Creative Writing — Quick Reference

Quick guide to choosing the right skill or agent for your task.

Skills (knowledge loaded into context)

brainstorming

Use for: Exploring ideas, figuring things out, thinking through options Creates: Skeletal working notes with [TBD] markers and source tags Handles: Story/plot brainstorming, chapter planning, worldbuilding exploration, character development, timeline and continuity work Key trait: Multiple options coexist, preserves vagueness, exploratory

prose-writing

Use for: Actually writing story prose in your style Writes: Scenes, chapters, dialogue, narrative prose Key trait: Creates actual story text, matches your voice

prose-critique

Use for: Getting feedback on written chapters/scenes Analyzes: Plot and pacing, character development, prose quality, story structure Key trait: Feedback on existing writing, not creating content

prose-analysis

Use for: Quantitative analysis of prose patterns — sentence rhythm, word frequency, voice consistency Key trait: Diagnostic data, not subjective critique

wiki-docs

Use for: Documenting finalized decisions, creating canonical reference (wiki pages) Creates: Polished, reader-ready wiki/documentation pages with citations Key trait: Single version, no [TBD], encyclopedic/wiki tone

story-architecture

Use for: Structural analysis — arc shape, tension curves, pacing across chapters Key trait: Zoomed-out view of story structure, not line-level feedback

story-context

Use for: Loading relevant story context (characters, locations, prior events) before a task Key trait: Context-gathering, not content-creating

story-decisions

Use for: Recording and retrieving authorial decisions about the story Key trait: Decision log, not brainstorming

knowledge-graph

Use for: Maintaining the project knowledge graph (characters, locations, relationships, events) Key trait: Structured data maintenance

writing-principles

Use for: Understanding what makes fiction work — four reward channels, documented AI failure modes, craft tradition Key trait: Foundational theory, not task-specific guidance

writing-artifacts

Use for: Understanding the artifact types the system produces and where they go Key trait: File conventions and output formats

writing-staffing

Use for: Understanding which agent handles what, and when to fan out across multiple agents Key trait: Agent roster and coordination patterns

Agents (spawned for independent work)

story-orchestrator — Primary entry point. Coordinates brainstorming, drafting, critique, and knowledge maintenance across all agents.

draft-orchestrator — Runs the draft/critique loop: spawns writers, critics, and reader-sims in parallel.

knowledge-orchestrator — Coordinates knowledge maintenance: wiki updates, graph maintenance, continuity checks.

writer — Writes prose in the project's style.

critic — Provides structured critique across the four reward channels.

reader-sim — Simulates a reader's experience and reports per-channel engagement.

character-sim — Simulates a character's behavior for dialogue testing and scene exploration.

brainstormer — Wide-open option generation on a scoped question.

outliner — Structural decomposition into beat sheets and arc maps.

explorer — Fast codebase/project exploration — finds files, searches content, answers structural questions.

researcher — Web research for worldbuilding, fact-checking, and reference gathering.

continuity-checker — Checks draft against established canon for consistency errors.

wiki-editor — Creates and maintains wiki documentation pages.

graph-maintainer — Updates the project knowledge graph from new content.

chronicler — Records session decisions and discoveries into persistent notes.

session-miner — Mines past session transcripts for unreported decisions and context.

style-creator — Analyzes existing prose to create a style guide.

Key Distinction: Brainstorm vs Documentation

Still figuring it out? → brainstorming skill (or spawn a brainstormer agent)

• •"Maybe X, or Y, or Z?"
• •[TBD] markers everywhere
• •Multiple versions coexist

You've decided and it's ready to document? → wiki-docs skill (or spawn a wiki-editor agent)

• •Single authoritative version
• •Polished and reader-ready
• •No [TBD] markers

Common Scenarios

Decision Tree

Are you writing story prose?
  └─ Yes → prose-writing / writer agent
  └─ No ↓

Do you want feedback on something written?
  └─ Yes → prose-critique / critic agent
  └─ No ↓

Are you figuring things out or have you decided?
  └─ Figuring out → brainstorming / brainstormer agent
  └─ Decided → wiki-docs / wiki-editor agent

Need structural/pacing analysis?
  └─ Yes → story-architecture

Need a custom writing style?
  └─ Yes → spawn style-creator agent

Still Unsure?

1. •Exploring/uncertain? → brainstorming
2. •Finalized/polished? → wiki-docs
3. •Need feedback? → prose-critique
4. •Actually writing? → prose-writing
5. •Need the full pipeline? → spawn story-orchestrator

When in doubt, start with brainstorming. You can always move to docs later when things are decided.