dmccreary Press Release Generator
Overview
This skill writes a professional press release that announces an intelligent textbook (or a major milestone, such as a new edition or a tie-in to current events or legislation). It pulls the same canonical book statistics that the README, LinkedIn, and case-study skills use, then reshapes them into the form journalists actually expect: Associated Press (AP) style, inverted-pyramid structure, a genuine news hook, attributed quotes, and a boilerplate.
A press release is not a LinkedIn post with a dateline glued on. The two formats optimize for different readers, and that difference drives almost every instruction below:
- A LinkedIn post sells scope to peers — metrics forward, emoji, hashtags, first person, enthusiastic.
- A press release gives a busy editor a story they can run with minimal rewriting — news value forward, human stakes, third person, neutral reported tone, verifiable facts, and a real person to call.
If you find yourself reaching for the LinkedIn voice (📊 bullet dumps, "thrilled to announce," hashtags), stop — that is the wrong instrument.
When to Use This Skill
- A textbook is being published or has reached a newsworthy milestone
- An advocacy group, school, library, or nonprofit wants media coverage
- The content ties to current events, a new law, a public-health need, or a local angle that a regional outlet would care about
- The user mentions a press release, news release, media advisory, press statement, embargo, or "getting picked up" by the press
- A conference, launch event, or grant announcement needs a written release
Two operating modes (this matters — read before Step 1)
The skill must work in both of these situations, because the user often wants a release for a book that is already deployed but not checked out locally:
- Inside the textbook repo (ideal):
docs/learning-graph/book-metrics.jsonandmkdocs.ymlare on disk. Use the canonical metrics directly. - Live site only: you have a published URL but no repo. Derive a verified factual skeleton from the deployed site instead — see Step 2B. Do not invent numbers you cannot see; an editor will fact-check them.
Detect which mode you are in before gathering data, and tell the user which one you used so they know how the figures were sourced.
Workflow
Step 1 — Gather book metadata
From mkdocs.yml (or, in live-site mode, the site <head> and footer):
site_name— the textbook titlesite_url— the live URL (the single most important link in the release)site_description— one-line descriptionrepo_url— repository, for a "the project is open source" line if relevant
From docs/course-description.md (if present): audience, prerequisites,
subject scope, and learning goals. These shape the "who is this for" sentence.
Step 2A — Metrics from the repo (preferred)
Read the canonical metrics file — never recount content by hand or scrape the
brittle book-metrics.md table. This is the same source the other book skills
use, so every artifact reports identical numbers.
python3 - <<'PY'
import json, pathlib, sys
p = pathlib.Path("docs/learning-graph/book-metrics.json")
if not p.exists():
sys.exit("book-metrics.json missing — run bk-generate-book-metrics, or use Step 2B")
print(json.dumps(json.loads(p.read_text())["metrics"], indent=2))
PY
Useful keys: chapters, concepts, glossaryTerms, quizQuestions,
microsims, words, equivalentPages, faqs, diagrams, developmentStage.
Step 2B — Facts from the live site (fallback)
When there is no repo, the deployed site still yields hard, checkable facts. The sitemap is the fastest route to an accurate structural skeleton:
curl -s https://SITE/sitemap.xml | grep -o '<loc>[^<]*</loc>' | sed 's/<[^>]*>//g'
From the URL list you can count chapters, simulations (/sims/), quizzes, and
named tools, and confirm the presence of a glossary, FAQ, and resources page.
Fetch the home page for the title, tagline, publisher, and mission language.
Prefer fewer, certain numbers (e.g., "nine chapters and four interactive
simulations," both countable from the sitemap) over impressive-but-unverifiable
ones. Tell the user which figures came from the sitemap so they can confirm.
Step 3 — Get the news hook and the things only a human can supply
This is the step that separates a real release from a glorified summary, and it is the step the repo cannot answer for you. Interview the user for:
- The angle — why is this news now? A new resource alone is weak. Strong hooks: ties to a specific law or policy, a public-health statistic, a local "first," a season (back-to-school), a grant, an event, an unmet need the data exposes. Lead with this.
- Dateline city and state — usually the publishing organization's home city.
- Release timing — "FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE" or an embargo ("EMBARGOED UNTIL ...").
- Spokesperson quote(s) — full name, title, organization, and an approved quote. One or two only (a principal/leader, plus optionally a partner, educator, parent, or subject expert).
- Boilerplate — the standing "About [Organization]" paragraph.
- Media contact — name, email, phone.
If the user does not have a quote or contact yet, do not stall and do not invent them — see "Never fabricate sourced facts" below.
Step 4 — Assemble in AP style
Use the structure and rules in the AP Style Reference section. Build the body in inverted-pyramid order: the single most important fact first, then decreasing importance, so an editor can cut from the bottom without losing the story.
Step 5 — Run the AP checklist
Before presenting, verify against the Quality Checklist below. AP-style slips (a superlative in the headline, a wrong month abbreviation, a quote that starts with "I") are exactly what signals "amateur" to an editor.
Step 6 — Deliver with a short distribution note
Present the release as clean, copy-paste-ready text (plain paragraphs, no markdown styling inside the release body — newsrooms want plain text). Follow it with 2–4 lines of practical distribution advice tailored to the topic: which kinds of outlets fit (local dailies, education trade press, the relevant advocacy/professional newsletters, the city/regional desk), and a reminder to send as pasted text plus a PDF, not only an attachment.
AP Style Reference
Embed this format exactly; it is what newsrooms expect.
Overall structure
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
[or: EMBARGOED UNTIL 9 A.M. CT, MONTH DAY, YEAR]
Headline in Title Case, Present Tense, No Period
Optional Subhead Adding the Second-Most-Important Fact
CITY, State abbrev., Month Day, Year — The lead sentence states WHO did WHAT,
WHEN, WHERE, and WHY in roughly 25–35 words, leading with the news hook.
The second paragraph expands the lead with the most important supporting facts
and context — the scale of the problem, the need, or the data.
"A quote that adds perspective or a forward-looking statement rather than
repeating the facts above," said Full Name, title at Organization. "An optional
second sentence."
Body paragraphs in descending order of importance: what the resource contains,
who it is for, what makes it credible or distinctive, how it is funded or
governed. Weave in two or three verifiable figures — do not dump a metrics list.
"An optional supporting quote from a partner, educator, parent, or expert,"
said Full Name, title at Organization.
A closing paragraph with availability, price (note if free), and the call to
action — the URL.
About [Organization]
[Organization] is a [one-sentence description]. [One or two sentences of
mission/background.] Learn more at [URL].
Media Contact:
Full Name
Email
Phone
###
The closing ### (centered) is the traditional "end of release" mark; editors
rely on it to know nothing was truncated.
Headline rules
- Title case, present tense, active voice, no period, no exclamation point
- No superlatives ("revolutionary," "groundbreaking," "first-ever," "best")
- State the actual news element, not a slogan
❌ Amazing New Epilepsy Textbook Will Revolutionize School Safety!
❌ Press Release: A New Resource for Schools
✅ Student-Led Group Releases Free Guide to Help Minnesota Schools Prepare for Seizures
Dateline
Format: CITY, State abbrev., Month Day, Year —
AP abbreviates these months: Jan., Feb., Aug., Sept., Oct., Nov., Dec. March, April, May, June, and July are spelled out. The city is uppercase; the state uses the AP abbreviation (e.g., Minn., Calif., Mass.). Large cities that stand alone without a state in AP style include New York, Chicago, Los Angeles, Boston, and Washington; most others take the state.
ST. PAUL, Minn., June 19, 2026 —
MINNEAPOLIS, Sept. 3, 2026 —
Lead paragraph
Answer the five W's, hook first, in ~25–35 words. Lead with why it matters, not with the existence of a document.
❌ A new website has been launched that contains educational materials about
epilepsy for use in schools and other settings.
✅ With Minnesota law now requiring every school to be ready for student
seizures, a student-led advocacy group today released a free, plain-language
textbook that walks families and staff through seizure first aid, the law,
and a child's rights.
Quotes
- One or two quotes maximum; each must be attributable to a real, named person
- Never begin a quote with "I"
- Attribution format:
"Quote," said Full Name, title at Organization. - Quotes add perspective or look forward; they never restate the body facts
❌ "I think this is a really exciting and important new resource," said the team.
✅ "Most seizures at school are handled by teachers, not doctors, so the people
on the front lines deserve materials they can actually use," said Jane Doe,
founder of the Epilepsy Data & Advocacy Network.
Never fabricate sourced facts
A press release goes on the public record and editors verify it. A quote attributed to a named person, a contact phone number, a partner organization, or a statistic that turns out to be invented does lasting damage to the author's credibility and cannot be un-published once it is on the wire. So:
- Never invent a quotation and attribute it to a real person. If the user
has no approved quote yet, insert a clearly bracketed placeholder such as
[DRAFT QUOTE — replace with approved language from Jane Doe, EDAN founder]and tell the user it must be filled before distribution. - Never invent contact details, partners, dollar figures, dates, or stats.
Use the journalist's
[TK]("to come") marker — e.g.,[TK: media contact email]— for anything the user must supply. Bracketed gaps in a draft are normal and expected; fabricated specifics are not. - Prefer verified, modest numbers over impressive guesses. "Nine chapters and four interactive simulations" that you counted beats a word count you cannot confirm.
This is about protecting the user, not bureaucratic caution — frame any gaps to them plainly so they know exactly what to approve before sending.
Quality Checklist
- Headline: title case, present tense, no period, no superlatives, real news
- Dateline present with correct AP month style
- Lead answers the five W's in ~25–35 words and leads with the hook
- Inverted pyramid: most important first, cuttable from the bottom
- Two or three verified figures woven in — not a metrics dump
- Every quote attributed to a named, real person (or clearly marked draft)
- No quote begins with "I"
- "About [Organization]" boilerplate present
- Media-contact block present (or
[TK]placeholders flagged) - The live URL appears and is correct
- Neutral reported tone — no hashtags, no emoji, no first person
- Closes with
### - Every
[TK]/[DRAFT ...]placeholder called out to the user
Example skeleton (generic — adapt, do not copy verbatim)
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Nonprofit Releases Free Interactive Textbook on [Topic] for [Audience]
CITY, State., Month Day, Year — [Lead: hook + five W's in 25–35 words.]
[Second paragraph: the need or the data behind the news.]
"[Perspective quote that does not restate the facts]," said Full Name, title
at Organization.
[Body: what the resource includes — chapters, interactive simulations,
glossary, quizzes — woven with two or three verified figures and who it serves.]
[Closing: free and open, where to find it, the URL.]
About [Organization]
[One-sentence description. Mission sentence.] Learn more at [URL].
Media Contact:
Full Name
Email
Phone
###
Customization
- Tone within AP bounds: straight-news vs. feature/human-interest lead
- Audience emphasis: education desk, health desk, local/regional desk, or a trade/advocacy newsletter — adjust the angle and the supporting facts
- Length: a tight one-page release (default) or a longer version with an extra supporting quote and a "background" paragraph
- Companion assets: offer to generate a matching media advisory (shorter, event-style) or a tip sheet on request
Related Skills
- linkedin-announcement-generator — social-post version of the same news
- readme-generator — GitHub project documentation
- book-installer (book-metrics guide) /
bk-generate-book-metrics— produces thebook-metrics.jsonthis skill reads in repo mode