| name | backlog |
| description | Backlog management: use when the user mentions a backlog, asks what's next, wants work recorded before implementation, or wants queued ideas or specs prioritized, transitioned, completed, or removed; also use when another skill needs to record lifecycle changes. |
Backlog
Use ai-docs/backlog.md as the ranked queue of work in flight. Work lands in the Queue before implementation begins. Create the file from the template below on first use.
Model
Each project appears once in the Queue. Its row points to spec.md when that file exists, otherwise idea.md, under ai-docs/plans/<YYYY-MM-DD-project>/.
- Type:
idea or spec.
- Priority: P0 is genuinely next; P1 is high value; P2 has no urgency.
- Status:
draft → ready → in-progress → review. Completing a reviewed project moves it out of the Queue and into Completed.
- Rank: sort by priority and preserve the user's order within each tier.
# Backlog
## Queue
| # | Type | Priority | Doc | Status | Summary |
| --- | ---- | -------- | --- | ------ | ------- |
## Completed
| Doc | Completed | Branch |
| --- | --------- | ------ |
Invariants
- Keep at most one P0.
- Keep one row per project and promote its pointer from
idea.md to spec.md when the spec appears.
- Keep ranks contiguous.
- Keep completed work in Completed rather than the Queue.
- Preserve every design file when changing or removing its backlog row.
After every mutation, reread ai-docs/backlog.md and verify every invariant before reporting completion.
Branches
A branch is complete when its criterion holds and, after a mutation, the invariant check has passed.
| Invocation | Action | Complete when |
|---|
/backlog | Show the Queue and five most recent Completed rows. Check the top three Queue rows against disk for missing docs, stale type or pointer, and duplicate projects. | The requested rows are shown and every detected drift is named. |
/backlog add <path> | Accept an existing idea.md or spec.md; read its opening section for the summary; ask for P0, P1, or P2; then insert it at the end of that tier or update the project's existing row. | The row is persisted in the chosen tier with the doc's summary. |
/backlog next | Return the first ready row in Queue order. When none is ready, summarize projects by status and name the nearest useful transition; for drafts, suggest /grill-me, then /backlog status <name> ready after shared understanding. | One ready project is selected or every reason nothing is selectable is reported. |
/backlog reprioritize | Show the complete current ordering, ask for all desired changes in one prompt, and apply them. | The persisted tiers match the changes the user confirmed. |
/backlog status <name> <new> | Resolve the project unambiguously and set its status to <new> when the lifecycle allows the transition; otherwise report why not. A reviewed project may return to in-progress when changes are requested. | The persisted status is <new>, or the disallowed transition is reported. |
/backlog done <name> <branch> | Resolve a project in review, remove it from the Queue, and append it to Completed with the session date and merge branch. | The Completed row records both the date and the branch. |
/backlog remove <name> | Resolve the project and remove its Queue row. | The project is absent from the Queue. |