Skill From Book Transform book content into structured, context-efficient Claude skills. Overview This skill guides you through converting a book (in markdown format) into a well-organized skill with: Granular knowledge files (one concept per file) Workflows for repeatable tasks Use-case guidelines (mapping tasks to relevant files) Progress tracking for multi-session work Subagent extraction tasks CRITICAL INSTRUCTIONS YOU MUST FOLLOW THIS WORKFLOW STRICTLY. DO NOT SKIP OR REORDER PHASES. DO NOT read the book markdown file content before starting Phase 1 MUST read each reference file BEFORE starting its corresponding phase MUST complete each phase before moving to the next MUST use subagents for extraction tasks MUST propose workflows to user before finalization Workflow Phase 1: Analysis STOP! Before proceeding, you MUST: Read references/analysis-guide.md completely Only then proceed with the steps below Phase 1 Steps: Extract TOC and outline ONLY (DO NOT read full book content)

Count total lines

wc -l book.md

Extract headers/TOC - THIS IS ALL YOU NEED

grep -E "^#{1,3} " book.md Identify knowledge categories from outline Core principles/philosophy Rules and guidelines Examples (good vs bad) Patterns and anti-patterns Checklists and quick references Define use cases Who will use this skill? What tasks will they perform? What questions will they ask? Ask user to confirm the identified categories and use cases before proceeding Phase 2: Planning STOP! Before proceeding, you MUST: Read references/extraction-patterns.md completely Read references/file-templates.md completely Only then proceed with the steps below Phase 2 Steps: Design file structure with required files per category Each category MUST contain these 3 basic files: knowledge.md - Core concepts, definitions, and foundational understanding rules.md - Specific guidelines, do's and don'ts examples.md - Good/bad code examples, before/after comparisons Additional files as needed: patterns.md - Reusable solutions smells.md - Anti-patterns and what to avoid checklist.md - Quick reference checklists skill-name/ ├── SKILL.md ├── progress.md ├── guidelines.md ├── workflows/ # NEW: Step-by-step processes │ ├── [task-1].md │ └── [task-2].md └── references/ ├── category-1/ │ ├── knowledge.md # REQUIRED │ ├── rules.md # REQUIRED │ ├── examples.md # REQUIRED │ ├── patterns.md # Optional │ └── checklist.md # Optional └── category-2/ ├── knowledge.md # REQUIRED ├── rules.md # REQUIRED ├── examples.md # REQUIRED └── smells.md # Optional Create progress.md List ALL files to create (required + optional) Group by phase/priority Track completion status Plan extraction tasks One task per knowledge file Define input (book section with line ranges) and output (file path) Identify dependencies between tasks Ask user to confirm the file structure and extraction plan before proceeding Phase 3: Extraction STOP! Before proceeding, you MUST: Have completed Phase 1 and Phase 2 Have user confirmation on the plan Only then proceed with extraction CRITICAL: You MUST use subagents (Task tool) for extraction. One subagent per topic - each subagent creates ALL files for that topic. Main Agent Instructions for Phase 3 YOU MUST follow these steps: One subagent per topic - Each subagent reads a book section ONCE and creates all files for that topic (knowledge.md, rules.md, examples.md, plus any optional files) Prepare the subagent prompt by filling in the template below with specific values Calculate line ranges from your Phase 1 analysis (TOC with line numbers) Create the complete prompt - do NOT leave placeholders unfilled Launch subagents in parallel for different topics Update progress.md after all subagents complete Subagent Prompt Template IMPORTANT: Copy this template and replace ALL bracketed placeholders with actual values before launching subagent.

Task: Extract [TOPIC] Knowledge Base You are extracting knowledge from a book section to create a complete topic reference.

Prerequisites - Read These Files First: 1. skills/skill-from-book/references/file-templates.md - Templates for all file types 2. skills/skill-from-book/references/extraction-patterns.md - Extraction rules

Source Material:

**

Book

**

[BOOK_PATH]

**

Section

**

[CHAPTER/SECTION_NAME]

**

Line range

**

Read with offset=[START_LINE], limit=[LINE_COUNT]

Output Directory: [OUTPUT_TOPIC_PATH]

Files to Create (in this order):

1. knowledge.md (REQUIRED) Core concepts, definitions, and foundational understanding. - Extract: definitions, terminology, key concepts, how things relate - Use the "Knowledge File" template

1. rules.md (REQUIRED) Specific guidelines, do's and don'ts. - Extract: explicit rules, guidelines, best practices, exceptions - Use the "Rules File" template

1. examples.md (REQUIRED) Good/bad code examples, before/after comparisons. - Extract: all code samples, refactoring examples, comparisons - Use the "Examples File" template

1. [OPTIONAL_FILES - list any additional files needed] [e.g., patterns.md, smells.md, checklist.md - specify what each should contain]

Your Instructions: 1. Read the two prerequisite files FIRST to understand templates and extraction rules 2. Read the book section ONCE using: offset=[START_LINE], limit=[LINE_COUNT] 3. From that single read, extract content for ALL files listed above 4. For each file: - Transform content (prose → bullets, extract rules, include examples) - Format using the appropriate template from file-templates.md - Keep each file under 200 lines - Write to [OUTPUT_TOPIC_PATH]/[filename].md 5. Create files in order: knowledge.md → rules.md → examples.md → optional files

Content Guidance: [SPECIFIC_GUIDANCE - what to focus on, what to skip]

Language Conversion (if applicable):

Source: [SOURCE_LANG or "N/A"]

Target: [TARGET_LANG or "N/A"]

Convert ALL code examples to target language Example: Filled Subagent Prompt

Task: Extract Functions Knowledge Base You are extracting knowledge from a book section to create a complete topic reference.

Prerequisites - Read These Files First: 1. skills/skill-from-book/references/file-templates.md - Templates for all file types 2. skills/skill-from-book/references/extraction-patterns.md - Extraction rules

Source Material:

**

Book

**

/path/to/clean-code.md

**

Section

**

Chapter 3 - Functions

**

Line range

**

Read with offset=450, limit=380

Output Directory: skills/clean-code/references/functions

Files to Create (in this order):

1. knowledge.md (REQUIRED) Core concepts, definitions, and foundational understanding. - Extract: what makes a function clean, key terminology (side effects, arguments, abstraction levels), how functions relate to other concepts - Use the "Knowledge File" template

1. rules.md (REQUIRED) Specific guidelines, do's and don'ts. - Extract: size rules, argument limits, naming conventions, single responsibility, do one thing principle - Use the "Rules File" template

1. examples.md (REQUIRED) Good/bad code examples, before/after comparisons. - Extract: all code samples showing good vs bad functions, refactoring walkthroughs - Use the "Examples File" template

1. checklist.md (OPTIONAL) Quick reference for reviewing functions. - Create a checklist from the rules for code review

Your Instructions: 1. Read the two prerequisite files FIRST to understand templates and extraction rules 2. Read the book section ONCE using: offset=450, limit=380 3. From that single read, extract content for ALL files listed above 4. For each file: - Transform content (prose → bullets, extract rules, include examples) - Format using the appropriate template from file-templates.md - Keep each file under 200 lines - Write to skills/clean-code/references/functions/[filename].md 5. Create files in order: knowledge.md → rules.md → examples.md → checklist.md

Content Guidance: Focus on practical, actionable content. Skip author anecdotes and historical context. Prioritize rules that are universally applicable.

Language Conversion:

Source: Java

Target: TypeScript

Convert ALL code examples to TypeScript

Parallel Extraction Strategy

Run in parallel

Different topics (each handled by one subagent)

Subagent 1: functions/ (Chapter 3)

Subagent 2: naming/ (Chapter 2)

Subagent 3: classes/ (Chapter 10)

Must wait

guidelines.md and workflows creation waits for ALL topic subagents to complete Main Agent Checklist Before Launching Subagent All placeholders replaced with actual values Line offset and limit calculated from Phase 1 TOC Output directory path follows naming convention All required files (knowledge.md, rules.md, examples.md) listed Optional files specified with clear content guidance Content guidance is specific to this topic Language conversion specified if needed Phase 4: Guidelines Creation STOP! Before proceeding, you MUST: Have completed all extraction tasks in Phase 3 Read references/guidelines-template.md completely Only then proceed with guidelines creation Phase 4 Steps: Create guidelines.md that maps: Tasks → relevant files (and workflows) Code elements → relevant files Symptoms/problems → relevant files Decision trees for common scenarios Phase 5: Workflow Proposal STOP! Before proceeding, you MUST: Have completed Phase 4 (Guidelines) Read references/workflow-templates.md completely Only then proceed with workflow proposal Phase 5 Steps: Identify potential workflows from the book content Look for: Process descriptions ("how to do X") Repeated tasks (mentioned multiple times) Checklists in the book Anti-pattern sections (imply correct process) Multi-step procedures Propose workflows to user Present a list of potential workflows: Based on the book content, I recommend these workflows: | Workflow | Purpose | Key Steps | |----------|---------|-----------| | [name] | [what it does] | [brief step summary] | | [name] | [what it does] | [brief step summary] | Ask user to select which workflows to create Which workflows would you like me to create? - Select from the list above - Suggest additional workflows - Skip workflow creation Create selected workflows For each selected workflow: Use the template from references/workflow-templates.md Include cross-references to relevant knowledge files Add checkboxes for each step Define clear exit criteria Update guidelines.md to include workflow references Add a "Workflows" section at the top of guidelines.md:

Workflows | Task | Workflow | |

|

| | [task description] | workflows/[name].md | Phase 6: Finalization Phase 6 Steps: Review all files for consistency Update progress.md (mark complete) Test with sample queries Refine guidelines based on testing Ask user to review the final skill Key Principles Granularity One concept per file Files should be 50-200 lines Split large topics into subtopics Context Efficiency Only load what's needed Guidelines file routes to specific knowledge Avoid duplication across files Actionable Content Rules over explanations Examples over theory Checklists for quick reference Workflows for repeatable tasks Subagent-Friendly Each extraction task is independent Clear input/output specification Can run multiple extractions in parallel File Naming Conventions skill-name/ ├── SKILL.md ├── guidelines.md ├── progress.md ├── workflows/ # Step-by-step processes │ ├── [verb]-[noun].md # e.g., code-review.md, bug-fix.md │ └── ... └── references/ ├── [category]/ # Noun, plural (e.g., functions, classes) │ ├── knowledge.md # REQUIRED: Core concepts and definitions │ ├── rules.md # REQUIRED: Specific guidelines │ ├── examples.md # REQUIRED: Good/bad examples │ ├── patterns.md # Optional: Reusable solutions │ ├── smells.md # Optional: Anti-patterns │ └── checklist.md # Optional: Quick reference Progress Tracking Always maintain progress.md :

[Skill Name] - Creation Progress

Status: [X/Y files complete]

Phase 1: Foundation

[x] SKILL.md

[x] progress.md

[ ] guidelines.md

Phase 2: Workflows

[ ] workflows/[name].md

[ ] workflows/[name].md

Phase 3: [Category Name]

[ ] category/knowledge.md # REQUIRED

[ ] category/rules.md # REQUIRED

[ ] category/examples.md # REQUIRED

[ ] category/patterns.md # Optional ... Quick Start User provides the book markdown file path DO NOT read the book content yet Run Phase 1: Analysis (extract TOC only) Get user confirmation Run Phase 2: Planning Get user confirmation Run Phase 3: Extraction (use subagents) Run Phase 4: Guidelines Creation Run Phase 5: Workflow Proposal (get user selection) Run Phase 6: Finalization