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AgenticThe Drafting SkillStyle GuideBan ListChapter OutlineProgress TrackingSample DraftThe Process
AgenticThe Drafting SkillStyle GuideBan ListChapter OutlineProgress TrackingSample DraftThe Process

Progress Tracking — Human vs. AI Responsibilities

What has been built, what needs human decisions, and what the AI handles.

Agentic — Remaining Work Before First Draft

What Nick can do to help Claude write the best possible first draft. Ordered by impact on draft quality. Everything else Claude can handle or work around.

✅ DONE

  • Chapter structure locked (35 chapters, 4 acts)
  • All unplaced scenes placed (US-001 through US-007)
  • Chapter sizes assigned (S/M/L/XL)
  • Super Bowl arc designed and placed in all 35 chapters
  • Narrative frame problems resolved (P-023, P-025)
  • Act 3-4 structural work complete
  • Detonator continuity tracked
  • Graham's disgrace removed — starts at the height of his power
  • Two-stage breaking point documented (Minty's death → frame)
  • Assassination-as-negotiation seed planted in Ch 3
  • Drafting skill built (.claude/skills/agentic-draft/SKILL.md)
  • "What Goes on the Page" refined — interior monologue allowed for POV characters, narrator never editorializes
  • POV rules locked — first-person rules, third-person grammar; Sloane and Graham get interior access per chapter POV designation; no other characters; Mara never
  • Ch 21 note added — Sloane asks Graham about Ceci, establishing how she can narrate his earlier chapters

NICK'S INPUT NEEDED

These are conversations or decisions only Nick can make. Claude can draft around gaps, but the draft will be stronger with these resolved.

~~1. Minty's Voice~~ ✅ RESOLVED

Voice guide complete. Privileged, verbose, tries to sound smart, anti-capitalist feelings without the framework, Tony Hawk's daughter energy. See Characters/Minty.md.

~~2. Mara's Voice~~ ✅ RESOLVED

Voice guide complete. Chameleon with personas (handler with Amro, friendly AI assistant with Graham, direct and compassionate in real voice). T2 terminator quality — understands emotions as data, acknowledges the psychopath gap. Amro's calls established through Ch 18 confession, not shown directly. See Characters/Mara.md.

~~3. The Ch 3 Dinner Conversation~~ ✅ RESOLVED

New tension: Ceci as psychologist. She sees through the acquisition reflex to the emptiness underneath. Graham's vulnerability is internal — he's built everything and it doesn't add up to anything. Shadowlands energy (seeds of a relationship where she sees what he can't). Ch 3 will be rewritten from scratch along with all other chapters. See chapters/ch03-graham-meets-ceci.md.

~~4. Style Anchors~~ ✅ RESOLVED

McCarthy for brevity and directness, Vonnegut for the campfire storytelling quality, NOT the invisible-author approach of Brown/Crichton. The voice is Sloane's — personality, not utility. Updated in bible/style-guide.md.

CLAUDE CAN HANDLE (just-in-time, before each chapter)

These don't need pre-work. Claude will handle them as part of the drafting process:

TBD Day/Time Values

16 chapters have TBD for Day in the INDEX. Claude will propose values based on the timeline when drafting each chapter. Nick approves or adjusts.

Chapters with TBD: 13, 14, 15, 16, 17, 18, 26, 27, 28, 29, 30, 31, 32, 33, 34, 35

Thin Chapter Outlines

Three chapters are thin. Claude will flesh them out just-in-time before drafting, with Nick's approval:

  • Ch 4 (Minty/Graham Flight) — has scenes but needs emotional beats for the new argument (presence, not reputation). Blocked by Minty voice decision (#1 above).
  • Ch 9 (Sloane Calls Amro) — has structure, needs Sloane's internal state and the specific dialogue.
  • Ch 11 (Sloane Meets Amro) — has structure, needs the specific vigilante operation and team dynamics without Vic.

Ch 23 (The Plan) is no longer thin — it has detailed scene beats, the BBQ structure, the MeridianBot discussion, and Phil's gun compartment.

Jenny Deeb's Voice Guide

Informal notes exist (Southern inflections, corporate speak, condescending). Claude can draft a full voice guide from these notes before Ch 13. Nick reviews.

Dramatic Irony Tracking

What the reader knows vs. what the characters know at each chapter boundary. Claude can build this as a byproduct of drafting — tracking it after each chapter rather than mapping it all in advance.

REFERENCE: Chapter Completeness

| Ch | Title | Size | Written? | Detail | Voice Gaps | Blocks | |----|-------|------|----------|--------|------------|--------| | 1 | The Senator | L | Yes | Detailed | None | — | | 2 | Life or Death | L | Yes | Detailed | None | — | | 3 | Graham Meets Ceci | L | Rewrite | Detailed | None | — | | 4 | Minty/Graham Flight | M | No | Moderate | None | — | | 5 | Sloane Goes Home | M | No | Moderate | None | — | | 6 | The News | M | No | Moderate | None | — | | 7 | Sloane Learns | M | No | Moderate | None | — | | 8 | The Ratcheting | M | No | Moderate | None | — | | 9 | Sloane Calls Amro | S | No | Thin | None | — | | 10 | The Frame | M | No | Moderate | None | — | | 11 | Sloane Meets Amro | S | No | Thin | None | — | | 12 | Fairy Godmother | M | No | Moderate | None | — | | 13 | Jenny Deeb | M | No | Moderate | Jenny: informal notes | Claude: draft voice guide | | 14 | Datacenter Escape | M | No | Moderate | None | — | | 15 | Bridget's Apartment | M | No | Detailed | None | — | | 16 | Mara's Demonstration | S | No | Moderate | None | — | | 17 | The Retribution | S | No | Detailed | None | — | | 18 | The Massacre | XL | No | Detailed | None | — | | 19 | The Road to Bisbee | M | No | Moderate | None | — | | 20 | Ceci's House | M | No | Moderate | None | — | | 21 | The Road to Phil | M | No | Moderate | None | — | | 22 | Phil | L | No | Detailed | None | — | | 23 | The Plan | M | No | Detailed | None | — | | 24 | The Road to War | M | No | Moderate | None | — | | 25 | The False Victory | L | No | Detailed | None | — | | 26 | The Datacenter | L | No | Moderate | None | — | | 27 | Conference Room Waikiki | L | No | Moderate | None | — | | 28 | The Meeting | XL | No | Detailed | None | — | | 29 | The Low Point | L | No | Detailed | None | — | | 30 | Sloane Goes Home Pt 2 | L | No | Detailed | None | — | | 31 | Phil's Last Mission | S | No | Moderate | None | — | | 32 | Graham's Reckoning | L | No | Detailed | None | — | | 33 | Sloane's Confrontation | L | No | Moderate | None | — | | 34 | The New World | M | No | Detailed | None | — | | 35 | Bisbee | S | No | Moderate | None | — |

Summary: All 35 chapters to be drafted (including Ch 1-3 which will be rewritten from scratch). 32 are ready to go now. 2 need thin outlines fleshed out (ch 9, 11). 1 needs Jenny's voice (Claude can handle). All Nick decisions resolved.