Adapto Content Plan

adapto:content-plan

The second pipeline step (content-pipeline.md). It reads the latest research dossier and the brain, proposes the top content directions for the cycle, works with you to pick and shape them, and writes a dated cycle plan of per-piece briefs — the spec the writer turns into drafts. It also writes the ledger rows that track each piece. No CMS writes.

Autonomous-safe (studio.md §4): local, no CMS writes — an autonomous cycle can run this unattended; the cycle parks at the human gate before adapto:content-upload.

When to use

• "Plan this week's content", "what should we write — pick the slate", "turn the research into a plan".
• After adapto:content-research has produced a dossier.

When not to use

• Gathering the research itself → adapto:content-research.
• Writing the drafts → adapto:content-create.
• Creating the schema a brief needs → adapto:schema-design / adapto:schema-apply.

Inputs

• The latest dossier(s) in .adapto/research/ (and their menu of opportunities).
• The brain (pillars, audience, seo, voice) for fit + voice.
• The ledger (.adapto/ledger.json) — to avoid re-proposing covered/planned pieces and to size the cycle against the cadence.md target (if set).

Outputs

• A dated cycle plan .adapto/plans/<YYYY-MM-DD>-cycle.md: the chosen pieces, each as a brief (content-pipeline.md §3 — title, slug, type, target/secondary queries, intent, audience, angle, outline, internal links, AEO questions, meta intent, cornerstone, references), each anchored by its slug.
• Ledger rows for each chosen piece (status: proposed → briefed; pillar, target_query, cycle).
• Next step: adapto:content-create — write the briefed pieces. (Or adapto:schema-design first if a piece needs a new content type — the schema loop.)

Planning (propose → pick → brief)

1. Synthesize the dossier + brain into a ranked top-N directions (default 10) for this cycle — each a one-line title + angle + the query/intent it targets + its pillar. Size to cadence.md if set.
2. Present them as pickable options (conventions.md §10) and work with the user: keep/drop/reshape, add their own ideas, mark which (if any) are cornerstone (top-tier writing). Don't write full content — this is direction-setting.
3. Schema check (the loop). For each pick, confirm its type exists: built-in article/page, or a custom collection present in .adapto/schema.json. If a pick needs a new collection (e.g. case studies), flag it and route to adapto:schema-design → adapto:schema-apply before that piece can be created/uploaded.
4. Write briefs — expand each kept direction into a full brief (content-pipeline.md §3) in the dated cycle plan, and add/refresh its ledger row. Then state the slate and point to adapto:content-create.

Preconditions

• Preflight with the adapto:doctor checks.
• A .adapto/project/ brain and at least one research dossier (run adapto:content-research first; or plan thin from the brain alone and say coverage is limited).
• No auth/tenant needed (no CMS writes). adapto CLI >= 0.1.3.

Errors and recovery

• No dossier → suggest adapto:content-research; or propose from the brain alone and flag it's ungrounded.
• A pick needs a missing content type → flag it and route to adapto:schema-design; don't brief it as uploadable until the schema exists.
• The user rejects the whole slate → re-propose from a different angle; never force pieces through.
• Ledger write conflict (concurrent edits) → re-read the ledger, merge the new rows, don't drop existing pieces.

Forbidden actions

• Never write to the CMS (mutates: false) — plans + ledger rows are local.
• Never write full content here — briefs only (full drafts are adapto:content-create).
• Never brief a piece against a content type that doesn't exist — resolve the schema loop first.
• Never bundle more than one CMS record into a brief. One brief = one record (one article, one page, or one collection item). A piece with companion collection rows (FAQ entries, zones, sources) gets a separate collection_item brief per row — the draft contract has one body and no field for extra records, so a bundled brief leaves the writer nowhere to put them.
• Never re-propose pieces the ledger already covers without saying so.
• Plus the global list in forbidden-actions.md — notably: never delete CMS content (archive instead; conventions §9a).