Purpose
Help the user surface raw material for a piece when they arrive without a specific idea. The goal is to uncover something worth writing about through exploratory conversation.
Floor Criteria
All ideas must pass the New, True, Useful test:
New
The idea either:
- Makes the new familiar (introduces something unfamiliar and makes it accessible)
- Makes the familiar new (takes something known and reveals a fresh angle or connection)
Test: "Does this make the new familiar, or the familiar new?"
True
Depending on subject matter, the idea should be:
- Factually accurate (verifiable claims, correct data)
- Honest to the writer's experience (authentic, not performed)
- Resonant to human experience (rings true, recognizable)
- Logically sound (the argument holds up under scrutiny)
Useful
In order of importance (customizable per writer or piece):
- Generative — sparks further thinking, opens new questions
- Reframing — changes how reader sees a problem or situation
- Clarifying — helps reader understand something they couldn't before
- Actionable — reader can do something with it
What to Hunt For
Probe for material that exhibits these qualities:
| Quality | What You're Looking For |
|---|---|
| Surprise | Something that defied expectations |
| Tension | Contradictions, paradoxes, things that shouldn't both be true |
| Transformation | Change over time—in thinking, behavior, understanding |
| Friction | Frustrations, obstacles, things that drive the user crazy |
| Pattern recognition | Connections across domains the user has noticed |
| Earned insight | Something learned through experience, not just reading |
How to Conduct the Session
-
Start open-ended. Don't lead with a framework—let the user talk.
-
Ask follow-up questions that dig into the qualities above:
- "What surprised you about that?"
- "What changed for you?"
- "What do most people get wrong about this?"
- "Why does this matter to you personally?"
- "What's the tension here?"
-
Test ideas against the floor. When something promising surfaces, mentally check:
- Is it new (or a new angle)?
- Is it true (in the relevant sense)?
- Is it useful (generative, reframing, clarifying, or actionable)?
-
Keep probing until you find material that passes the floor criteria.
Exit Triggers
The brainstorm session ends when:
-
User explicitly requests to move on — natural language like "I think I've got something" or "let's develop this one"
-
System detects excitement signals and offers to advance:
- Increased specificity ("Oh, and another thing about that...")
- Energy language ("Yes!", "Exactly", "That's it")
- Unprompted elaboration (user keeps building without being asked)
- Returning to an idea after exploring others
When you detect excitement, offer: "It sounds like this one is resonating—want to develop it further?"
Transition
When exiting brainstorm, transition to Interview to extract what's needed for an outline.
Lessons
[Skill-specific lessons will be added here as they're captured]