Profile Writing Style

Profile Writing Style

Use this skill to infer a writer's recurring habits from text they provide and turn those observations into a concise Markdown style profile. Focus on describing actual tendencies, not on scoring quality or rewriting the samples unless the user asks for that separately.

Workflow

1. Build the sample set

• Prefer 3 to 10 files or excerpts written by the same person.
• If the user gives a directory, identify files that contain the writer's own prose and ignore generated files, bibliographies, logs, figures, and code.
• If the sample set mixes genres, state that clearly and group observations by genre when needed.

2. Read for recurring patterns

Look for patterns that repeat across the samples rather than isolated quirks. Summarize only what is supported by multiple examples.

Check these layers:

• sentence shape: average sentence length, clause density, use of contrast or qualification, rhythm variation
• paragraph movement: topic sentence style, buildup, paragraph endings, tendency to summarise or restate
• argument style: directness, hedging, evidence handling, how claims are limited or framed
• vocabulary: concrete versus abstract nouns, repeated framing words, transition words, domain vocabulary
• meta-writing: how often the writer refers to the paper, report, or section itself instead of advancing the object-level claim
• tone: restrained, assertive, explanatory, defensive, formal, compressed, or expansive

3. Distinguish stable style from local noise

• Do not overfit to one chapter, one assignment, or one unusually edited file.
• Separate genuine style from genre constraints. For example, notation-heavy technical sections naturally sound more templated than discussion sections.
• If the samples appear heavily AI-assisted or heavily edited, say so as an uncertainty instead of pretending the profile is pure.

4. Produce a Markdown style profile

Write a Markdown document using the structure in references/style-profile-template.md.

The profile should include:

• a short overview of the writer's overall prose character
• 5 to 10 concrete stylistic tendencies
• a short list of high-frequency habits or repeated constructions
• tensions or tradeoffs in the style, such as "clear but repetitive" or "careful but over-explained"
• a short "Strengths To Preserve" section
• a short "Risks To Watch" section
• optional "Operational Rules" if the user wants the profile reused later

5. Keep the output evidence-based

• Ground claims in patterns actually seen across the sample set.
• Use short quoted fragments only when helpful and keep them brief.
• Avoid vague labels like "good academic tone" unless you explain what creates that effect in the writing.
• Do not turn the profile into a rewrite request unless the user asks.

Output Notes

• Default output file name: writing-style-profile.md unless the user names a different path.
• If the sample size is too small, say what can and cannot be inferred.
• If the user wants a reusable prompt or editing guide derived from the profile, add a final Operational Rules section.