show-hn-writer
Draft a Show HN post backed by real HN performance data. Uses observed patterns from 250 top HN posts to maximise score.
npx skills add Varnan-Tech/opendirectory --skill show-hn-writer --agent claude-code
Same command for any agent — swap --agent for codex, cursor, copilot.
Weekly change comes from our own snapshots, not the repository page — it measures attention, not adoption.
# Show HN Writer — Data-Backed Edition This skill drafts HN posts using patterns extracted from 250 real top-ranking posts. Every rule below comes from observed data, not convention. --- ## What the data says (internalize this before writing anything) These are the findings from 250 top HN posts scraped April 18 2026. They override any received wisdom about HN writing. **Title length is the single strongest predictor of score.** - Under 40 chars: avg 248 pts (n=82) - 40–59 chars: avg 192 pts (n=68) - 60–79 chars: avg 150 pts (n=91) - 80+ chars: avg 131 pts (n=9) Default target: under 40 characters. Hard ceiling: 60. **Body text does not affect score.** 90% of posts had no body. With-body avg: 189. Without-body avg: 193. Statistically identical. A body is only worth writing if you have genuinely interesting technical detail that won't fit in a title. Never write a body to pad credibility. **Show HN prefix suppresses score.** Show HN posts averaged 94 pts vs 186+ for plain statements. The label signals "I want feedback on my thing" which triggers a more skeptical read. Only use "Show HN:" when the project is genuinely novel. Always offer a plain-title alternative. **First-person titl
- What the data says (internalize this before writing anything)
- Step 1: Ask the user one question before anything else
- Step 2: Determine the right post type
- Step 3: Draft the title
- Step 4: Decide whether to write a body
- Step 5: Write the body (only if Step 4 said yes)
- Step 6: Self-check before presenting
- Step 7: Present output
- Step 8: Optional — scrape current top HN posts for context
- Reference: observed top performers from dataset
What does the show-hn-writer skill do?
Draft a Show HN post backed by real HN performance data. Uses observed patterns from 250 top HN posts to maximise score.
How do I install it?
Run `npx skills add Varnan-Tech/opendirectory --skill show-hn-writer --agent claude-code` — it drops the skill into your project so the agent can pick it up. Swap the --agent value for codex, cursor or copilot if you use one of those.
Where does this skill come from?
From Varnan-Tech/opendirectory, a repository with 571 stars. We read it straight from the repository tree rather than a submitted listing, so what you see here is what is actually published.
Is a popular skill a good skill?
Not necessarily. Stars measure attention, not adoption — a repository can trend for a week and be abandoned. That is why we show the weekly change from our own snapshots next to the total, instead of a single flattering number.