Deck Creator

Create professional presentation decks with consistent visual style, compelling copy, and AI-generated slide images.

When to Use

Use this skill when the user asks to:

• Create a presentation or slide deck
• Build a pitch deck, proposal, or sales presentation
• Design slides for a product launch, company overview, or partnership
• Generate a complete deck from a document, requirements, or brief

Process Overview

The deck creation process follows 5 phases:

1. Discovery - Gather context, examples, and references
2. Theme - Establish visual style and color palette
3. Copy - Plan and write slide content using marketing principles
4. Generation - Create all slides in parallel with consistent style
5. Assembly - Optimize images and stitch into PDF

Phase 1: Discovery

Before creating any slides, gather comprehensive information:

Required Information

Ask these questions to understand the project:

1. AUDIENCE: Who is the primary audience? (investors, clients, internal team, partners)
2. PURPOSE: What is the goal? (persuade, inform, propose, sell, educate)
3. CONTEXT: What's the setting? (boardroom, conference, email attachment, webinar)
4. BRAND: Is there existing brand guidelines? (colors, fonts, logos)
5. REFERENCES: Any example decks you like the style of?
6. CONTENT: What documents/materials should inform the content?
   - PDFs, docs, or files to reference
   - Key messages that must be included
   - Topics to cover or avoid
7. LENGTH: How many slides? (recommend 10-16 for most presentations)
8. ASSETS: Any images, logos, or graphics to include?

Reference Analysis

If user provides example decks or references:

• Analyze visual style, layout patterns, and color usage
• Note typography choices and hierarchy
• Identify recurring design elements
• Extract key messaging patterns

Phase 2: Theme Selection

Establish a consistent visual system before generating slides.

Option A: Use Theme Factory (Recommended)

Install and use the theme-factory skill for professional color schemes:

npx skills add anthropics/theme-factory

Then invoke to get a cohesive palette:

• Primary color (headlines, accents)
• Secondary color (supporting elements)
• Background color (slide base)
• Text colors (high contrast for readability)
• Accent colors (highlights, CTAs)

Option B: Manual Theme Definition

If user has brand guidelines, define:

Background: #XXXXXX (dark backgrounds work best for projection)
Primary:    #XXXXXX (headlines, key accents)
Secondary:  #XXXXXX (supporting elements)
Text:       #FFFFFF / #000000 (high contrast)
Accent:     #XXXXXX (highlights, CTAs)

Style Parameters

Define consistent visual style:

Aspect Ratio: 16:9 (1920x1080)
Typography:
  Headlines: Bold, 48-64px
  Body: Regular, 18-24px
  Stats: Extra Bold, 72-96px
Iconography: Flat, 2px stroke, rounded corners
Layout: Card-based with generous whitespace

Document the complete theme in a THEME.md file for reference during generation.

Phase 3: Copy & Content Planning

Marketing Principles

Apply these copywriting principles:

1. One Message Per Slide - Each slide has a single clear takeaway
2. Headlines Tell the Story - Someone should understand the deck from headlines alone
3. Show Don't Tell - Use visuals, stats, and diagrams over text walls
4. Problem → Solution → Proof - Classic persuasion structure
5. Concrete > Abstract - Specific numbers beat vague claims
6. End with Action - Clear next steps and CTA

Optional: Marketing Skills

For enhanced copywriting, install:

npx skills add coreyhaines31/marketingskills

Content Planning Template

Create a DECK-PLAN.md with:

# [Deck Title]

## Deck Overview
- Audience:
- Goal:
- Key Message:
- Slides: [10-16]

## Slide Plan

### Slide 1: [Title]
- Type: Title
- Headline:
- Subhead:
- Visual:
- Key Message:

### Slide 2: [Problem/Opportunity]
- Type: Problem Statement
- Headline:
- Content Points:
- Visual:
- Key Message:

[Continue for all slides...]

Content Gathering Loop

Continue prompting the user until you have enough content for 10-16 slides:

If information is missing, ask:

• "What specific problem does this solve?"
• "What are the 3-4 key benefits?"
• "What data or proof points support this?"
• "Who are the competitors and how do you differentiate?"
• "What's the timeline or next steps?"
• "What objections might the audience have?"

Do not proceed to generation until the content plan is complete.

Phase 4: Slide Generation

Pre-Generation Checklist

Before generating, confirm:

• Theme defined (colors, typography, style)
• All slides planned (10-16 slides)
• Each slide has: headline, content, visual concept
• Consistent terminology and messaging
• Output directory created

Generation Prompts

Each slide prompt should include:

Create a professional presentation slide.

**Slide [N]: [Title]**

Specifications:
- Dimensions: 1920x1080 pixels (16:9 aspect ratio)
- Background: [background color]
- Style: [defined style - flat, modern, infographic, etc.]

Visual elements:
[Describe the visual layout, icons, diagrams, charts]

Text to include:
- Title: "[Headline]" ([primary color], bold)
- [Content elements with positioning]
- Footer: "[Company/Contact]" (small, bottom)

Save to: [output path]/[NN]-[slug].png

Parallel Generation

Launch all slide generation agents simultaneously for efficiency:

Use Task tool with subagent_type=gemskills:content-specialist
Run all slide generations in parallel in a single message

Each agent receives:

• The complete theme specification
• The slide-specific prompt
• The output path

Post-Generation

After all slides are generated:

1. Verify Files - Check all slides exist at correct paths
2. Optimize Images - Run optimization to reduce file sizes:

   # Use the optimize-images skill on the slides directory
   /optimize-images ./slides
   

3. Stitch PDF - Combine slides into single PDF:

   # Use kebab-case filename derived from deck title
   # Example: "Scribe Product Overview" → deck-scribe-product-overview.pdf
   bun run ~/code/prompts/skills/deck-creator/scripts/stitch-to-pdf.ts ./slides ./deck-{title-in-kebab-case}.pdf
   

4. Create Index - Generate DECK-INDEX.md with slide inventory + PDF path
5. Provide Summary - List all slides with file paths and PDF location

Phase 5: PDF Assembly

After all slides are generated, optimized, and verified, combine them into a single PDF:

Prerequisites

Ensure pdf-lib is available:

bun add pdf-lib

Run the Stitch Script

# Derive filename from deck title using kebab-case with "deck-" prefix
# Examples:
#   "Investor Pitch 2024" → deck-investor-pitch-2024.pdf
#   "Scribe Product Overview" → deck-scribe-product-overview.pdf
bun run ~/code/prompts/skills/deck-creator/scripts/stitch-to-pdf.ts ./slides ./deck-{title}.pdf

The script will:

• Find all PNG files in the slides directory
• Sort them by numeric prefix (01-, 02-, etc.)
• Embed each as a full-page image in the PDF
• Create a PDF with pages sized to match slide dimensions (1920x1080)

Verification

After stitching:

• Open the PDF and verify all slides are present
• Check correct order (should match numeric prefixes)
• Confirm full resolution with no quality loss

Output Structure

project/deck/
├── THEME.md                        # Visual style definition
├── DECK-PLAN.md                    # Content planning document
├── DECK-INDEX.md                   # Final deck inventory
├── deck-{title-kebab-case}.pdf     # Combined presentation PDF
└── slides/
    ├── 01-title.png
    ├── 02-problem.png
    ├── 03-solution.png
    ...
    └── 14-closing.png

PDF Naming: Derive from deck title, kebab-case, prefixed with deck-. Example: "Q1 Sales Review" → deck-q1-sales-review.pdf

Slide Type Templates

Title Slide

• Company/project name
• Tagline or value proposition
• Visual: Abstract or product imagery
• Presenter info (optional)

Problem/Opportunity

• Pain points or market gap
• Statistics that demonstrate scale
• Visual: Icons, comparison chart

Solution

• What you're proposing
• Key differentiators
• Visual: Product screenshot or diagram

How It Works

• Process flow (3-5 steps)
• Visual: Flowchart or numbered steps

Benefits/Value

• 3-6 key benefits
• Visual: Icon grid or cards

Social Proof

• Testimonials, logos, case studies
• Visual: Quote cards, logo grid

Team/About

• Key team members or company info
• Visual: Photos or company timeline

Metrics/Traction

• Key numbers and growth
• Visual: Charts, gauges, stats

Competitive Advantage

• Comparison or positioning
• Visual: Matrix, comparison table

Roadmap/Timeline

• Phases or milestones
• Visual: Horizontal timeline

Pricing/Plans

• Options and what's included
• Visual: Pricing cards

Next Steps/CTA

• Clear action items
• Contact information
• Visual: Minimal, focused

Closing

• Memorable quote or summary
• Contact details
• Visual: Elegant, minimal

Best Practices

1. Uniform Style - Every slide uses the same theme parameters
2. Consistent Terminology - Use the same words for concepts throughout
3. Visual Hierarchy - Headlines largest, supporting text smaller
4. Generous Whitespace - Don't overcrowd slides
5. Center-Weight Important Elements - Account for cropping
6. High Contrast - Ensure readability on projectors
7. No Orphan Slides - Every slide connects to the narrative

Reference Files

For detailed guidance:

• references/slide-types.md - Expanded templates for each slide type
• references/copywriting.md - Marketing copy principles
• examples/ - Example deck plans and outputs