Crafting Effective READMEs

crafting-effective-readmes

Use when writing or improving README files. Not all READMEs are the same — provides templates and guidance matched to your audience and project type.

Dicklesworthstone/pi_agent_rust·0installs1.8Kstars

SKILL.md

Full skill instructions

Crafting Effective READMEs

Overview

READMEs answer questions your audience will have. Different audiences need different information - a contributor to an OSS project needs different context than future-you opening a config folder.

Always ask: Who will read this, and what do they need to know?

Process

Step 1: Identify the Task

Ask: "What README task are you working on?"

Task	When
Creating	New project, no README yet
Adding	Need to document something new
Updating	Capabilities changed, content is stale
Reviewing	Checking if README is still accurate

Step 2: Task-Specific Questions

Creating initial README:

What type of project? (see Project Types below)
What problem does this solve in one sentence?
What's the quickest path to "it works"?
Anything notable to highlight?

Adding a section:

What needs documenting?
Where should it go in the existing structure?
Who needs this info most?

Updating existing content:

What changed?
Read current README, identify stale sections
Propose specific edits

Reviewing/refreshing:

Read current README
Check against actual project state (package.json, main files, etc.)
Flag outdated sections
Update "Last reviewed" date if present

Step 3: Always Ask

After drafting, ask: "Anything else to highlight or include that I might have missed?"

Project Types

Type	Audience	Key Sections	Template
Open Source	Contributors, users worldwide	Install, Usage, Contributing, License	`templates/oss.md`
Personal	Future you, portfolio viewers	What it does, Tech stack, Learnings	`templates/personal.md`
Internal	Teammates, new hires	Setup, Architecture, Runbooks	`templates/internal.md`
Config	Future you (confused)	What's here, Why, How to extend, Gotchas	`templates/xdg-config.md`

Ask the user if unclear. Don't assume OSS defaults for everything.

Essential Sections (All Types)

Every README needs at minimum:

Name - Self-explanatory title
Description - What + why in 1-2 sentences
Usage - How to use it (examples help)

References

section-checklist.md - Which sections to include by project type
style-guide.md - Common README mistakes and prose guidance
using-references.md - Guide to deeper reference materials

Install skill

Copy and run in your terminal

npx -y skills add https://github.com/Dicklesworthstone/pi_agent_rust --skill crafting-effective-readmes

View on GitHub

tests/ext_conformance/artifacts/templates-davila7/cli-tool/components/skills/productivity/crafting-effective-readmes/SKILL.md

deepgram-hello-world
Create a minimal working Deepgram transcription example. Use when starting a new Deepgram integration, testing your setup, or learning basic Deepgram API patterns. Trigger with phrases like "deepgram hello world", "deepgram example", "deepgram quick start", "simple transcription", "transcribe aud...
0 installs
interactive-shell
Cheat sheet + workflow for launching interactive coding-agent CLIs (Claude Code, Gemini CLI, Codex CLI, Cursor CLI, and pi itself) via the interactive_shell overlay or headless dispatch. Use for TUI agents and long-running processes that need supervision, fire-and-forget delegation, or headless b...
0 installs
documenso-prod-checklist
Execute Documenso production deployment checklist and rollback procedures. Use when deploying Documenso integrations to production, preparing for launch, or implementing go-live procedures. Trigger with phrases like "documenso production", "deploy documenso", "documenso go-live", "documenso launc...
0 installs
interactive-portfolio
Expert in building portfolios that actually land jobs and clients - not just showing work, but creating memorable experiences. Covers developer portfolios, designer portfolios, creative portfolios, and portfolios that convert visitors into opportunities. Use when: portfolio, personal website, sho...
0 installs