In this example, we will use the example repository from Chapter 1, Navigating Git:

$ git clone https://github.com/PacktPublishing/Git-Version-Control-Cookbook-Second-Edition.git
$ cd Git-Version-Control-Cookbook-Second-Edition  

We'll use the following command as a commit message template for commit messages:

Short description of commit 
 
Longer explanation of the motivation for the change 
 
Fixes-Bug: Enter bug-id or delete line 
Implements-Requirement: Enter requirement-id or delete line 

Save the commit message template in $HOME/.gitcommitmsg.txt. The filename isn't fixed and you can choose a filename of your liking.