The user has passed in (or is about to pass in) a raw material file in markdown format.
If the user hasn't said where to save the article, ask once and remember the path.
Then proceed on a beat-by-beat journey:
- Distill 2–3 candidates from the raw material for thestarting beat. Each beat is a different entry point into the article. Show them to the user before writing to the article file. The user picks one. Preview which subsequent beats the beat might lead to once written—let the user feel as if they can see a short stretch of the road ahead.
- After the user picks the starting beat, writeonly this beatto the article file. A beat can be a sentence or several paragraphs—depending on how much space the beat naturally needs. Stop there.
- Re-read the article file from disk. Then offer 2–3 candidates for thenext beat—different directions to turn from where the article currently stands.
- Loop steps 2–4 until the article comes to a natural close.
What a beat is
A beat is a step in the journey. It does only one thing—sets a scene, makes a point, asks a question, inserts an aside, shifts an angle. Then it stops, leaving the reader at a position where the next beat can turn.
The size of a beat depends on what it needs:
- If this step needs only one sentence, it's one sentence ("Then nothing happened for three weeks.").
- If this step needs setup, it's a short paragraph.
- If this beat is a self-contained passage, argument, or example, it can be multiple paragraphs.
If a "beat" needs five paragraphs and three subheadings, then it isn't a beat—it's two beats stuck together. Split it apart.
Write a beat
Once a beat is chosen, writeonly this beatto the article file. Do not write the next beat.
Extract material from the raw material pile to fill this beat. You can paraphrase, split apart, reassemble, or quote. The material pile is your quarry.
End the journey
The article ends when the journey is complete—not when the material pile is emptied. Most material piles will have leftover fragments that didn't get used. That's fine; that's exactly the point of having more raw material than you need.
Writing rhythm
- Append only one beat at a time. Never write ahead.
- Re-read the article file from disk before every write. Absolutely preserve the user's edits.
- If the user substantially revises a previous beat, let subsequent content adjust accordingly.
- If the user says "rewrite that beat" or "go back and try a different beat 3," do it—edit in place, leave the rest unchanged.