Author Playbooks
Updated monthly. Click any tile to expand the full guidance.
Directional
Allison Palmer · Mind-Body
100% of articles use no tracked headline formula. Overall median is 76%ile—39 pts above team—but formula impact can't be measured without consistent format use.
→ Apply a repeatable headline formula (number lead, 'What to know', or possessive named entity) to at least the next 5 articles. That creates a testable signal. Best platform right now: Apple News (76%ile).
Details ↓
Directional
Lauren Schuster · Experience
100% of articles use no tracked headline formula. Overall median is 44%ile—7 pts above team—but formula impact can't be measured without consistent format use.
→ Apply a repeatable headline formula (number lead, 'What to know', or possessive named entity) to at least the next 5 articles. That creates a testable signal. Best platform right now: Apple News (44%ile).
Details ↓
Directional
Ryan Brennan · General/Discovery
96% of articles use no tracked headline formula. Overall median is 40%ile—3 pts above team—but formula impact can't be measured without consistent format use.
→ Apply a repeatable headline formula (number lead, 'What to know', or possessive named entity) to at least the next 5 articles. That creates a testable signal. Best platform right now: Apple News (52%ile).
Details ↓
Directional
Hanna Wickes · General/Discovery
78% of articles use no tracked headline formula. Overall median is 27%ile—10 pts below team—but formula impact can't be measured without consistent format use.
→ Apply a repeatable headline formula (number lead, 'What to know', or possessive named entity) to at least the next 5 articles. That creates a testable signal. Best platform right now: SmartNews (34%ile).
Details ↓
Directional
100% of articles use no tracked headline formula. Overall median is 76%ile—39 pts above team—but formula impact can't be measured without consistent format use.
Recommended actions this round
- TRY: Apply a repeatable headline formula (number lead, 'What to know', or possessive named entity) to at least the next 5 articles. That creates a testable signal. Best platform right now: Apple News (76%ile).
Vertical: Mind-Body—preliminary, n<30—This vertical currently earns 0% featuring rate on Apple News Publisher data (Jan–Feb 2026 (small sample—more data expected as ANP monthly drops accumulate)). Featuring is not a lever for this content. Optimize for organic Apple News views and SmartNews distribution instead.
Performance overview
1 matched articles across 1 platform(s) · 76% median cohort percentile · 38.9 pts above team median (37%)
Formula profile
Lift vs. team-wide median for each formula. >1.0× = outperforms team benchmark for that format.
| Formula | n | Share | Cohort %ile | Lift vs. team |
|---|
| no tracked formula | 1 | 100% | 76% | 2.05× |
Significance test not run (fewer than 3 articles per formula group).
Platform breakdown
Cohort percentile vs. overall team median (37%).
| Platform | n | Cohort %ile | Lift vs. team |
|---|
| Apple News | 1 | 76% | 2.05× |
Top 1 articles by cohort percentile
Highest-performing matched articles for Allison Palmer.
| Headline | Platform | Views | Cohort %ile |
|---|
| Why Are 3 AM Wake-Ups So Common? Here's How to Stop Them For Good | Apple News | 65,439 | 76% |
Directional
100% of articles use no tracked headline formula. Overall median is 44%ile—7 pts above team—but formula impact can't be measured without consistent format use.
Recommended actions this round
- TRY: Apply a repeatable headline formula (number lead, 'What to know', or possessive named entity) to at least the next 5 articles. That creates a testable signal. Best platform right now: Apple News (44%ile).
Vertical: Experience—preliminary, n<30—This vertical currently earns 0% featuring rate on Apple News Publisher data (Jan–Feb 2026 (small sample—more data expected as ANP monthly drops accumulate)). Featuring is not a lever for this content. Optimize for organic Apple News views and SmartNews distribution instead.
Performance overview
2 matched articles across 1 platform(s) · 44% median cohort percentile · 6.8 pts above team median (37%)
Formula profile
Lift vs. team-wide median for each formula. >1.0× = outperforms team benchmark for that format.
| Formula | n | Share | Cohort %ile | Lift vs. team |
|---|
| no tracked formula | 2 | 100% | 44% | 1.18× |
Significance test not run (fewer than 3 articles per formula group).
Platform breakdown
Cohort percentile vs. overall team median (37%).
| Platform | n | Cohort %ile | Lift vs. team |
|---|
| Apple News | 2 | 44% | 1.18× |
Top 2 articles by cohort percentile
Highest-performing matched articles for Lauren Schuster.
| Headline | Platform | Views | Cohort %ile |
|---|
| The United Airlines Playbook Most Travelers Haven't Figured Out Yet | Apple News | 32,753 | 74% |
| What Your 401(k) Can (and Can't) Do for Your Retirement Income | Apple News | 13,745 | 13% |
Directional
96% of articles use no tracked headline formula. Overall median is 40%ile—3 pts above team—but formula impact can't be measured without consistent format use.
Recommended actions this round
- TRY: Apply a repeatable headline formula (number lead, 'What to know', or possessive named entity) to at least the next 5 articles. That creates a testable signal. Best platform right now: Apple News (52%ile).
- DO: Route new articles through Apple News first (52%ile)—your highest-ROI distribution channel this round.
Performance overview
25 matched articles across 3 platform(s) · 40% median cohort percentile · 3.2 pts above team median (37%)
Formula profile
Lift vs. team-wide median for each formula. >1.0× = outperforms team benchmark for that format.
| Formula | n | Share | Cohort %ile | Lift vs. team |
|---|
| no tracked formula | 24 | 96% | 45% | 1.23× |
| possessive named entity | 1 | 4% | 0% | 0.01× |
Significance test not run (fewer than 3 articles per formula group).
What the untagged headlines actually are
24 of 25 articles (96%) matched no tracked formula. Secondary pattern breakdown—cohort %ile per structural type.
| Structure | n | Median %ile |
|---|
| Other unstructured | 13 | 51% |
| Named-entity declarative | 10 | 37% |
| Media-type label (Watch, Video, etc.) | 1 | 57% |
These are sub-patterns within the untagged bucket—not formal formulas, but useful for spotting what's working and where a structured formula could be applied next.
Platform breakdown
Cohort percentile vs. overall team median (37%).
| Platform | n | Cohort %ile | Lift vs. team |
|---|
| Apple News | 7 | 52% | 1.40× |
| SmartNews | 13 | 40% | 1.09× |
| Yahoo | 5 | 32% | 0.88× |
Original vs. variant performance
10 originals (Parent-P) · 15 generated variants (Child-C)
| Type | n | Median %ile |
|---|
| Original (Parent-P) | 10 | 44% |
| Variant (Child-C) | 15 | 40% |
Top 10 articles by cohort percentile
Highest-performing matched articles for Ryan Brennan.
| Headline | Platform | Views | Cohort %ile |
|---|
| A 4-Foot Snake Killed by a Hiker Turned Out to Be Something Scientists Had Never Seen Before | SmartNews | 233,065 | 100% |
| DNA Testing Confirms Human Remains Found During Home Renovation Hold ‘No Forensic Value’ | SmartNews | 51,449 | 89% |
| A Carnivorous Lizard Is Taking Over Florida and It’s Nearly Impossible to Catch or Remove | SmartNews | 45,600 | 87% |
| Jeff Daniels Says He’s ‘Stunned’ By the Internet’s Reaction to His Viral Sandwich Recipe | SmartNews | 33,845 | 80% |
| A Wooden Coffin Fell From the Sky In 1899. Scientists Just Solved the Mystery Inside It | Apple News | 26,918 | 73% |
| Zooey Deschanel Just Said What Many Crumbl Cookie Critics Have Been Thinking All Along | SmartNews | 24,218 | 68% |
| Scientists Thought They Found a Dead Snake. It Turned Out to Be a New Species | SmartNews | 20,683 | 61% |
| Alysa Liu's Hidden Piercing Has Olympic Fans Obsessed—But Dentists Aren't Impressed | Apple News | 32,566 | 60% |
| A Carnivorous Lizard Is Taking Over Florida and It's Nearly Impossible to Catch or Remove | Apple News | 6,740 | 57% |
| Video Shows Anglers Reeling In Massive 1,200-Pound Surprise on Florida Beach | Yahoo | 20,772 | 57% |
Directional
78% of articles use no tracked headline formula. Overall median is 27%ile—10 pts below team—but formula impact can't be measured without consistent format use.
Recommended actions this round
- TRY: Apply a repeatable headline formula (number lead, 'What to know', or possessive named entity) to at least the next 5 articles. That creates a testable signal. Best platform right now: SmartNews (34%ile).
- DO: Route new articles through SmartNews first (34%ile)—your highest-ROI distribution channel this round.
Performance overview
9 matched articles across 3 platform(s) · 27% median cohort percentile · 9.9 pts below team median (37%)
Formula profile
Lift vs. team-wide median for each formula. >1.0× = outperforms team benchmark for that format.
| Formula | n | Share | Cohort %ile | Lift vs. team |
|---|
| no tracked formula | 7 | 78% | 33% | 0.89× |
| number lead | 1 | 11% | 17% | 0.46× |
| question format | 1 | 11% | 27% | 0.73× |
Significance test not run (fewer than 3 articles per formula group).
What the untagged headlines actually are
7 of 9 articles (78%) matched no tracked formula. Secondary pattern breakdown—cohort %ile per structural type.
| Structure | n | Median %ile |
|---|
| Named-entity declarative | 5 | 33% |
| Other unstructured | 2 | 36% |
These are sub-patterns within the untagged bucket—not formal formulas, but useful for spotting what's working and where a structured formula could be applied next.
Platform breakdown
Cohort percentile vs. overall team median (37%).
| Platform | n | Cohort %ile | Lift vs. team |
|---|
| SmartNews | 2 | 34% | 0.93× |
| Apple News | 3 | 33% | 0.89× |
| Yahoo | 4 | 22% | 0.60× |
Original vs. variant performance
4 originals (Parent-P) · 5 generated variants (Child-C)
| Type | n | Median %ile |
|---|
| Original (Parent-P) | 4 | 30% |
| Variant (Child-C) | 5 | 15% |
Top 9 articles by cohort percentile
Highest-performing matched articles for Hanna Wickes.
| Headline | Platform | Views | Cohort %ile |
|---|
| Oscar Winner Amy Madigan and Ed Harris Have Been Married More Than 40 Years—How Their Love Story Began | Apple News | 23,046 | 71% |
| A Curling Cheating Scandal Just Rocked the 2026 Winter Olympics - and It Unraveled In Four Days | SmartNews | 24,214 | 68% |
| Noah Cyrus Responds to Viral TikTok About Her ‘Transformation’ and Changing Appearance | Yahoo | 29,110 | 68% |
| Elana Meyers Taylor Wins Olympic Gold at 41—and Her Son's Reaction on the Podium Will Move You to Tears | Apple News | 18,607 | 33% |
| ‘Single’s Inferno’: Which Couples Are Still Together From the Reality Dating Show? | Yahoo | 11,425 | 27% |
| 7 Stolen Dogs Escaped a Truck in China and Trekked Over 10 Miles Back to Their Owners | Yahoo | 9,895 | 17% |
| Scientists Went Looking For an Extinct Fish in South Africa —They Found a Species New to Science | Yahoo | 8,769 | 15% |
| A Curling Cheating Scandal Just Rocked the 2026 Winter Olympics—and It Unraveled In Four Days | Apple News | 2,089 | 4% |
| Scientists Found a ‘Giant’ Cave Creature In Australia With 11 Claws - It Fits On Your Fingernail | SmartNews | 10,040 | 0% |
Variant Production—Tracker Overview
Based on 422 clusters in the Tracker. Cluster = 1 original (Parent-P) +
its CSA-generated variants (Child-C). This analysis uses the Tracker directly —
no platform performance join required.
397 of 422 clusters (94%) have ≥2 articles
(original + at least one variant).
Mean cluster size: 2.85.
Median: 3. Max: 6.
Cluster size distribution
| Variants per cluster |
Clusters |
Share |
| 1 | 25 | 6% |
| 2 | 150 | 36% |
| 3 | 139 | 33% |
| 4 | 81 | 19% |
| 5+ | 27 | 6% |
Variant production by author (top 10 by cluster count)
| Author |
Clusters |
Mean variants/cluster |
| Ryan Brennan | 154 | 3.1 |
| Hanna Wickes | 144 | 3.1 |
| Lauren Schuster | 47 | 2.2 |
| Lauren J-G | 40 | 2.0 |
| Allison Palmer | 19 | 1.9 |
| Samantha Agate | 11 | 2.9 |
| Hanna WIckes | 4 | 2.0 |
| Lauren JG | 2 | 1.0 |
Cluster size = 1 (original) + count of Child-C rows sharing the same Parent_ID.
Only Parent-P rows are counted here—each represents one cluster.
Child-C rows without a valid Parent_ID are excluded from cluster counts.