# Copywriting

> Copywriting

- Skill: `everyinc/copywriting` (Agent Skill, multi-file: 8 files)
- Install (CLI): `npx skillmds@latest add everyinc/copywriting`
- Raw SKILL.md: https://api.skillmd.com/api/skills/everyinc/copywriting/raw
- Safety review: pending
- Works with: Claude Code, Claude.ai, OpenAI Codex
- Category: Coding & Dev Tools
- Author: everyinc (https://skillmd.com/u/everyinc)
- Updated: 2026-09-17
- Page: https://skillmd.com/skills/everyinc/copywriting

---

# Copywriting

Every's general copywriting skill. Writes original marketing copy grounded in whichever
brand-voice and positioning are loaded dynamically at invocation. This is the workhorse
craft skill — channel-specific skills (launch-email, linkedin-post, etc.) handle format,
but copywriting handles the fundamentals of writing well for brands.

The principles here synthesize the creative canon (Ogilvy, Bernbach, Wieden, and others
from marketing-os) into operational writing guidance. The skill adapts to format and
channel but the core craft is consistent.

## System

Copywriting is composed of seven reference files:

### references/principles.md
The copywriting principles we hold — synthesized from the creative canon in marketing-os.
The non-negotiable standards for how Every writes.

### references/formats.md
Format guidance — long vs. short, headline vs. body, manifesto vs. product copy. How
format shapes the writing, and how to choose the right format for the job.

### references/channel-adaptation.md
How copy changes by channel. The same message written for email, LinkedIn, X, web, and
press operates differently. This reference governs those adaptations.

### references/antipatterns.md
What not to do. AI tropes, cliché, LinkedIn-voice, hollow superlatives, and the specific
failure modes that make marketing copy generic or untrustworthy.

### references/messaging-doc-discipline.md
The writing rules for brand and messaging documents (generalizable across all products):
the four-bucket protocol, research-before-drafting, proof-travels-with-the-claim,
hypothesis tagging, full citations, the competitive-read expiry rule, and the
differentiation ladder. The verification discipline that every strategy or messaging draft
runs before delivery. Cross-references `marketing-science/research/references/` (competitive
audits, synthesis methodology) rather than restating them.

### references/copywriting-line-rules.md
Line-level copywriting rules (C1–C10) from the sample-messaging passes and the creative
canon: no imitation
compression, every pronoun needs a visible antecedent, the line must survive its own logic,
generate for a kill rate, state the claim plain before styling it, match the promise to the
artifact, keep brand promises out of compliance-copy register, write for the ear, make every
rhetorical device earn its place, and give each copy unit one dominant job.

### references/failure-ledger.md
The failure ledger—the recurring ways a draft breaks when operational facts are left
unsupported or brand promises are weakened by the wrong verification standard, with the
claim-classification test for any draft.

## When to invoke

- When drafting net-new copy for any brand or product
- When a channel-specific skill isn't the right fit (multi-format, unusual deliverable)
- When writing copy that spans multiple channels or formats
- When a draft needs to be written from scratch rather than edited
- When the task is "write this" rather than "fix this" (editing) or "name this" (naming)

For a sequence of related assets that must learn from human edits and prove that the
learning transfers, route to `craft/compound-copywriting`. It orchestrates this skill,
editing, run scoring, and the Marketing OS learning loop.

## Reference routing

| Task type | Load |
|---|---|
| Core writing standards and principles | `references/principles.md` |
| Choosing or adapting to a format | `references/formats.md` |
| Adapting copy across channels | `references/channel-adaptation.md` |
| Reviewing for failure modes | `references/antipatterns.md` |
| Writing or auditing a brand/messaging doc for verification discipline | `references/messaging-doc-discipline.md` |
| Drafting or QC-ing original brand copy at the line level | `references/copywriting-line-rules.md` |
| Diagnosing why a draft reads unsourced, generic, or off | `references/failure-ledger.md` |

## Dependencies

- `foundation/marketing-os`
- `brand-voice/{relevant brand}` (loaded dynamically)
- `positioning/{relevant brand}` (loaded dynamically)

## Status

Core principles, line rules, messaging discipline, and product-example guidance are active.
Channel adaptation and most format-specific guidance remain scaffolding until their references
are populated.