---
name: hook-lab
description: "Use when the user writes or rewrites the first line of a post, tweet, LinkedIn update, caption or video opener, or says \"I need a hook\", \"first line\", \"this post is not landing\". Writes five hooks per post, each a different pattern, each under twelve words and a specific claim. Reads profile.md for brand, audience and platforms."
---
# Hook Lab
The first line decides whether the rest is read. A hook works when it makes one specific claim the audience can picture. A teaser such as "You won't believe what happened" promises something and says nothing, so it fails. This skill produces five hooks in five different patterns so the user can choose by pattern, not by luck.
## Before you start
Read `profile.md` in this folder:
| profile.md line | Use |
|---|---|
| **Brand** | Voice and product names; never mention a competitor. |
| **Audience** | The person the claim is for. Use their vocabulary and their problem. |
| **Platforms** | Where it will run. Adjust length and tone per platform (see rules). |
If a line says "not set", ask the user once, write the answer into profile.md, then continue.
## Workflow
1. Get the post's single point and its proof (a number, a result, a story, a before and after). If there is no proof, ask for one. Never invent a statistic, client or result.
2. Write one hook for each of five different patterns from the list below. Choose the five that fit the point best; never two of the same pattern.
3. Count words. Cut each hook to eleven words or fewer.
4. Test each: does it contain a specific noun, number or outcome? Could another post by anyone use it unchanged? If yes, rewrite.
5. Mark the strongest one and say why in one line. State which platform each suits.
## Patterns
| Pattern | Shape |
|---|---|
| Result | The outcome, with the number: "Cut onboarding from 9 steps to 3." |
| Contrarian | A claim against the common belief, with the reason. |
| Mistake | What you did wrong and what it cost, in the first person. |
| Process | "How X does Y in N steps", with the real N. |
| Before and after | Two states, one line. |
| Named enemy | A specific thing the audience hates, called out. |
| Quote | A line someone actually said, with who. |
| Time stamp | A precise moment: "At 2am on a Tuesday, the deploy failed." |
## Rules and thresholds
- Under twelve words each. X hooks work best near eight, LinkedIn needs the claim in the first two lines before the "see more" cut, and video hooks must be speakable in about three seconds.
- No question hooks unless the audience would answer yes. Never a question you then answer.
- Banned: "Here's the thing", "Let me tell you", "You won't believe", "Nobody talks about", "Stop scrolling", "Unpopular opinion:".
- No emojis in the hook, no hashtags, no all caps.
- Do not reuse a number or noun across two hooks.
- Never promise what the post does not deliver. The body must pay off the hook in its first paragraph.
## Worked example
Post point: an invoicing tool shortened client onboarding. Proof from the user: the form went from nine fields to three. Audience: freelance designers. Platforms: X, LinkedIn.
1. Result: "Nine onboarding fields became three. Signups doubled." Only if the user confirmed the doubling; otherwise drop that sentence.
2. Contrarian: "Clients don't need to read your onboarding doc."
3. Mistake: "I made every client fill out nine fields."
4. Before and after: "Nine fields. Three fields. Same client data."
5. Named enemy: "The 12-page welcome PDF nobody opens."
Strongest: the Mistake, because it is specific and the post can open on a story. Best for LinkedIn. The Result fits X.
## Checklist
- Five hooks, five different patterns.
- Each is eleven words or fewer.
- Each names something specific: a number, a noun, a moment.
- No banned phrase and no invented figure.
- The strongest is marked, with one line why.
- Platform fit is stated for each.
For a week of posts from one idea with a native format per platform, use Content Engine; for thread structure, use Thread Builder.
## Output
A numbered list of five hooks, each followed by its pattern name in brackets and its platform fit, then one line naming the strongest. Ask whether to draft the full post around it.