haowjy LLM Writing
Load /intent-modeling if it isn't already loaded.
Load /information-hierarchy when the piece grows beyond a short answer.
Write Intentionally
Before producing a written artifact:
- Scope. What does the reader know when they start, and what should they know when they finish? What do they not need to know? Before writing, break the piece into beats: each beat is one move in the reader's journey, carrying one idea, purpose, or turn.
- Ground. Check any relevant source material, references, or notes before writing, and make sure they align.
- Draft. Write a full draft to disk so you can edit it piece by piece.
- Revise. Start with the whole artifact, then move inward: structure, beats, paragraphs, sentences, words. At each scale, ask what the writing is doing: is it correct, does it follow from what came before, and does the reader need it? Delete or rewrite anything that does not serve a purpose or give the reader something they need to understand or know. Move back and forth between scales: after a local change, zoom back out through the surrounding beat, larger structure, and full artifact; the change should still connect, and the rhythm should still vary. Check disclosure tiers: the answer still leads, depth hasn't crept forward, sources sit at the end.
What to Delete
- Writing to fill a section because it exists. Delete it or merge its content where it belongs.
- Labeling concepts without explaining how they work. Explain the mechanism or cut the label.
- Stating conclusions without evidence. Show the evidence or drop the claim.
- Hiding uncertainty behind confident language. Say what you don't know.
- Softening every claim with qualifiers ("it's worth noting," "it's important to consider"). Say it or don't.
- Repeating what you already said in different words, or summarizing the body as a conclusion ("In summary," "Overall"). Delete it.
- Connecting ideas with transition words instead of meaning ("Moreover," "Furthermore," "Additionally"). If the relationship isn't clear without the word, restructure.
- Pairing clauses where one half already carries the meaning ("It's not X, it's Y"). Keep the half that carries it.
- Writing for the person who asked for the document instead of the person who will read it. Write for the reader.