usenixsec-writing-style
Use when drafting or revising prose for a USENIX Security Symposium paper — threat-model-first structure, calibrated security claims, disclosure narrative woven into the text, 13-page discipline in the USENIX template, and the plain systems-security register this program committee rewards.
Profile →npx skills add brycewang-stanford/Awesome-Journal-Skills --skill usenixsec-writing-style --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.
# USENIX Security Writing Style A USENIX Security paper argues like an engineer under oath: state what the adversary can do, show what you built or broke, measure it honestly, and say plainly what does not follow. The style advice here is calibrated to the '26 CFP's format rules and to the venue's reviewing culture; format numbers are one cycle's snapshot. ## Structure: the threat model is load-bearing Readers at this venue locate every claim relative to an adversary. Put the threat model early (typically Section 2 or 3), make it precise, and never let the evaluation quietly assume a stronger or weaker attacker than the model granted: - Name capabilities concretely: network position, code execution level, query budget, physical access, knowledge of the defense. - Name non-goals just as concretely — "side channels are out of scope" is a legitimate sentence that prevents an entire review thread. - For measurement papers, the analogue is the **vantage and validity statement**: where you measured from, when, and what the view cannot see. A body plan that fits the 13 pages without heroics: | Section | Budget | Job | |---|---|---| | Intro | 1–1.25 pp | Problem, adversary, contribution bu
- Structure: the threat model is load-bearing
- Claim calibration, the house dialect
- The disclosure narrative belongs in the prose
- Register and mechanics
- Revision passes that pay at this venue
- Reverify each cycle
- Output format
What does the usenixsec-writing-style skill do?
Use when drafting or revising prose for a USENIX Security Symposium paper — threat-model-first structure, calibrated security claims, disclosure narrative woven into the text, 13-page discipline in the USENIX template, and the plain systems-security register this program committee rewards.
How do I install it?
Run `npx skills add brycewang-stanford/Awesome-Journal-Skills --skill usenixsec-writing-style --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 brycewang-stanford/Awesome-Journal-Skills, a repository with 909 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.