| name | writing-skills-excellence |
| description | Use when creating, updating, or improving agent skills. |
| category | meta |
| risk | unknown |
| source | community |
| date_added | 2026-02-27 |
Writing Skills (Excellence)
Dispatcher for skill creation excellence. Use the decision tree below to find the right template and standards.
⚡ Quick Decision Tree
What do you need to do?
-
Create a NEW skill:
-
Improve an EXISTING skill:
-
Verify Compliance:
📚 Component Index
| Component | Purpose |
|---|
| CSO | "SEO for LLMs". How to write descriptions that trigger. |
| Standards | File naming, YAML frontmatter, directory structure. |
| Anti-Rationalization | How to write rules that agents won't ignore. |
| Testing | How to ensure your skill actually works. |
🛠️ Templates
When to Use
- Creating a NEW skill from scratch
- Improving an EXISTING skill that agents ignore
- Debugging why a skill isn't being triggered
- Standardizing skills across a team
How It Works
- Identify goal → Use decision tree above
- Select template → From
references/templates/
- Apply CSO → Optimize description for discovery
- Add anti-rationalization → For discipline skills
- Test → RED-GREEN-REFACTOR cycle
Quick Example
---
name: my-technique
description: Use when [specific symptom occurs].
metadata:
category: technique
triggers: error-text, symptom, tool-name
---
- [Symptom A]
- [Error message]
Common Mistakes
| Mistake | Fix |
|---|
| Description summarizes workflow | Use "Use when..." triggers only |
| Vague description | Put "Use when..." trigger conditions in description; Claude Code uses this for discovery |
| Generic name ("helper") | Use gerund (creating-skills) |
| Long monolithic SKILL.md | Split into references/ |
See gotchas.md for more.
✅ Pre-Deploy Checklist
Before deploying any skill:
🔗 Related Skills
- Use
/write-skill command for guided skill creation
Examples
Create a Tier 1 skill (user-global):
mkdir -p ~/.claude/skills/my-technique
touch ~/.claude/skills/my-technique/SKILL.md
Create a Tier 1 skill (project-local):
mkdir -p .claude/skills/my-technique
touch .claude/skills/my-technique/SKILL.md
Create a Tier 2 skill:
mkdir -p .claude/skills/my-skill/references/core
touch .claude/skills/my-skill/{SKILL.md,gotchas.md}
touch .claude/skills/my-skill/references/core/README.md
Limitations
- Use this skill only when the task clearly matches the scope described above.
- Do not treat the output as a substitute for environment-specific validation, testing, or expert review.
- Stop and ask for clarification if required inputs, permissions, safety boundaries, or success criteria are missing.