Writers Factory: Narrative Protocol & Methodology

Version: 1.0
Scope: Defines the mandatory creative process and data artifacts required to engineer a professional novel within the Factory.

Note for Writers: This is the technical specification of the creative process. If you are looking for the step-by-step guide on how to write your novel, please read The Writer’s Journey instead.

1. Philosophy: Engineering Over “Pantsing”

The Factory enforces a professional standard: Creativity requires constraints. The system guides the writer through a mandatory “Preparation Phase” (Phases 1-3) before allowing access to the “Execution Phase” (Drafting Chapter 1). This ensures no scene is written without a structural purpose.

2. The Story Bible Blueprint (Data Structure)

The “Story Bible” is not a single file but a collection of structured artifacts that the AI uses to “ground” its generation. The system must guide the user to create these specific documents.

Phase 1: Foundational Mindset (The “Why”)

  • Goal: Establish discipline and audience focus.
  • Artifacts (Input Data):
    • 01_Mindset.md: Commitment assessment. (AI uses this to gauge user seriousness/tone).
    • 02_Audience.md: Target demographic and purpose. (AI uses this to tune vocabulary and pacing).
    • 03_Premise.md: High Concept Logline. (The “North Star” for all critiques).
    • 04_Theme.md: Core Theme/Life Lesson. (AI checks if scenes resonate with this theme).
    • 05_Voice.md: Voice rules and research notes. (AI style guide).

Phase 2: Character Construction (The “Who”)

  • Goal: Create dimensional characters driven by contradiction.
  • Artifacts (Input Data):
    • Characters/Protagonist.md:
      • True Character vs. Characterization: The core contradiction (e.g., “Honest but a Liar”).
      • Fatal Flaw: The internal weakness blocking success.
      • The Lie: The mistaken belief driving the flaw.
    • Characters/Cast.md: Supporting characters defined by their function to the protagonist.

Phase 3: Plot Architecture (The “What”)

  • Goal: A structural blueprint ensuring pacing and emotional resonance.
  • Artifacts (Input Data):
    • Structure/Beat_Sheet.md: The 15-Beat “Save the Cat” roadmap. (AI uses this to know “Where are we in the story?”).
    • Structure/Scene_Strategy.md: For every scene:
      • Goal: What does the character want?
      • Conflict: What stops them?
      • Outcome: Do they get it? (Yes/No/But/And).
    • World/Rules.md: The physics and rules of the setting.

3. The “Living Brain” Workflow

How the system maintains and re-creates the Bible during writing.

  1. Ingestion (The Setup):
    • User creates the artifacts in Phases 1-3 (likely querying NotebookLM to generate initial drafts).
    • The Graph Engine parses these files to build the initial state (Nodes: Characters, Themes; Edges: Relationships).
  2. Execution (The Drafting Loop):
    • Pre-Flight Check: Before drafting a scene, the AI reads Structure/Scene_Strategy.md and Characters/Protagonist.md.
    • Context Injection: It injects the specific Fatal Flaw and Current Beat into the prompt.
    • Drafting: The Squad generates the scene.
  3. Maintenance (The Feedback Loop):
    • The “Archivist” Agent: After a scene is finalized, this background agent analyzes it.
    • Update Logic:
      • Did the character learn a lesson? -> Update Character Arc progress.
      • Did a new fact emerge? -> Update World/Rules.md.
      • Did the plot deviate? -> Flag Structure/Beat_Sheet.md for review.
    • Result: The Story Bible is dynamic. It evolves with the manuscript, ensuring the “Brain” always has the latest truth.

4. Next Steps for Implementation

Now that we have defined what data we need, we can build the technical components to handle it.

  1. Graph Ingestor: Ensure the “Graph Ingestor” is specifically designed to parse these exact file types from the Story Bible.
  2. Validation: Implement validations to ensure these files exist before entering the drafting phase.