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16 min · agents

Writing pipeline agent

Goal: turn drafting into outline → draft → critique → revise, with you approving voice.

Best for: blogs, updates, landing sections—when one-shot drafts sound generic.

A writing pipeline agent is four small stages, not one magic paragraph. You keep taste; it keeps speed.

Safe default: it may create drafts in a doc you choose; it may not publish or email readers.

Why beginners skip this

Asking for a finished post in one shot skips outline, critique, and your voice check. Pipelines exist so you approve tone before anything ships.

Habit this week (Asia/Shanghai): run one real piece through outline → draft → critique → revise; date the voice-approve step.

Step 1 — Outline only

Ban prose until the outline is approved. Include audience, promise, and section jobs.

Writing pipeline — OUTLINE ONLY.
Topic: [t]
Audience: [a]
Promise: [one line]
Format: title options (3) · outline with section jobs · words to avoid · CTA
No full paragraphs yet.
Example

Filled prompt

Live note: customer asked for ETA on bug #4412; facts: fix in QA, no date promised.
Run outline→draft→critique→revise with red gate before send.
Stop at gate; I add one human-only detail and send myself.

What good output looks like

  • Done boxes for “turn drafting into outline → draft → critique → re” are explicit and checkable
  • Allow-list tools only; never-do lines honored
  • Stops before send/delete without human gate
  • Pass/fail: Plan→Act one→Check visible for agents-writing-pipeline-agent
  • Pass/fail dated (Asia/Shanghai) sits next to the artifact

Step 2 — Draft one section at a time

Act: draft section 1 only. Check voice. Then section 2.

Draft ONLY section: [name]
Follow outline. Voice: [notes]
Max [N] words. End with 2 self-critique bullets.
Example

Filled prompt

Live note: partner webinar blurb; facts: date 2026-11-05, topic "safe MCP first connect", no pricing.
Pipeline with red gate before CMS publish.
Stop at gate; I paste one human anecdote then publish.

What good output looks like

  • Allow-list tools only; never-do lines honored
  • Stops before send/delete without human gate
  • Pass/fail: Plan→Act one→Check visible for agents-writing-pipeline-agent
  • Done boxes for “turn drafting into outline → draft → critique → re” are explicit and checkable

Step 3 — Critique pass, then revise

Separate critic from writer. Then revise once against a short rubric.

CRITIC mode (do not rewrite yet).
Rubric: clarity · specificity · beginner safety · CTA strength (1–5 each)
List top 5 fixes.
Then wait.
---
After I say go: revise once applying those fixes.
Example

Filled prompt

The agent wants to publish after critique without my OK.
Write a hard-stop instruction: require my typed approval token “APPROVED-SEND” after I read the final draft. No silent publish.

What good output looks like

  • Stops before send/delete without human gate
  • Done boxes for “turn drafting into outline → draft → critique → re” are explicit and checkable
  • Pass/fail: Plan→Act one→Check visible for agents-writing-pipeline-agent
  • Allow-list tools only; never-do lines honored

Save this card

Card: outline → draft → critique → revise · you approve voice before send. No one-shot “finished post.”

1. What I shipped: ___ 2. What I refused: ___ 3. What I will never-do again: ___ (date: Asia/Shanghai)

  • [ ] Tools/writes paused
  • [ ] Refuse-line dated
  • [ ] Artifact path saved
  • [ ] Next link chosen (or stop)

Before you start

Write Done (checkboxes) and the human gate on paper before any run for “turn drafting into outline → draft →.” Allow-list tools; leave send/delete off. Guide: agents-writing-pipeline-agent. If you only have a blank practice box, stop and fetch the real job first.

  • Goal in one line: ___
  • Allowed tools: ___
  • Forbidden: ___
  • Human approve needed for: ___

How to use this week

This week: run one piece through outline → draft → critique → revise; you approve tone before send. Keep the four-stage card dated on a live artifact—not a blank demo. Write one refuse-line and date the note (Asia/Shanghai). If you only skimmed agents-writing-pipeline-agent, put 25 minutes on the calendar and redo once.

Close the week by quoting aloud the refuse line you actually used once. If you cannot, rerun Practice now and date the pass/fail (Asia/Shanghai).

Keep it real

Run this guide’s Practice now on work you will actually ship this week—not a fictional scenario. Dated notes beat perfect theory.

Red gate before publish

Outline→draft→critique→revise, then human gate. No auto-publish after “looks good.”

Do not bookmark-only

Finish Practice now, then tick this guide on your path. Titles unread are not skills.

Approval token

Require an explicit “approved” you type after reading the final—never implied by silence.

Close the loop

After Practice now, write one line: what you will refuse next time. That line is the habit.

Red flag

Skipping outline to final; auto-skipping critique; facts unmarked before send—send it back a stage.

Pitfalls

PitfallFix
One prompt = final publishable postUse the pipeline
Critic and writer in the same breathSeparate passes
Agent posts to your blog/socialDraft-only permissions
Example

Filled prompt

Temptation: skip the habit for agents-writing-pipeline-agent to “save five minutes.”
Job still: turn drafting into outline → draft →
Do the smallest correct pass: Done visible · one checkable artifact · Unknowns labeled [?].
Boundaries: draft only; no silent send; no invented metrics.
Return: the artifact + the refuse-line you said aloud.

What good output looks like

  • Names the shortcut you refused (specific to agents-writing-pipeline-agent)
  • Still delivers a checkable artifact for “turn drafting into outline → draft →”
  • Unknowns labeled; draft-only respected
  • Pass/fail: refuse-line written and dated (agents-writing-pipeline-agent #4)

Practice now

Live card: run one agent checklist item on a real job for “Writing pipeline agent”—artifact path on Save (Asia/Shanghai).

Today: take one real draft through outline → draft → critique → revise with a human gate between stages. Stop before send until you approve facts and tone. Date pass/fail (Asia/Shanghai).

Today card (copy) — agents-writing-pipeline-agent: 1. Artifact I will produce: ___ 2. Pass/fail check: ___ 3. Refuse-line if tempted to skip verify/send: ___ (date: Asia/Shanghai) 4. One never-do from this guide: ___

  • [ ] Artifact path written
  • [ ] Refuse example would say "yes"
  • [ ] Dated Asia/Shanghai

One sentence takeaway

Outline → draft → critique → revise; you approve voice before send. This week: one real piece through all four stages, dated (Asia/Shanghai).

Next

Outline before prose · Coding agent boundaries · Research agent pattern · Draft and revise · Human-in-the-loop checkpoints

Pair with today: open the first Next link (writing-outline-before-prose) only after you dated a refuse-line for this guide (Asia/Shanghai).

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