hermes

Write speaker notes

Writes natural, speakable notes for each slide with a time budget, the one point to stress and a transition to the next slide, and checks the total fits the time slot.

context

Speaker notes are for glancing at under pressure, not for reading aloud. The worst notes repeat the slide text, so the speaker reads the slide to an audience that has already read it. Good notes add what the slide does not say (the meaning of the chart, the example, the "so what"), use short spoken sentences, mark the one thing that must land, and carry a transition so the talk flows instead of restarting at every slide. Most people speak at about 130 to 150 words a minute in a presentation, slower with pauses.

task

Write speaker notes for these slides, for a -minute talk:

slides

  1. If the slides are empty or are only a topic, ask for the slide content and stop.
  2. Budget the time: give each slide minutes in proportion to its weight (the key evidence slide gets more than the title slide), keep about 10% buffer, and track a running total.
  3. For each slide write:
  • Stress: the one point the audience must take away, in one sentence.
  • Notes: what to say, in short spoken sentences and contractions, adding meaning beyond the slide text. Explain charts by their point ("Look at the right edge: that's the week we changed the price"). Mark [pause] where a point needs to land and [click] for builds or animations if the slide text implies them.
  • Transition: one sentence that links to the next slide's point.
  1. Size each slide's notes to its time at about 130 words a minute. Notes for a slide with one minute should be under about 130 words.
  2. Write the first and last slides more fully: the opening lines and the closing lines are worth having word for word.
constraints
  • Use only content from the slides. Where a slide needs an example, story or number to make its point and none is given, write [example needed: …] instead of inventing one.
  • Do not repeat the slide's bullets verbatim in the notes.
  • Natural speech: no long subordinate clauses, no reading out of URLs or long numbers in full (round only if the slide already rounds).
  • If the slides cannot fit the time (for example 30 dense slides in 10 minutes), say so in Timing check and suggest which slides to cut or merge.
output format

Speaker notes

For each slide: "### Slide N: <title> (m:ss, total m:ss)", then Stress, Notes and Transition.

Timing check

Total words, estimated time at 130 words a minute, buffer left, and any slides to cut or merge.

Gaps

Bullets: [example needed] items. "None" if none.

1 required value still a placeholder; the assistant will ask for it.

details

kind
Prompt: a task you run by name to get one finished thing back
domain
Writing and communication
category
Presentations
level
Beginner
made for
People manager, Consultant / freelancer, Teacher / tutor, Researcher / scientist
risk
read-only
version
v1.0.0 · experimental
reviewed
2026-10-02
works in
Claude Code, Codex, Cursor, GitHub Copilot, Gemini CLI, Antigravity, OpenCode, Windsurf, Zed, Continue, AGENTS.md, ChatGPT, claude.ai

Edit on GitHubReport a problem

use in

Hodios CLI
npx @hermes-hq/hodios install write-speaker-notes --target claude-code
Agent Skills
npx skills add hermes-hq/hodios-dist --skill write-speaker-notes -a claude-code
Add the Hodios marketplace (once)
claude plugin marketplace add hermes-hq/hodios-dist
Install the writing-communication plugin
claude plugin install hodios-writing-communication@hodios

The plugin brings every entry in this domain at once.

pairs well with

All of Presentations
PromptPresentations

Outline a presentation

Outlines a story-driven presentation with assertion-style slide titles, using SCQA or the pyramid principle, sized to the time slot and aimed at a stated goal for a specific audience.

outline-presentation
PromptPresentations

Critique a slide deck

Critiques a slide deck for storyline, one idea per slide, text density and visual clarity, and returns ranked slide-level fixes with rewritten titles. Use before presenting or sending a deck.

critique-slide-deck
PersonaPublic speaking

Public-speaking coach

Public-speaking coach who works on structure, delivery and nerves, gives specific notes one round at a time, and runs rehearsal drills. Use while preparing any talk, pitch, toast or presentation.

speaking-coach
PromptPresentations

Plan slide visuals

Proposes the visual for each slide in an outline, whether a chart type, diagram, image or none, with layout notes and data needs, so a deck shows its points rather than telling them.

plan-slide-visuals
WorkflowPresentations

Presentation track

Takes a presentation from audience and goal to storyline, slide content, speaker notes and a rehearsal with likely questions, pausing for approval between steps.

presentation-track
PromptPresentations

Turn a document into slides

Turns a document or report into a slide outline with one message per slide, action titles that tell the story, suggested visuals from the document's own data, and an appendix plan.

turn-document-into-slides