Lesson 2 of 25

The Blueprint of Creation

Instead of describing what you want and hoping the shape comes out right, hand over the empty shape itself - headings, fields, table columns - with square-bracket notes saying what goes in each slot. The model fills your form rather than inventing its own, which means every answer you get back is comparable with the last one.

Reach for it whenWhen you need the same structure every time - a weekly report, a product comparison, a set of concepts you will put side by side.

Put the blueprint inside a <format> tag and the data inside a <data> tag. The separation matters more than usual here, because the blueprint is full of instructions in square brackets that could otherwise be mistaken for content to reproduce. Say explicitly that the bracket notes are instructions to be replaced, not text to be echoed, and tell it what to do with a slot the data cannot fill.

Worth knowingClaude sometimes keeps your bracket notes alongside its answer, trying to be helpful. One line - 'replace each bracket entirely; do not restate my instructions' - fixes it.
  • Wrap the blueprint in <format> and the data in <data>.
  • Say brackets are instructions to replace, not text to echo.
  • Give a rule for slots the data cannot fill.
  • Put long data first, the blueprint and instruction last.
  • Ask for an Artifact when you will keep editing the output.
Example 1: The Request vs. The Blueprint

Instead of

Compare electric cars and gasoline cars.

Perplexity version

<reader>
A first-time car buyer in Hyderabad, driving roughly 50 km a day within the city, comparing hatchbacks and compact SUVs. Not an enthusiast. Wants to know what it will cost and whether it will be inconvenient.
</reader>

<format>
# EV vs Petrol: What a First-Time Indian Buyer Should Know

## 1. Upfront cost
[On-road price ranges in rupees for a comparable hatchback in each category. ~60 words.]

## 2. Running cost
**Per kilometre:** [Cost per km for each, stating the petrol price and electricity tariff you assumed. ~60 words.]
**Service and maintenance:** [What differs, and the five-year picture. ~60 words.]

## 3. Living with it in Hyderabad
[Apartment charging, public charging, what a 50 km daily commute really needs. ~80 words.]

## 4. Resale and battery
[Resale expectations and battery-life concerns. ~60 words.]

## 5. Environmental impact
[Lifecycle, including how the electricity is generated. ~50 words.]

## 6. Verdict
[A direct recommendation for this reader, plus the one circumstance that would reverse it. ~70 words.]
</format>

<rules>
- The square brackets above are instructions to me, not text to reproduce. Replace each one entirely with the actual content.
- Prices and tariffs change. Give ranges, state the assumption you used, and tag anything you are not confident of as [verify].
- Do not pretend to certainty about a current price you do not have.
</rules>

<task>
Fill in the format above for this reader. Produce it as an Artifact. After it, add three lines on what you were least sure about.
</task>
Open Perplexity 1,546 characters
Example 2: From a Vague Task to a Structured Report

Instead of

Write a report on the new marketing campaign.

Perplexity version

<data>
* Campaign Duration: July 1 - Sept 30, 2025
* Total Spend: ₹5,00,000
* Website Visits: 150,000 (up from 110,000 in Q2)
* Leads Generated: 7,500
* Conversion Rate: 5% (up from 3.5% in Q2)
* Social Engagement: 25,000 (Instagram), 5,000 (Facebook)
* Channel ROI: Instagram Ads (High), Google Ads (Medium), Facebook Ads (Low)
</data>

<format>
# Q3 Campaign Report: Monsoon Magic

## 1. Executive summary
[Exactly three sentences: did it work / the biggest driver / the one change.]

## 2. KPIs
[Markdown table - Metric | Q2 | Q3 | Change - with rows for website visits, conversion rate, leads, total spend, cost per lead.]

## 3. Why it worked
[~80 words, reasoning from the numbers above only.]

## 4. Weakest channel
[Name it, state what the data does and does not support about why, give one change. ~70 words.]

## 5. What this data cannot tell us
[Three bullets naming the metrics we would need next quarter.]
</format>

<rules>
- Use only the figures in <data>. If a slot needs a number that is not there, write 'not captured this quarter' instead of estimating.
- Cost per lead and all percentage changes must be calculated from <data>. Show the arithmetic in a footnote so I can check it.
- Channel ROI is given only as High/Medium/Low. Do not convert those into numbers.
- Replace each bracket entirely. Do not restate my instructions in the output.
</rules>

<task>
Using the data and format above, produce the report as an Artifact. Before the report, give me one short paragraph on which of my conclusions this data actually supports and which are a stretch - I would rather know now than be corrected in the meeting.
</task>
Open Perplexity 1,641 characters
Example 3: From a Simple Idea to Formatted Creative Content

Instead of

Give me some ideas for a fantasy story.

Perplexity version

<format>
### Concept [n]: [Title]

**Logline:** [One sentence, max 30 words: protagonist, want, obstacle.]

**Protagonist**
- Name: [Name]
- Wants: [One line.]
- Needs: [What they actually need, which is not what they want. One line.]
- Core conflict: [~25 words.]

**The world:** [One specific rule or feature that makes this setting unlike other fantasy settings. Not tone adjectives. ~50 words.]

**Magic or power system:** [How it works and what it costs the user. ~40 words.]

**Inciting incident:** [The chapter-one event that makes the old life impossible. ~40 words.]

**Trope it subverts:** [One sentence.]
</format>

<constraints>
- Three concepts, each filling the format above exactly once.
- They must differ in setting, tone and type of conflict. Three flavours of chosen-one quest is a failure.
- Replace every bracket with real content; do not echo the bracket text.
- Nothing outside the template except the final line asked for below.
</constraints>

<task>
Before writing, list in one line each the three different structural shapes you are going to aim for, so I can redirect you before you commit. Then write the three concepts as an Artifact, and end with one line on which has the most room to run as a series.
</task>
Open Perplexity 1,241 characters