| name | x-article-writer |
| description | Use when writing or rewriting longform X/Twitter articles, X Articles, founder essays, launch essays, growth teardowns, product breakdowns, build-in-public stories, or sharp startup takes that need X-native hooks, tone, pacing, and structure. Use for X Articles and long posts, not blog SEO posts, lifecycle emails, or landing page copy. |
X Article Writer
Write like a founder with a point of view, not a content marketer filling a page.
What Good Looks Like
A strong X article does three jobs fast:
- Stop the scroll: the title or first line creates a gap.
- Create tension: the reader sees what most people misunderstand.
- Pay it off: the body gives a mechanism, example, teardown, or playbook worth saving.
It should feel like a smart person on X making a sharp case in public, not a blog post pasted into X.
Pick The Spine
Choose one structure before drafting:
| Spine | Use When | Shape |
|---|
| I changed my mind | The piece has a lesson or reversal | I believed X -> reality showed Y -> now I do Z |
| Everyone is looking at the wrong thing | The obvious take is lazy | People blame X -> the real lever is Y -> here is why |
| Teardown | There is a product, launch, funnel, ad, or channel to analyze | What happened -> why it worked/failed -> what to copy |
| Field note | There is a call, customer, metric, launch, or experiment | Scene -> observation -> broader lesson |
| Playbook | The reader should leave with steps | Outcome -> constraints -> exact moves -> failure modes |
| Market shift | Something has changed in a category | Old rule -> new behavior -> what founders should do now |
Do not mix three spines. One article gets one main argument.
Build The Hook
Write 8-12 title or opening-line options before the body. Use one of these patterns:
- Result with friction: "We got [result]. The weird part was [unexpected cause]."
- Wrong belief: "Most founders think [X]. That's why they miss [Y]."
- Specific scene: "I was looking at [dashboard/call/page] and one thing made no sense."
- Named teardown: "[Company/product/channel] is a masterclass in [specific mechanism]."
- Useful promise: "How to get [outcome] without [common painful tradeoff]."
- Category fight: "[Category] is moving from [old rule] to [new rule]."
- Confession: "I used to think [X]. I was wrong."
Good hooks create curiosity plus stakes. Bad hooks announce the topic.
X-Native Body Shape
Keep the article moving in short blocks:
- First screen: hook, sharp claim, or scene. No throat-clearing.
- Why people get it wrong: name the common but flawed assumption.
- The mechanism: explain what is actually happening.
- Specifics: use product details, examples, screenshots, numbers, customer language, channels, tools, timelines, or decisions.
- Expansion: show why this matters beyond the example.
- Close: end with a compressed line the reader could quote.
Every paragraph should either add tension, explain the mechanism, or give evidence. If it only sounds nice, cut it.
Voice Rules
Default voice:
- Direct, specific, opinionated.
- Founder-to-founder, not analyst-to-audience.
- Short paragraphs, often 1-3 lines.
- Sentence fragments are allowed.
- Punchy transitions are allowed.
- Lower-case is fine if it matches the user's voice.
- Use "I" when the piece is based on lived experience.
- Use named companies, products, channels, metrics, or situations when available.
Avoid:
- "In today's fast-paced world"
- "The key insight is"
- "This highlights the importance of"
- "Founders need to understand"
- "It is worth noting"
- "Not only X, but Y"
- tidy essay intros
- generic LinkedIn lessons
- motivational endings
- fake guru certainty
Rewrite Mode
If a draft feels boring, AI-ish, too polished, or too much like a blog:
- Do not line-edit first. Rebuild the hook, opening screen, section order, and close.
- Make the first 5 lines do more work.
- Replace general advice with a scene, teardown, opinion, or mechanism.
- Remove balanced essay phrasing and consulting-deck transitions.
- Make the claim sharper, then make the proof or example carry it.
- End with a line that compresses the point, not a summary paragraph.
Quality Check
Before final output, check:
- Would the title make the target reader click or save?
- Is the first screen stronger than the original draft?
- Is there a clear fight, surprise, or useful promise?
- Does the body reveal new information every few lines?
- Does it sound native to X, or like a blog in short paragraphs?
- Is the ending memorable without sounding motivational?
Output
Spine:
[chosen structure]
Hook/title options:
1. [hook]
2. [hook]
3. [hook]
4. [hook]
5. [hook]
Recommended hook:
[hook + why]
X Article:
[full draft]
Why this works:
- Hook lever:
- Tone:
- Structure:
- Strongest line:
- Optional visual:
