writing-plans

name	writing-plans
description	Use when you have a spec or requirements for a multi-step task, before touching code

Writing Plans

Overview

Write comprehensive implementation plans assuming the engineer has zero context for our codebase and questionable taste. Document everything they need to know: which files to touch for each task, code, testing, docs they might need to check, how to test it. Give them the whole plan as bite-sized tasks. DRY. YAGNI. TDD. Frequent commits.

Assume they are a skilled developer, but know almost nothing about our toolset or problem domain. Assume they don't know good test design very well.

Announce at start: "I'm using the writing-plans skill to create the implementation plan."

Context: Prefer a dedicated worktree when isolated workspace setup is useful. A normal feature branch is acceptable when the workflow is simple and does not need worktree isolation.

Save plans to: docs/superpowers/plans/YYYY-MM-DD-<feature-name>.md

• (User preferences for plan location override this default)

Scope Check

If the spec covers multiple independent subsystems, it should have been broken into sub-project specs during brainstorming. If it wasn't, suggest breaking this into separate plans — one per subsystem. Each plan should produce working, testable software on its own.

File Structure

Before defining tasks, map out which files will be created or modified and what each one is responsible for. This is where decomposition decisions get locked in.

• Design units with clear boundaries and well-defined interfaces. Each file should have one clear responsibility.
• You reason best about code you can hold in context at once, and your edits are more reliable when files are focused. Prefer smaller, focused files over large ones that do too much.
• Files that change together should live together. Split by responsibility, not by technical layer.
• In existing codebases, follow established patterns. If the codebase uses large files, don't unilaterally restructure - but if a file you're modifying has grown unwieldy, including a split in the plan is reasonable.

This structure informs the task decomposition. Each task should produce self-contained changes that make sense independently.

Bite-Sized Task Granularity

Each step is one action (2-5 minutes):

• "Write the failing test" - step
• "Run it to make sure it fails" - step
• "Implement the minimal code to make the test pass" - step
• "Run the tests and make sure they pass" - step
• "Commit" - step

Plan Document Header

Every plan MUST start with this header:

# [Feature Name] Implementation Plan

> **For agentic workers:** REQUIRED SUB-SKILL: Use superpowers:subagent-driven-development (recommended) or superpowers:executing-plans to implement this plan task-by-task. Steps use checkbox (`- [ ]`) syntax for tracking.

**Goal:** [One sentence describing what this builds]

**Architecture:** [2-3 sentences about approach]

**Tech Stack:** [Key technologies/libraries]

---

Wave Structure (Optional)

For plans with more than ~4 tasks, group tasks into waves. Each wave is a logical unit of work that produces a testable, committable state. Waves execute sequentially. Between waves, verification runs and the user/system can review before proceeding.

When to use waves:

• Plan has 5+ tasks
• Natural verification boundaries exist
• Work has dependencies between groups of tasks

When NOT to use waves:

• Plan has ≤4 tasks
• All tasks are independent and no meaningful checkpoint is needed

Important: Wave structure is a planning convention, not a promise of native runtime parallelism. In this package, waves are sequenced checkpoints first. Parallel execution is a future enhancement, not a current assumption.

Wave syntax in plans:

## Wave 1 — [Wave Name]

### Task 1: [Component Name]
...

### Wave 1 verification checkpoint

- [ ] **Step 1: Run verification**

Run: `[test command]`
Expected: PASS

- [ ] **Step 2: Review wave output before proceeding**

Confirm: [what must be true after this wave]

- [ ] **Step 3: Commit wave**

```bash
git add -A
git commit -m "feat: [wave summary]"

**Rules:**
- Every wave ends with a verification checkpoint
- A failing checkpoint blocks the next wave
- Tasks within a wave execute sequentially
- Keep task numbering global across the plan

## Task Structure

````markdown
### Task N: [Component Name]

**Files:**
- Create: `exact/path/to/file.py`
- Modify: `exact/path/to/existing.py:123-145`
- Test: `tests/exact/path/to/test.py`

- [ ] **Step 1: Write the failing test**

```python
def test_specific_behavior():
    result = function(input)
    assert result == expected

• Step 2: Run test to verify it fails

Run: pytest tests/path/test.py::test_name -v Expected: FAIL with "function not defined"

• Step 3: Write minimal implementation

def function(input):
    return expected

• Step 4: Run test to verify it passes

Run: pytest tests/path/test.py::test_name -v Expected: PASS

• Step 5: Commit

git add tests/path/test.py src/path/file.py
git commit -m "feat: add specific feature"

**Note:** When using waves, tasks are numbered globally across the plan (Task 1, Task 2, ...), not restarted per wave.

## No Placeholders

Every step must contain the actual content an engineer needs. These are **plan failures** — never write them:
- "TBD", "TODO", "implement later", "fill in details"
- "Add appropriate error handling" / "add validation" / "handle edge cases"
- "Write tests for the above" (without actual test code)
- "Similar to Task N" (repeat the code — the engineer may be reading tasks out of order)
- Steps that describe what to do without showing how (code blocks required for code steps)
- References to types, functions, or methods not defined in any task

## Remember
- Exact file paths always
- Complete code in every step — if a step changes code, show the code
- Exact commands with expected output
- DRY, YAGNI, TDD, frequent commits

## Self-Review

After writing the complete plan, look at the spec with fresh eyes and check the plan against it. This is a checklist you run yourself — not a subagent dispatch.

**1. Spec coverage:** Skim each section/requirement in the spec. Can you point to a task that implements it? List any gaps.

**2. Placeholder scan:** Search your plan for red flags — any of the patterns from the "No Placeholders" section above. Fix them.

**3. Type consistency:** Do the types, method signatures, and property names you used in later tasks match what you defined in earlier tasks? A function called `clearLayers()` in Task 3 but `clearFullLayers()` in Task 7 is a bug.

**4. Wave coherence (if using waves):** Does each wave end in a state where tests pass and the codebase is committable? Can Wave N+1 start cleanly from Wave N's output? Are wave checkpoints specific enough that a verifier knows what to check?

If you find issues, fix them inline. No need to re-review — just fix and move on. If you find a spec requirement with no task, add the task.

## Execution Handoff

After saving the plan, offer execution choice:

**"Plan complete and saved to `docs/superpowers/plans/<filename>.md`. Two execution options:**

**1. Subagent-Driven (recommended)** - I dispatch a fresh subagent per task, review between tasks, fast iteration

**2. Inline Execution** - Execute tasks in this session using executing-plans, batch execution with checkpoints

**Which approach?"**

**If Subagent-Driven chosen:**
- **REQUIRED SUB-SKILL:** Use superpowers:subagent-driven-development
- Fresh subagent per task + two-stage review

**If Inline Execution chosen:**
- **REQUIRED SUB-SKILL:** Use superpowers:executing-plans
- Batch execution with checkpoints for review, including wave checkpoints when the plan uses wave structure