spec-writing
Skill0 starsChanged 7 months agoMITView on GitHub
Use when a feature, refactor, or workflow change is still underspecified and a short written spec should exist before issue creation or implementation. Trigger when goals, boundaries, users, or success criteria are still unclear. Do not use only because work spans multiple files; use `planning-workflow` or `issue-driven-workflow` once the problem is already clear enough to execute.
17 other projects use a version of this.
Adopted by
Most recently taken up by
- rajanrx/skillstheir own version, first seen Nov 8, 2026
- crbnos/carbontheir own version, first seen Nov 7, 2026
- rioffe/specchecktheir own version, first seen Nov 6, 2026
- ragna-ai/ragna-studiotheir own version, first seen Nov 1, 2026
- OrionicsLtd/claude-skillstheir own version, first seen Nov 1, 2026
- converge-ai-labs/agent-foundationtheir own version, first seen Oct 29, 2026
Other versions17 projects use a version of this.
Word for word · 0
None found.
Edited · 0
None found.
Wrote their own version · 17
- crbnos/carbon★ 2.8ksame name
- converge-ai-labs/agent-foundation★ 825same name
- itseffi/agentic-os★ 114same name
- khuynh22/agent-dev-team★ 9same name
- rioffe/speccheck★ 5same name
- anyoneanderson/agent-skills★ 3same name
- mariomile/builder-os★ 2same name
- rajanrx/skills★ 2same name
- bedomax/webdesigner-agent★ 1same name
- dagarre00/claude-code-template★ 1same name
7 more not listed
How matches are found. Word for word: the exact same text. Edited: shares passages with this file (“99% same” means 99% of its five-word phrases also appear here; 10% or more counts). Their own version: similar meaning, or, weakest, the same name. We can’t tell which project had it first. Projects are counted among the 200 most-starred candidates, and mentions are links to the repository we found, up to 50 per site, so both counts are a floor.
In this repository9 other files it gives its agents.
- AGENTS.mdAGENTS.md
- decision-recordingSkill
- harness-bootstrapSkill
- issue-driven-workflowSkill
- planning-workflowSkill
- review-workflowSkill
- subagent-workflowSkill
- technical-learning-noteSkill
- troubleshooting-workflowSkill
The file
We split this skill into the rules it gives an agent
5 rules. 0 are common, 4 are distinctive, and 1 is very specific to this project.
0
Common
Most of the 15 edited versions we read keep these.
4
Distinctive
This author's own choices. Worth a look.
1
Very specific
Tied to their project's names, files or tools. Probably skip.
- Common
- Distinctive
- Very specific
- Distinctive: line 8
Write a short working spec before coding when the request is still loose.
- Distinctive: line 16
Write success criteria that can be validated later.
- Very specific: line 21
Prefer docs/product/ for the spec and link it from the issue doc before implementation starts.
- Distinctive: line 22
Stop once the work is clear enough to create an issue and a plan.
- Distinctive: line 35
follow-up tasks that already have a clear issue doc and plan
“Common” is measured: kept by at least 6 in 10 of the 15 edited versions of this file we could read. “Very specific” is our guess from the words: it names a file, a command, a setting or the project itself.
Files
Spec Writing
Write a short working spec before coding when the request is still loose.
This skill is for problem framing, not task tracking.
Default flow
- State the problem, affected user or team, and desired outcome.
- Surface assumptions and unanswered questions early.
- Write success criteria that can be validated later.
- Record boundaries:
- in scope
- out of scope
- decisions that still need approval
- Prefer
docs/product/for the spec and link it from the issue doc before implementation starts. - Stop once the work is clear enough to create an issue and a plan.
Good fit
- new features with unclear shape
- refactors with behavior constraints
- architecture or workflow changes
- requests that would otherwise rely on chat memory
Avoid for
- typo fixes
- obvious one-line changes
- follow-up tasks that already have a clear issue doc and plan
Resources
- See
references/spec-checklist.mdfor a lean spec checklist. - Hand off to
planning-workflowafter the scope is stable and toissue-driven-workflowonce execution should be tracked.
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