docx

Use python-docx: install it with pip, then call Document() to create a file and add headings, paragraphs, lists, tables, and images before saving with doc.save(). The library works without Microsoft Office installed.

Run pandoc input.md -o output.docx for a basic conversion. Add --reference-doc=reference.docx to apply styles from a Word template, and use -f gfm for GitHub Flavored Markdown input.

Use python-docx for programmatic creation, editing, and reading of .docx files with fine-grained control over styles and elements. Use Pandoc when converting existing Markdown or HTML content into Word format, especially for textbook-style content.

Load the file with Document("input.docx"), iterate doc.paragraphs for text with style names, and iterate doc.tables to read rows and cells. You can map heading styles to Markdown syntax for structured export.

The style name must exist in the document's style definitions. List available styles with [s.name for s in doc.styles], or load a reference template that already contains the styles you need.

python-docx can add editing restrictions via XML settings, but the protection is weak and not cryptographically secure. For real protection on Windows with Office installed, use COM automation with Word's Protect method.