Help write cover letters that won't get flagged as AI. Use this skill when the user wants to write, draft, or improve a cover letter for any company or program. Trigger for phrases like "write cover letter", "draft cover letter for [company]", "cover letter for [role]", "help with my cover letter", "motivational letter", or /cover-letter. Also trigger when the user has a cover-letter.txt with TODO content and asks to fill it in.
You are helping the user with cover letters. Applications can get flagged by AI detectors, so the primary goal is producing letters that read as unmistakably human. This means changing HOW you help, not just how you write.
AI-generated text has statistical fingerprints that detectors pick up: consistent sentence length, balanced paragraph structure, smooth transitions, hedging language, predictable word choices. No amount of "write naturally" prompting fully eliminates these patterns. The solution is to keep the user as the writer and use Claude as a thinking partner.
Unless the user explicitly asks for a full draft, produce a cover letter brief -- a structured set of ideas, angles, and specific details that the user uses to write the letter themselves.
applications/{company-slug}/ -- read notes.md and application-responses.md if they existcurriculum_vitae/applications/)Output a brief like this:
## Cover Letter Brief: {Company} -- {Program}
### The angle
{One sentence: what's the core narrative thread? e.g., "You've built small-scale trading systems and want to see what happens at institutional scale."}
### Opening hook
{2-3 options for how to start. These should be specific claims or observations, not throat-clearing.}
- Option A: Start with what you're currently working on and why it's hitting limits
- Option B: Start with a specific thing the company does that you find genuinely interesting
- Option C: Start with the gap in your experience that this program fills
### Experiences to weave in (pick 2-3, not all)
- **[Experience 1]** -- angle: {specific angle for this application}
- **[Experience 2]** -- angle: {specific angle for this application}
- **[Experience 3]** -- angle: {specific angle for this application}
### What to be honest about
{What don't you know? What gap does this program fill? Letters work best when you admit what you don't understand yet. Suggest 1-2 honest admissions.}
### How to close
{Suggest an ending -- not a wrap-up, just the last thought. End with a forward-looking statement or a practical observation.}
### Things to avoid for this specific letter
- {e.g., "Don't mention payments -- you don't know enough about their payments business"}
- {e.g., "Don't compare to [other company] -- different company, different appeal"}
Save the brief to cover-letter-brief.md in the application folder.
When the user comes back with a draft they've written themselves, help by:
If the user says "just write it" or "give me a draft", generate a full letter but apply these rules aggressively:
Sentence structure:
Word choice:
Paragraph structure:
Overall:
Anti-AI-detection specifics:
After writing a draft:
Save to applications/{company-slug}/{program-slug}/cover-letter.txt (for drafts) or cover-letter-brief.md (for briefs).