weekly_recap_threads v1.0.0

name: "weekly_recap_threads" description: "Plan, draft, and publish a recurring weekly recap post or thread for a community, brand, or channel. Use when someone asks for a weekly digest, weekly roundup, recap thread, or a repeatable format for summarizing the week that builds an audience habit."

Weekly Recap Threads

Purpose

Turn one week of activity into a single recap people actually look forward to. A good recap is curated, opinionated, and consistent: it filters the noise, adds a take to each pick, and lands on the same day so the audience builds the habit around it.

Workflow

1. Fix the cadence first. Pick one day and stick to it. Weekly if sustainable, otherwise biweekly: a predictable biweekly beats an erratic weekly, because the habit being built is the reader's, not yours. Announce the day in the first edition.

1. Collect candidates all week. Keep a running list as things happen: posts, links, numbers, quotes, wins, failures, replies worth featuring. A running capture list beats reconstructing the week from memory. Aim for 10-15 candidates to curate from.

1. Curate to 3-5 picks. Cut ruthlessly. Each pick must earn its slot by being something the audience would miss if it stopped arriving: a lesson with numbers, a teardown, original data, a standout moment. Company news and self-promotion read like they serve the sender, and they kill the format.

1. Add your take to every pick. Never paste a bare link or a bare summary. Write 1-2 sentences of opinion per pick: what surprised you, what it means for them, why it matters this week. The take is the product; the link is the receipt.

1. Structure the recap in a fixed section template. Same sections every edition so readers learn to scan:

• Opener (1-2 sentences): the week's one observation or throughline. Personal and specific, like a text from a smart friend.
• The highlights (3-5 items): headline, one-line why-it-matters, your take. For a leaderboard, rank by a stated metric (most engaged, most saved, biggest surprise). For a gallery, one visual per item.
• Quick hits (3 bullets): short items that didn't earn a full slot but deserve a line.
• Coming up (1-2 lines): what's next, next edition's day, one call to action.

1. Write the hook last. The opener post should carry the single strongest moment or number from the week, phrased so a stranger wants the rest. Never start the hook with an emoji. One idea per post, short sentences, one thought per line.

1. End with a CTA, every edition. Pair a follow/subscribe ask with an engagement ask ("What did I miss this week? Reply and I'll feature the best one next time"). Put link CTAs in the final post or a reply, never the hook.

1. Track and repeat. After each edition, note which picks got the most saves, replies, and shares. Feed winners back into the format. Repost standout editions after a few months with small edits.

Output Contract

The skill produces a ready-to-publish weekly recap containing:

• A named series title and fixed publishing day.
• A hook post (the opener) that works standalone.
• 3-5 curated picks, each with headline + why-it-matters + a genuine opinionated take. No bare links.
• Quick hits (3 bullets max), coming-up lines, and a CTA on the final post.
• Leaderboard ranks stated with the metric; gallery items paired with visuals.
• No em dashes, no "delve", no "in today's fast-paced world", no "it's not X, it's Y" pivots. Plain human voice.

Operating Rules

1. Curation over completeness. 3-5 strong picks beat 10 weak ones. If a pick is filler, cut it.
2. Opinion is mandatory. A recap without takes is an RSS feed. Say what you actually think about each pick.
3. Same skeleton, every edition. Sections stay fixed; content changes. Readers navigate by pattern.
4. One voice. Write like a person, not a brand committee. Short sentences, fragments fine, 0-2 emojis per post max.
5. Never break cadence silently. If an edition slips, acknowledge it in the next one. A predictable miss you own beats a silent gap.
6. Don't bait-and-switch the metric. If the leaderboard ranks "most engaged", say so and rank by engagement, not by what you wish had engaged.
7. Revisit the format monthly. Check the stats: which section gets saved, which gets scrolled past. Promote what gets saved, shrink what gets skipped.