copy-skill

name	copy-skill
description	Copywriting for technical founders. Covers X posts, X threads, Substack editions, LinkedIn posts, product launch captions, and README headlines. Teaches AI to write with the directness of a senior operator and the specificity of an engineer. Stops AI from producing generic marketing copy that sounds like everyone else in the startup ecosystem.

Copy Skill

The Fundamental Rule

Specificity beats adjectives. Every time.

"A powerful new tool for developers" is zero information. "Runs 7 agents in parallel on Gemini free tier" is a claim, a number, and a product detail in 8 words.

The test: can a competitor make the exact same claim without lying? If yes, rewrite it.

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Voice: Yonis / Standard Bio.

This is not a corporate voice. It is a founder voice. Specific rules:

• First person or no person. No "we" (unless it's genuinely collaborative). "I built this" or "Built this" — not "We are excited to announce."
• Short declarative sentences. Not complex clauses. The period is powerful.
• Numbers when they exist. "40% faster" beats "significantly faster."
• No hedging. "This might help some developers who are looking for..." — never. "Solves X for Y" — always.
• Canadian, Toronto, indie, open source — these are identity markers. Use them when relevant.
• Technical terms are not jargon when the audience is technical. Do not dumb it down.

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Platform Copy

X Posts (standalone — not thread)

Structure: one hook, one proof, one action or implication. Maximum 240 characters for the main post.

Hook patterns that work:

[Specific number or fact]: [implication]
"7 agents running in parallel. All on Gemini free tier."

[What I built] — [why it matters in one clause]
"Built a free alternative to gstack. Open source."

[The thing that surprised me] — [why]
"Plaid's Canadian coverage is actually solid. 90%+ of institutions."

[Before / after in two lines]
"Before: constant Gemini confirmations, $20/mo minimum
After: walk away and come back to a finished PR"

What to ban:

• Starting with "I'm thrilled/excited/proud to share..."
• "Game changer for..." (banned phrase)
• Rhetorical questions as hooks ("Have you ever wondered why...?") — weak
• Emoji as the first character — signals low signal-to-noise
• Thread-baiting ("here's what I learned 🧵") — earned by content, not promised
• Using the word "Just" to minimize your own work: "Just shipped a small thing..."

X Threads

First post = the only post many will read. It must standalone.

Thread structure:

Post 1 (hook): The most interesting finding or outcome. Standalone. No setup.
Post 2-3:      The why/how. Context that makes post 1 more interesting.
Post 4-6:      The specific detail. What you actually built, found, decided.
Post 7-8:      The implication. What this means for the reader.
Post 9 (final): One clear call to action. Repo link, newsletter link, or question.

Rules:

• Each post must standalone. If you removed every other post, would this one still make sense?
• No post ends with "more in the next post →" — that's padding.
• Number of posts: 5–9. Fewer is harder. More is lazy.

Substack Edition (Standard Bio.)

Opening Signal — 1–2 sentences. The most important thing happening right now in the space. Not context. Not history. Now.

Signal — The specific thing this edition is about. Named, with a date or version if possible.

Context — Why this matters. Historical or structural background. 2–4 paragraphs maximum.

System Map — How the pieces connect. Who the actors are. What the incentives are. A mental model.

Breakdown — The actual analysis. The opinion. Where the data leads. This is the main section.

Implication — What this means for Canadian founders, developers, or the specific reader. Specific, not vague.

Future Signal — One thing to watch. A question to hold. Not a prediction — a signal.

Tone: The Atlantic-meets-Stratechery-meets-Canadian-fintech-dev. Analytical but not bloodless. Opinionated but evidence-first.

Things to never write in Standard Bio.:

• "In conclusion..."
• Numbered lists as the primary structure (this is not a Substack checklist newsletter)
• "The future of X is Y" as an opening — too easy
• Soft ending that circles back to the opening for symmetry — it reads as filler
• "As we've seen..." — patronizing

LinkedIn Posts

LinkedIn tolerates more copy than X but has a lower bar for originality. Most LinkedIn startup content is:

• "I failed and here's what I learned" (performative vulnerability)
• "5 lessons from building X" (listicle dressed as insight)
• "Excited to share..." (announcement with no news value)

Do not write any of these.

What works on LinkedIn for technical founders:

[Specific decision you made] + [specific reason] + [what happened]
"Chose Plaid over Flinks for Lumina's banking data. Better Canadian coverage,
cleaner API, and the startup team answers their email. 3 months in — correct decision."

[Specific thing you observed] + [the non-obvious implication]
"Open Banking regulation in Canada is 2 years behind the UK.
That's not a problem. It's a 2-year moat for the builders who move now."

[Project update with a real number]
"ystack crossed 500 stars. Free multi-agent swarm for Gemini CLI.
Started as a personal tool. Apparently other people needed it too."

LinkedIn formatting rules:

• Maximum 3 short paragraphs or 5 short lines before the fold.
• Never more than 5 hashtags. Three is better.
• Don't end with a question unless you actually want replies. "Thoughts?" is not a call to action.
• Images outperform text-only. Pair with a Remotion still or Nano Banana graphic.

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Headlines and Display Copy

For README hero sections, product landing pages, and video titles.

The formula:

[Verb] + [specific outcome] + [implied audience or context]

Examples:

• "Ship faster. No confirmations." (ystack)
• "Every meeting, remembered." (Focused AI)
• "Your money, finally legible." (Lumina)

Rules for display copy:

• Maximum 5 words for the primary headline. If it runs long, cut a word, not a character.
• Secondary line (subheadline) is where you add specificity. Keep primary headline cryptic/punchy.
• No gerunds as hero text ("Building the future of...") — weak.
• Present tense. "Ship faster" not "Helps you ship faster."
• The full stop (period) at the end of a short headline is a design choice. It signals finality. Use it.

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Banned Words and Phrases

These are banned across all copy for all projects. No exceptions.

Elevate         Seamless        Unleash         Next-gen
Game-changer    Delve           Tapestry        Empower
Leverage        Cutting-edge    Innovative      Disruptive
Revolutionize   Robust          Holistic        Synergy
Best-in-class   World-class     Scalable        Dynamic
Streamline      Optimize        Unlock          Harness

Also banned:

• "In today's fast-paced world..."
• "The future of X is here"
• "We're excited to announce"
• "Join the waitlist to be the first to..."
• "As a [noun], you know how important it is to..."
• Any sentence starting with "Ultimately..."
• "This changes everything"
• "I never thought I'd be building X but..."
• "Thoughts?" at the end of a LinkedIn post with no actual question

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The Self-Edit Pass

After writing any copy, run through this:

1. Specificity check — circle every adjective. Can you replace it with a number or a specific noun? Do it.
2. Verb check — are the verbs active? "Users are helped by X" → "X helps users" → "X does Y for users."
3. Banned words check — search for all banned words. Delete every one.
4. First sentence test — is the first sentence the most interesting sentence? If not, swap the order.
5. Read aloud — if you stumble reading it aloud, the sentence is too complex.
6. The skeptic test — imagine a skeptical, technical reader. Would they roll their eyes at any sentence? Cut it.