design-content-script

Script Design — Script Design

Entry/Exit

Entry: document / article / deck Narrative must be defined before moving into production
Exit: Core proposition, storyline, paragraph/page message lines, and rhythm finalized
Points to: Needs directing rhythm → design-content-direction; needs layout → design-content-layout
Output path: build-content-writing(downstream build skill)
Preload: CANON.md + design-workflow-design

When not to use

Pure visual drafts with no copy structure
Only making minor adjustments to already finalized content

Iron Law

First decide what to say, why to say it this way, and in what order; then write the body or build the pages.

Core principles

Audience Task First
One Spine
Message Per Section
Tension Needs Sequence
Cut Anything That Does Not Advance the Story

Best practice inputs

First read references/design-best-practices.md and references/design-inspiration-catalog.md, and write script-related evidence into 02-design.md of Design References / Pattern Synthesis / Adopt / Reject。

Scan focus:

Enterprise Product Patterns: narrative structure, opening approaches, and evidence rhythm of similar articles, reports, and decks
Official Systems / Platform Rules: brand tone, content standards, medium length, citation and compliance constraints
Methods / Theory / Style Schools: information design, story spine, pyramid structure, problem-tension-solution path
Anti-patterns / Verification: scattered themes, titles that do not form a line, piling up materials, multiple messages per paragraph
Local Project Truth: approved spec, audience task, factual materials, prohibited phrasing, and project boundaries; project root DESIGN.md(if it exists, use as narrative constraint reference)

The script direction must be converged by Pattern Synthesis, not based only on "it feels smooth to say it this way."

Process

Step 1: Define the audience task

Who are the readers/viewers
What should they understand, believe, or decide after viewing
✅ Verification point: Can the audience task be restated in one sentence, and does it clearly define the "action or cognitive change after viewing"?

Step 2: Write the story spine

Starting point
Tension
Turn
Conclusion / Action
✅ Verification point: Can the four nodes of the spine be connected to independently restate the complete story?

Step 3: Break down message lines

Each chapter / page / paragraph carries only one core message
The titles must be readable on their own when connected
✅ Verification point: If all titles are listed separately, can a coherent main line be read? Does any paragraph carry more than one message?

Step 4: Set the rhythm

Where to go fast
Where to go slow
Which information must be brought forward
Which information should be revealed later
✅ Verification point: Does the pacing have a clear narrative purpose (e.g., "fast cuts here create urgency") rather than being arranged arbitrarily?

Output contract

Write into 02-design.md：

Core proposition
Script skeleton / storyline
Paragraph rhythm / page order
Adopt / Reject (narrative mode)
Do-not-do list

Verification failure handling

Failure scenario	Handling method
No core claim	First reduce it to a one-sentence claim
Titles do not form a thread	Rewrite the message line; do not enter build
Unbalanced pacing	Delete or reorder redundant paragraphs
Narrative mode has no evidence	Add a best-practice scan and clearly state Adopt / Reject
The message line conflicts with the story spine	Return to spine alignment; each paragraph's message line must serve the spine's main thread, and remove stray paragraphs

Common rationalizations

Rationalization	Reality	Consequence
"Write all the content first, then organize it"	Without a script, later it only becomes cleaning up garbage.	Writing without a script → 60-80% of the content needs deletion, revision, and reorganization, equivalent to rewriting it; and there is a 40%+ chance of missing the core claim
"A PPT is just an article split into pages"	A deck without a page-level message line is not a presentation.	Splitting an article into pages → information density per page is uneven, the audience's attention drops after 3-5 pages, and presentation conversion rate decreases
"Adjust the pacing later"	Pacing is a structural problem, not a polishing problem.	Fixing pacing later → structural pacing defects cannot be repaired through polishing; paragraphs can only be rearranged, which is equivalent to redoing the script

Good and bad examples

✅ Good: evidence-driven script design

核心主张: "远程团队的异步协作效率取决于信息可见性，而非响应速度"

故事脊柱:
- 起点: 远程团队的典型痛点（消息淹没、重复同步）
- 张力: "更快响应"是直觉解，但实际让问题恶化
- 转折: 证据——异步可见性工具（来源: Enterprise Product Patterns #4）降低 40% 同步会议
- 结论/行动: 3 个可执行的可见性改进

消息线:
- H1: "为什么更快回复反而更慢"（一个问题一个消息）
- H2: "可见性 > 响应速度"（一个证据一个消息）
- H3: "3 个改进方案"（一个行动列表一个消息）

Adopt: 问题-张力-解决路径（来源: Methods / Theory / Style Schools #2）
Reject: 纯数据罗列（与受众任务"相信并行动"不匹配）

❌ Bad: abstract templates with no concrete decisions

核心主张: (未写)
故事脊柱: 开头 → 中间 → 结尾
消息线: 第一段讲一点，第二段讲一点，第三段讲一点
节奏: 正常速度
不做清单: (未写)
→ 没有证据，没有 Adopt / Reject，无法支撑后续写作

Output template

The script design output should be written into 02-design.md in the following structure:

## Script Design — [内容名称]

### 核心主张
[一句话主张——看完后受众应该相信/决定什么]

### 故事脊柱
1. 起点: [情境描述]
2. 张力: [问题或冲突]
3. 转折: [关键证据或发现]
4. 结论/行动: [明确下一步]

### 段落消息线
| 段落/页面 | 核心消息 | 节奏标记 |
|-----------|---------|---------|
| [段落 1] | [一个消息] | 快/慢/停顿 |
| [段落 2] | [一个消息] | 快/慢/停顿 |

### Adopt / Reject（叙事模式）
| 模式 | 来源 | 决定 | 理由 |
|------|------|------|------|
| [模式 A] | [来源层] | Adopt | [具体理由] |
| [模式 B] | [来源层] | Reject | [冲突点] |

### 不做清单
- [不做项 1]: [冲突来源或证据]
- [不做项 2]: [冲突来源或证据]

Red flags — STOP

No core claim
Missing script best-practice scan or Adopt / Reject
Titles/page order cannot retell the story
One paragraph or page tries to convey multiple messages at once
Mixing build-phase writing execution into script design

Verification checklist

Audience task is clear
Core claim is clear
Story line is complete
Paragraph / page order is clear
Pacing is set
Script decisions have been traced back to source evidence or Local Project Truth
Written to 02-design.md