This skill should be used when the user asks to "write an economics paper", "draft a working paper", "edit finance writing", "review my econ paper", "write for a journal", or needs guidance on economics and finance writing. Based on McCloskey's "Economical Writing" with discipline-specific word lists and examples.
Provides economics-specific writing guidance based on McCloskey's "Economical Writing" principles. Use when drafting journal articles, working papers, or finance analysis to avoid boilerplate, control tone, and improve clarity with concrete language and one-point paragraphs.
/plugin marketplace add edwinhu/claude-plugins/plugin install writing@edwinhu-pluginsThis skill inherits all available tools. When active, it can use any tool Claude has access to.
references/economical-writing-full.mdStyle guide for economics journal articles, working papers, and finance analysis based on Deirdre McCloskey's Economical Writing.
Invoke this skill for:
For general writing: Use /writing skill (Strunk & White)
For legal writing: Use /writing-legal skill (Volokh)
Choose an implied reader and stick with her. A skeptical but sympathetic colleague. Keep the prose at one level of difficulty. If it embarrasses you to imagine how she would read it, the stuff is embarrassing.
| Anti-Pattern | Why It Fails |
|---|---|
| "This paper discusses..." | Bores the reader; use a hook instead |
| Table-of-contents paragraph | Readers skip it; they can't understand until they've read the paper |
| Background/padding | If you discovered it was beside the point, don't include it |
| "As we shall see" | Useless anticipation; the reader will see soon enough |
| Metric conversions every time | Shows you think the reader is an ignoramus |
Never repeat without apologizing ("as I said earlier"). If apologizing too much, you're repeating too much.
End each paragraph with a simple, street-talk encapsulation. The paragraph can be technical as long as the last sentence comes down a notch. It makes the paragraph sing.
The reader should understand the table without the main text. Use words in headings, not acronyms. "Logarithm of Domestic Price" not "LPDOM". Follow Tufte: no chart junk, have a point.
Use meaningful labels in equations: "Quantity of Grain = 3.56 + 5.6(Price of Grain)" not "Q = 3.56 + 5.6P where Q is..."
Repeat key words to link sentences. (AB)(BC)(CD) is easy to understand. The figure is called polyptoton. English achieves coherence by repetition, not by "not only...but also" which marks you as incompetent.
Use one word to mean one thing. A paper used: "industrialization," "growing structural differentiation," "economic and social development," "development," "economic growth," "growth," and "revolutionized means of production" to mean the same thing. Don't.
When uncertain, look back and use the same word.
| Principle | Example |
|---|---|
| Be concrete | "sheep and wheat" not "natural resource-oriented exports" |
| Untie Teutonisms | "equalization of the prices of factors" not "factor price equalization" |
| Avoid ersatz economics | Never use "skyrocketing," "fair prices," "vicious cycle," "exploit" |
| Avoid this-ism | Replace this, these, those with the |
See references/economical-writing-full.md for extended bad words list, Teutonism examples, and ersatz economics vocabulary.
| Problem | Solution |
|---|---|
| "This paper discusses X" | Hook the reader with the finding |
| Table-of-contents paragraph | Delete it; readers skip it anyway |
| "As we shall see" | Delete; anticipation is useless |
| Elegant variation | Use the same word for the same thing |
| Five-dollar words | Anglo-Saxon roots are more concrete |
| Noun pile-ups | Untie with "of" |
| This/that/these/those | Replace with "the" |
| "Not only...but also" | Just use "and" |
For comprehensive guidance, consult:
references/economical-writing-full.md - Complete McCloskey guide covering:
Load the full reference when:
After completing any economics writing task, invoke /ai-anti-patterns to check for AI writing indicators. The /writing skill covers general prose principles (active voice, omit needless words) that complement this skill.
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