Newsletter Voice

Prerequisites check

Newsletter voice sits on top of your general voice profile. Run voice-builder first (upload the skill or say "build my voice"), then come back here once about-me.md and voice.md are in the project.

Step 1. Check for samples

Do you have 2 to 3 past newsletter issues I can learn from?

Yes: paste them here (one per message or all at once) No: type "archetype" and I will build from a template tuned to your voice

Step 2a. Sample-based analysis

• What the first 3 sentences do (specific result, cultural observation, claim, scene, question)
• Length of the opening section before the first structural break
• Credibility move (how the author establishes authority early)
• Value promise (what the reader is told they will get)

• Problem or contrast setup
• Named framework or free prose
• Numbered steps, methods, or continuous argument
• Examples and evidence patterns
• Bonus or extension section
• Closing formula and signoff

• Specific numbers per issue (count them)
• Source attribution style (linked, named, uncredited)
• Example-to-abstraction ratio
• Limitation or failure acknowledgements

• Header usage (frequency, hierarchy)
• List usage (numbered, bulleted, arrows)
• Bold and italic usage
• Prompt, code block, or blockquote formatting
• Visual markers (arrows, checkmarks, emojis if any)

• Word count range across samples
• Section word counts

• Pro tips or callouts (frequency, format)
• Forward-looking closings
• Signoff phrase if consistent across samples
• Meta-transparency (does the author reflect on the process or ask for feedback)

• Words, constructions, or structures absent from every sample
• Closing moves the author never uses
• Topics the author never touches

Step 2b. Archetype selection

[
  {
    "question": "Which newsletter archetype fits what you want to write?",
    "header": "Archetype",
    "multiSelect": false,
    "options": [
      {"label": "Data tutorial", "description": "Numbers, frameworks, step-by-step methods with prompts"},
      {"label": "Contrarian essay", "description": "Take a position, defend it, name the opposition"},
      {"label": "Case study teardown", "description": "One subject per issue, unpacked in depth"},
      {"label": "Curated digest", "description": "5 to 7 links with your commentary each week"},
      {"label": "Personal essay", "description": "Reflection on a theme, story-first"},
      {"label": "Interview or profile", "description": "One person per issue, Q and A or narrative"}
    ]
  }
]

references/archetypes.md

Step 3. Write newsletter-voice.md

# Newsletter Voice

## Source
[Sample-based: analysed X newsletter issues] OR [Archetype-based: [archetype name] tuned to voice.md. Revisit after 5 published issues.]

## Audience and purpose
[Who reads this newsletter and what they get from it. Written from about-me.md and voice.md. 2 to 3 sentences.]

## Voice principles
[3 to 5 core principles the writing always holds. Each one a short declarative sentence. Tuned to this user's voice.md.]

## Opening formula
[How issues start. Include 2 concrete templates with bracketed placeholders, e.g. "[Specific result with number]. [Credibility marker]. [Value promise for this issue]." Target word count for the opening section.]

## Section flow
[Standard structure of an issue, section by section, 5 to 8 sections max. Brief notes on what each section does and how long it runs.]

## Data and evidence
[How numbers and examples are used. Specific rules, e.g. "every claim needs a number", "sources linked inline", "example-to-abstraction ratio roughly 3:1".]

## Formatting rules
[Headers, lists, bold, italic, code blocks, visual markers. What to use, what to avoid. Drawn from samples or archetype defaults.]

## Closing and signoff
[How issues end. Forward-looking statement versus summary. Signoff phrase if a consistent one exists across samples (do not invent one).]

## What this newsletter never does
[1 short paragraph or 3 to 5 items. Drawn from absence patterns across samples or archetype defaults. Behaviours only, not a banned-words list.]

## Length
[Word count target for standard issues. Separate target for longer comprehensive guides if the user writes both formats.]

Step 4. Confirm and hand off

Your newsletter voice is built. newsletter-voice.md is in your project root alongside about-me.md and voice.md. When you want to draft an issue, say "write a newsletter" and I will use all three files together.

[If archetype mode: Remember this file was built from archetype defaults. After 5 or so published issues, re-run this skill with your real samples for a sharper profile.]

What this skill produces

• newsletter-voice.md: newsletter-specific writing instructions covering audience, voice principles, opening formula, section flow, data philosophy, formatting, closing, absence patterns, and length targets

Rules

• Require voice.md and about-me.md in the project root before running. Stop and redirect to voice-builder if either is missing.
• Minimum 2 newsletter samples if the user chooses sample-based mode. Offer archetype mode if fewer.
• Keep newsletter-voice.md under 1,200 words. Tight beats exhaustive.
• Do not invent voice signals. Work only from samples or archetype defaults tuned to voice.md.
• Do not duplicate content from voice.md. Reference it where relevant. newsletter-voice.md adds newsletter-specific rules only.
• Do not bake in the user's specific names, URLs, or signoff phrases unless they appear consistently across 2 or more samples.
• Do not produce a separate voice or banned-words file. Absence patterns live inside newsletter-voice.md as a single section.
• British English throughout unless samples are clearly American.
• Never use em dashes in any output file or in any draft.