diff --git a/.oxrls/hard-seam.md b/.oxrls/hard-seam.md
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..16a16ac
--- /dev/null
+++ b/.oxrls/hard-seam.md
@@ -0,0 +1,5 @@
+---
+'@bdbchgg/oxrls': 'patch'
+---
+
+Add guard to `oxrls init` to detect already-initialized projects and exit early with an informational message. Use `--force` to re-run the wizard and overwrite the existing config.
diff --git a/README.md b/README.md
index 90de810..37271d0 100644
--- a/README.md
+++ b/README.md
@@ -65,7 +65,7 @@ I'd love to get some eyes from the Rust community on best practices, patterns, a
 
 | Command         | Description                                                  |
 | --------------- | ------------------------------------------------------------ |
-| `oxrls init`    | Create `oxrls.json` config and `.oxrls/` directory           |
+| `oxrls init`    | Create `oxrls.json` config and `.oxrls/` directory (use `--force` to re-run) |
 | `oxrls new`     | Create a release file (interactive or `--package --summary`) |
 | `oxrls status`  | Show pending release files and calculated bumps              |
 | `oxrls bump`    | Apply version bumps, update deps, generate changelogs        |
diff --git a/packages/oxrls/src/commands/init.rs b/packages/oxrls/src/commands/init.rs
index 3ed1352..dd8468c 100644
--- a/packages/oxrls/src/commands/init.rs
+++ b/packages/oxrls/src/commands/init.rs
@@ -7,7 +7,7 @@ use std::path::Path;
 
 use glob::Pattern;
 
-use crate::config::OxrlsConfig;
+use crate::config::{OxrlsConfig, find_existing_config};
 use crate::error::{OxrlsError, Result};
 use crate::init_wizard::run_init_wizard;
 use crate::workspace::{Workspace, find_workspace_root, load_workspace};
@@ -68,8 +68,16 @@ pub(crate) fn resolve_package_patterns(
 
 pub fn cmd_init(force: bool, release_dir: Option<&str>, non_interactive: bool) -> Result<()> {
   let cwd = std::env::current_dir().map_err(OxrlsError::Io)?;
+  cmd_init_at(&cwd, force, release_dir, non_interactive)
+}
 
-  let root = find_workspace_root(Path::new(".")).map_err(|e| {
+fn cmd_init_at(
+  cwd: &Path,
+  force: bool,
+  release_dir: Option<&str>,
+  non_interactive: bool,
+) -> Result<()> {
+  let root = find_workspace_root(cwd).map_err(|e| {
     OxrlsError::Config(format!(
       "No workspace found: {}. Run from a repo with a package.json.",
       e
@@ -78,6 +86,14 @@ pub fn cmd_init(force: bool, release_dir: Option<&str>, non_interactive: bool) -
   let workspace = load_workspace(&root)?;
   let is_monorepo = workspace.packages.len() > 1;
 
+  if !force && let Some(existing_path) = find_existing_config(cwd) {
+    println!(
+      "oxrls is already initialized.\nConfig: {}\nEdit that file to change settings, or use --force to re-run the wizard.",
+      existing_path.display()
+    );
+    return Ok(());
+  }
+
   let config_path = cwd.join(".oxrls").join("config.json");
 
   let mut config = OxrlsConfig::default();
@@ -112,3 +128,130 @@ pub fn cmd_init(force: bool, release_dir: Option<&str>, non_interactive: bool) -
   println!("\noxrls is ready! Use `oxrls new` to create a release file.");
   Ok(())
 }
+
+#[cfg(test)]
+mod tests {
+  use super::*;
+  use std::fs;
+  use tempfile::TempDir;
+
+  fn write_package_json(dir: &TempDir) {
+    let pkg = r#"{"name": "test", "version": "1.0.0"}"#;
+    fs::write(dir.path().join("package.json"), pkg).unwrap();
+  }
+
+  #[test]
+  fn test_init_returns_early_when_config_exists() {
+    let dir = TempDir::new().unwrap();
+    write_package_json(&dir);
+
+    let config_dir = dir.path().join(".oxrls");
+    fs::create_dir_all(&config_dir).unwrap();
+    let config_content = r#"{"release_dir": ".release", "version": "1.0.0"}"#;
+    fs::write(config_dir.join("config.json"), config_content).unwrap();
+
+    let result = cmd_init_at(dir.path(), false, None, true);
+    assert!(result.is_ok());
+
+    let actual = fs::read_to_string(config_dir.join("config.json")).unwrap();
+    assert_eq!(actual, config_content);
+  }
+
+  #[test]
+  fn test_init_force_overwrites_existing_config() {
+    let dir = TempDir::new().unwrap();
+    write_package_json(&dir);
+
+    let config_dir = dir.path().join(".oxrls");
+    fs::create_dir_all(&config_dir).unwrap();
+    let custom_config = r#"{"release_dir": ".custom-release", "version": "1.0.0"}"#;
+    fs::write(config_dir.join("config.json"), custom_config).unwrap();
+
+    let result = cmd_init_at(dir.path(), true, None, true);
+    assert!(result.is_ok());
+
+    let actual = fs::read_to_string(config_dir.join("config.json")).unwrap();
+    assert!(!actual.contains(".custom-release"));
+  }
+
+  #[test]
+  fn test_init_creates_config_when_none_exists() {
+    let dir = TempDir::new().unwrap();
+    write_package_json(&dir);
+
+    let result = cmd_init_at(dir.path(), false, None, true);
+    assert!(result.is_ok());
+
+    let config_path = dir.path().join(".oxrls").join("config.json");
+    assert!(config_path.exists());
+
+    let release_dir = dir.path().join(".oxrls");
+    assert!(release_dir.exists());
+  }
+
+  #[test]
+  fn test_find_existing_config_finds_all_three_names() {
+    let cases: [(&str, fn(&std::path::Path) -> std::path::PathBuf); 3] = [
+      (".oxrls/config.json", |p| {
+        let d = p.join(".oxrls");
+        let _ = fs::create_dir_all(&d);
+        fs::write(d.join("config.json"), "{}").unwrap();
+        p.join(".oxrls").join("config.json")
+      }),
+      ("oxrls.json", |p| {
+        fs::write(p.join("oxrls.json"), "{}").unwrap();
+        p.join("oxrls.json")
+      }),
+      (".oxrls.json", |p| {
+        fs::write(p.join(".oxrls.json"), "{}").unwrap();
+        p.join(".oxrls.json")
+      }),
+    ];
+
+    for (name, setup) in &cases {
+      let dir = TempDir::new().unwrap();
+      let expected = setup(dir.path());
+      let found = find_existing_config(dir.path());
+      assert!(found.is_some(), "Expected to find config named {}", name);
+      assert_eq!(found.unwrap(), expected);
+    }
+  }
+
+  #[test]
+  fn test_find_existing_config_returns_none_when_no_config() {
+    let dir = TempDir::new().unwrap();
+    let found = find_existing_config(dir.path());
+    assert!(found.is_none());
+  }
+
+  #[test]
+  fn test_find_existing_config_searches_parent_dirs() {
+    let dir = TempDir::new().unwrap();
+    let child = dir.path().join("subdir");
+    fs::create_dir_all(&child).unwrap();
+
+    let config_dir = dir.path().join(".oxrls");
+    fs::create_dir_all(&config_dir).unwrap();
+    fs::write(config_dir.join("config.json"), "{}").unwrap();
+
+    let found = find_existing_config(&child);
+    assert!(found.is_some());
+  }
+
+  #[test]
+  fn test_init_non_interactive_returns_early_when_config_exists() {
+    let dir = TempDir::new().unwrap();
+    write_package_json(&dir);
+
+    let config_dir = dir.path().join(".oxrls");
+    fs::create_dir_all(&config_dir).unwrap();
+    let config_content = r#"{"release_dir": ".release", "version": "1.0.0"}"#;
+    fs::write(config_dir.join("config.json"), config_content).unwrap();
+
+    let result = cmd_init_at(dir.path(), false, None, true);
+    assert!(result.is_ok());
+
+    let actual = fs::read_to_string(config_dir.join("config.json")).unwrap();
+    assert_eq!(actual, config_content);
+  }
+}
diff --git a/packages/oxrls/src/config.rs b/packages/oxrls/src/config.rs
index 726e970..514757c 100644
--- a/packages/oxrls/src/config.rs
+++ b/packages/oxrls/src/config.rs
@@ -196,10 +196,23 @@ impl OxrlsConfig {
   }
 }
 
-const CONFIG_FILE_NAMES: &[&str] = &[".oxrls/config.json", "oxrls.json", ".oxrls.json"];
+pub(crate) const CONFIG_FILE_NAMES: &[&str] = &[".oxrls/config.json", "oxrls.json", ".oxrls.json"];
+
+pub fn find_existing_config(start_dir: &std::path::Path) -> Option<std::path::PathBuf> {
+  let mut current = Some(start_dir);
+  while let Some(dir) = current {
+    for name in CONFIG_FILE_NAMES {
+      let path = dir.join(name);
+      if path.exists() {
+        return Some(path);
+      }
+    }
+    current = dir.parent();
+  }
+  None
+}
 
 impl OxrlsConfig {
-  /// Find and load config from the given directory or one of its parents.
   pub fn load(start_dir: &Path) -> Result<(Self, PathBuf)> {
     let cwd = std::env::current_dir().map_err(OxrlsError::Io)?;
     let search_start = if start_dir.is_absolute() {
diff --git a/packages/oxrls/src/init_wizard.rs b/packages/oxrls/src/init_wizard.rs
index 14242ca..47cea6e 100644
--- a/packages/oxrls/src/init_wizard.rs
+++ b/packages/oxrls/src/init_wizard.rs
@@ -36,11 +36,12 @@ pub fn run_init_wizard(
           .with_default(true)
           .prompt()
           .map_err(|e| OxrlsError::Other(format!("Input failed: {}", e)))?;
-      config.generate_global_changelog =
-        Confirm::new("  Create a global CHANGELOG.md in the project root (aggregating all changes)?")
-          .with_default(false)
-          .prompt()
-          .map_err(|e| OxrlsError::Other(format!("Input failed: {}", e)))?;
+      config.generate_global_changelog = Confirm::new(
+        "  Create a global CHANGELOG.md in the project root (aggregating all changes)?",
+      )
+      .with_default(false)
+      .prompt()
+      .map_err(|e| OxrlsError::Other(format!("Input failed: {}", e)))?;
     } else {
       config.generate_packages_changelog = false;
       config.generate_global_changelog = true;
diff --git a/packages/oxrls/tests/megatest.rs b/packages/oxrls/tests/megatest.rs
index 51cdce6..5c7d7a1 100644
--- a/packages/oxrls/tests/megatest.rs
+++ b/packages/oxrls/tests/megatest.rs
@@ -417,7 +417,10 @@ fn test_solo_repo_always_creates_changelog() {
   );
 
   let changelog_content = std::fs::read_to_string(&changelog_path).unwrap();
-  assert!(changelog_content.contains("# Changelog"), "Should have changelog header");
+  assert!(
+    changelog_content.contains("# Changelog"),
+    "Should have changelog header"
+  );
   // Solo repo uses version heading (not date), no package prefix
   assert!(
     changelog_content.contains("## v1.0.1"),
@@ -429,8 +432,14 @@ fn test_solo_repo_always_creates_changelog() {
     "Solo repo should NOT have package prefix, got:\n{}",
     changelog_content
   );
-  assert!(changelog_content.contains("Fix login bug"), "Should contain the release summary");
-  assert!(changelog_content.contains("### Patch Changes"), "Should group changes by type");
+  assert!(
+    changelog_content.contains("Fix login bug"),
+    "Should contain the release summary"
+  );
+  assert!(
+    changelog_content.contains("### Patch Changes"),
+    "Should group changes by type"
+  );
 
   // Phase 7: Verify release files were consumed
   assert_eq!(