| name | brainstorm |
| description | Conducts structured brainstorming with divergent thinking and trade-off analysis. Use when the user asks "help me think through this," "what are the options," or is exploring tradeoffs. Produces docs with sparks. Not for quick ideas or shaping. |
| version | 2.0.0-alpha.5 |
Brainstorm
Generative thinking — expanding possibilities before narrowing through structured exploration.
Critical Rules
Always
- Diverge before converging — generate options before judging
- Connect exploration to VISION.md and STRATEGY.md context
- Document discarded options — they hold valuable reasoning
- Log invocation first:
loaf journal log "skill(brainstorm): <topic>"
- Capture sparks (speculative byproducts) with
loaf spark capture --scope <scope> --text <text>; brainstorm summaries may render or summarize them
- Set boundaries on exploration time
- Log outcome to the project journal:
loaf journal log "decision(scope): direction chosen and rationale"
Never
- Prematurely commit to an option before full exploration
- Delete brainstorm documents — archive them for context preservation
- Process sparks during the main brainstorm — capture only, expand later
- Turn brainstorm into an interview — keep it exploratory
Verification
After work completes, verify:
- Brainstorm captured in SQLite or summarized in an explicitly durable report
- Sparks captured with
loaf spark capture and optionally summarized in ## Sparks
- Spark lifecycle documented: unprocessed → promoted/discarded
- Brainstorm references strategic context from VISION/STRATEGY
Quick Reference
Mode Detection
| Input Pattern | Mode | Output |
|---|
| Idea file reference | Idea Processing | Deep dive on captured idea |
| Problem/question | Problem Exploration | Exploratory options |
| Empty | Open Brainstorm | "What should we think about?" |
Spark Format
## Sparks
- **Title** -- one-line description
- **Title** -- one-line description
Sparks are: lightweight, byproducts, worth remembering. Mark as *(promoted)* or *(abandoned)* after processing.
Brainstorm documents are archived after sparks are processed — never deleted, since the exploration context has lasting value. SQLite spark state is the lifecycle source; draft markdown is a projection or narrative summary.
Suggests Next
After brainstorming, suggest /shape if a clear idea emerged, or /idea to capture sparks for later. /idea invoked without arguments scans brainstorm docs for unprocessed sparks, bridging the brainstorm → idea pipeline.
Topics
| Topic | Reference | Use When |
|---|
| Brainstorm Template | templates/brainstorm.md | Creating structured brainstorm documents |
| Strategic Context | strategy/references/ | Grounding exploration in project direction |
