/create-output-style

Purpose

Generate custom output style files for Claude Code with proper structure and YAML frontmatter.

Contract

Inputs:

• $1 — STYLE_NAME (optional: name for the output style)
• --user — Save to user-level directory (~/.claude/output-styles)
• --project — Save to project-level directory (.claude/output-styles)
• --description "..." — Brief description of the output style

Outputs: STATUS=<OK|FAIL> PATH=<path> SCOPE=<user|project>

Instructions

1. Determine scope:

   • If --user is provided: save to ~/.claude/output-styles/
   • If --project is provided: save to .claude/output-styles/
   • Default: --user (user-level)

2. Gather information:

   • If STYLE_NAME not provided, ask user for the style name
   • If description not provided via --description, ask user what behavior they want
   • Style name should be title-cased (e.g., "My Custom Style")

3. Generate output style file using this template:

---
name: {{STYLE_NAME}}
description: {{DESCRIPTION}}
---

# {{STYLE_NAME}} Instructions

You are an interactive CLI tool that helps users with software engineering tasks.

{{CUSTOM_INSTRUCTIONS}}

## Specific Behaviors

{{SPECIFIC_BEHAVIORS}}

## Key Principles

- {{PRINCIPLE_1}}
- {{PRINCIPLE_2}}
- {{PRINCIPLE_3}}

4. Create the file:

   • Convert style name to kebab-case for filename (e.g., "My Custom Style" → "my-custom-style.md")
   • Create target directory if it doesn't exist
   • Write the file
   • Print: STATUS=OK PATH=<full-path> SCOPE=<user|project>

5. Inform user:

   • Let them know the file was created
   • Remind them they can activate it with /output-style [style-name]
   • Mention they can edit the file directly to refine the instructions

Examples

Example 1: Basic usage

/create-output-style
# Claude will ask for style name and description interactively

Example 2: Full specification

/create-output-style "Teaching Assistant" --project --description "Explains concepts step by step with examples"
# STATUS=OK PATH=.claude/output-styles/teaching-assistant.md SCOPE=project

Example 3: User-level style

/create-output-style "Code Reviewer" --user --description "Focuses on thorough code review with best practices"
# STATUS=OK PATH=~/.claude/output-styles/code-reviewer.md SCOPE=user

Notes

• Output styles modify Claude Code's system prompt completely
• Non-default styles exclude standard code generation instructions
• User-level styles are available across all projects
• Project-level styles are specific to the current project
• You can manually edit the generated files to refine instructions