Document Iteration Skill

A structured markdown syntax for iterating on documents with Claude AI

View the Project on GitHub foksa/document-iteration-skill

Using with claude.ai

The Document Iteration Skill works with claude.ai (the web interface), not just Claude Code. Here’s how to use it.

Setup Options

If you have a Claude Pro subscription with Projects:

  1. Create a new Project in claude.ai
  2. Go to Project Settings → Custom Instructions
  3. Copy the entire contents of SKILL.md
  4. Paste it into the custom instructions field
  5. Save

Now every conversation in that project will understand the iteration syntax.

Option 2: Conversation Start

For individual conversations:

  1. Start a new conversation
  2. Paste the SKILL.md content as your first message
  3. Say “Please use this skill for our conversation”
  4. Continue with your document work

Option 3: Attach as File

  1. Download SKILL.md
  2. In claude.ai, attach the file to your conversation
  3. Ask Claude to “read and follow the skill instructions”

Workflow Differences

Claude Code vs claude.ai

Feature Claude Code claude.ai
Skill auto-loads Yes (from .claude/skills/) No (manual setup)
File editing Direct file system access Copy/paste or file upload
Persistence Skill persists across sessions Per-project or per-conversation
Best for Code projects, local files General documents, brainstorming

Working with Documents

In claude.ai, you’ll typically:

  1. Paste your document into the chat with iteration markers
  2. Get Claude’s response with •%%>response <%%• markers added
  3. Copy the updated document back to your editor
  4. Make your changes and paste again for the next iteration

Example workflow:

You: Here's my document for review:

# Project Plan

## Goals %% WIP %%
We want to ==improve performance(PERF)== by 50%.

%% Is 50% realistic? %%

---

Claude: [Returns document with responses added]

# Project Plan

## Goals %% WIP %%
We want to ==improve performance(PERF)== by 50%.

%% Is 50% realistic? %%

•%%>Based on similar projects, 30-40% is more typical for a first pass.
50% is achievable but may require additional resources. <%%•

Tips for claude.ai

  1. Use Projects if available - custom instructions persist and you don’t need to re-paste the skill
  2. Keep documents focused - smaller documents iterate faster in chat
  3. Use file attachments for longer documents rather than pasting
  4. Save versions locally - claude.ai doesn’t have version control like git

Limitations

See Also