Individual skill

writing-skills

Use when creating a new skill, editing or renaming an existing skill, reviewing a skill someone else wrote, or when a skill is not triggering, is being ignored, or is being rationalised away by agents.

skills/writing-skills/SKILL.md

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Observed behavior: Local scripts
Last checked: Nov 4, 2026

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Repository stars (not skill ratings): 118
Repository last updated: Nov 2, 2026
License: MIT

Observed agent integration: No specific integration evidence. Standard SKILL.md installation does not imply verified compatibility.

agent-skills Repository topic
agentic-coding Repository topic
ai-agents Repository topic
antigravity Repository topic
claude-code Repository topic
claude-code-plugin Repository topic
code-review Repository topic
codex Repository topic
coding-agents Repository topic
cursor Repository topic
writing Derived category

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SKILL.mdcore · 13,798 bytes
SKILL.mdcore · 13,798 bytes
SKILL.mdcore · 13,798 bytes
SKILL.mdcore · 13,798 bytes
references/testing-skills.mddoc · 7,140 bytes

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# Writing Skills

A skill is code that runs on a model. Like code, it is written against a failing test: you first watch an agent get the task wrong without the skill, then write the smallest skill that fixes what you saw, then attack it until the agent stops finding ways around it. **If you never watched an agent fail without the skill, you do not know what the skill has to prevent.**

## The Prime Directive

```
NO SKILL SHIPS WITHOUT A BASELINE FAILURE AND A VERIFIED PASS
```

No exceptions. No workarounds. No shortcuts.

This applies to edits too. A "small wording fix" to a discipline skill can open a loophole; re-run its scenarios.