )
       .pipe(dest(`${destPath}/examples`));
@@ -299,7 +311,7 @@ async function processAnswers(answers) {
           `## Loading`,
           answers.isTimelinesRepo
             ? // prettier-ignore
-              `## Loading\n\n### In browser\n\n\`\`\`html\n<script src="https://unpkg.com/@jspsych-timelines/${packageName}">\n\`\`\`\n\n### Via NPM\n\n\`\`\`\nnpm install ${npmPackageName}\n\`\`\`\n\n\`\`\`js\nimport { createTimeline, timelineUnits, utils } from "${npmPackageName}"\n\`\`\``
+              `## Loading\n\n### In browser\n\n\`\`\`html\n<script src="https://unpkg.com/@jspsych-timelines/${packageName}"></script>\n\`\`\`\n\n### Via NPM\n\n\`\`\`\nnpm install ${npmPackageName}\n\`\`\`\n\n\`\`\`js\nimport { createTimeline, timelineUnits, utils } from "${npmPackageName}"\n\`\`\``
             : `## Loading\n\n*Enter instructions for loading the timeline package here.*`
         )
       )
diff --git a/packages/new-timeline/templates/timeline-template-js/examples/index.html b/packages/new-timeline/templates/timeline-template-js/examples/index.html
index 23128df..f78942d 100644
--- a/packages/new-timeline/templates/timeline-template-js/examples/index.html
+++ b/packages/new-timeline/templates/timeline-template-js/examples/index.html
@@ -4,8 +4,8 @@
 <head>
   <title>{globalName} Example</title>
   <script src="https://unpkg.com/jspsych"></script>
-  <script src="../dist/index.browser.js"></script>
   {publishingComment}
+  <script src="../dist/index.browser.min.js"></script>
   <link rel="stylesheet" href="https://unpkg.com/jspsych/css/jspsych.css">
 </head>
 
diff --git a/packages/new-timeline/templates/timeline-template-js/gitignore b/packages/new-timeline/templates/timeline-template-js/gitignore
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..763301f
--- /dev/null
+++ b/packages/new-timeline/templates/timeline-template-js/gitignore
@@ -0,0 +1,2 @@
+dist/
+node_modules/
\ No newline at end of file
diff --git a/packages/new-timeline/templates/timeline-template-ts/examples/index.html b/packages/new-timeline/templates/timeline-template-ts/examples/index.html
index 23128df..f78942d 100644
--- a/packages/new-timeline/templates/timeline-template-ts/examples/index.html
+++ b/packages/new-timeline/templates/timeline-template-ts/examples/index.html
@@ -4,8 +4,8 @@
 <head>
   <title>{globalName} Example</title>
   <script src="https://unpkg.com/jspsych"></script>
-  <script src="../dist/index.browser.js"></script>
   {publishingComment}
+  <script src="../dist/index.browser.min.js"></script>
   <link rel="stylesheet" href="https://unpkg.com/jspsych/css/jspsych.css">
 </head>
 
diff --git a/packages/new-timeline/templates/timeline-template-ts/gitignore b/packages/new-timeline/templates/timeline-template-ts/gitignore
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..763301f
--- /dev/null
+++ b/packages/new-timeline/templates/timeline-template-ts/gitignore
@@ -0,0 +1,2 @@
+dist/
+node_modules/
\ No newline at end of file
diff --git a/packages/new-timeline/templates/timeline-template-ts/package.json b/packages/new-timeline/templates/timeline-template-ts/package.json
index bbfc12e..8f6b6b4 100644
--- a/packages/new-timeline/templates/timeline-template-ts/package.json
+++ b/packages/new-timeline/templates/timeline-template-ts/package.json
@@ -7,7 +7,7 @@
     "types": "dist/index.d.ts",
     "unpkg": "dist/index.browser.min.js",
     "scripts": {
-      "build": "tsup src/index.ts --format esm,iife --sourcemap --dts --treeshake --clean --global-name {globalName}"
+      "build": "tsup"
     },
     "repository": {
       "type": "git",
diff --git a/packages/new-timeline/templates/timeline-template-ts/tsup.config.ts b/packages/new-timeline/templates/timeline-template-ts/tsup.config.ts
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..ef53978
--- /dev/null
+++ b/packages/new-timeline/templates/timeline-template-ts/tsup.config.ts
@@ -0,0 +1,24 @@
+import { defineConfig } from "tsup";
+
+export default defineConfig([
+  {
+    // ES module build, consumed via `import` / bundlers
+    entry: ["src/index.ts"],
+    format: ["esm"],
+    outExtension: () => ({ js: ".mjs" }),
+    sourcemap: true,
+    dts: true,
+    treeshake: true,
+    clean: true,
+  },
+  {
+    // Minified browser (IIFE) build, exposed on the page as `{globalName}`
+    entry: ["src/index.ts"],
+    format: ["iife"],
+    globalName: "{globalName}",
+    outExtension: () => ({ js: ".browser.min.js" }),
+    sourcemap: true,
+    treeshake: true,
+    minify: true,
+  },
+]);