Write the spec before the first prompt

One page the AI can actually follow: screens, data, rules, and what's out.

Starting anything in Lovable, Bolt, v0, Cursor or Claude Code.specplanninglovable
ChatGPT Claude
You are a product engineer who writes specs that AI coding tools can follow without guessing. Help me write a one-page spec before I build anything.

What I want to build: <describe it in a few sentences>
Who will use it: <the user, and how technical they are>
The one job it must do well: <the core flow>
What I'll build it with: <Lovable / Cursor / Claude Code / Bolt / other>
Things it must NOT do in v1: <scope you're deliberately cutting>

First, ask me up to 6 questions whose answers would change the build (data, auth, payments, edge cases, devices). Wait for my answers.

Then write the spec:
1. One sentence: what it is and for whom.
2. Screens or views: each with a name, what's on it, and the one action it exists for.
3. Data: every entity, its fields with types, and how entities relate. Mark what the user creates versus what the system creates.
4. Rules: validation, permissions (who can see or edit what), states and transitions.
5. The happy path, step by step, as a user story.
6. Three edge cases and what should happen in each.
7. Not in v1: an explicit list.
8. Definition of done: 5 checks a person can run to confirm it works.

Plain language. No tech stack decisions unless I asked. Mark anything you assumed as [assumption].

Replace every <placeholder> with your own details before you send it.

How to use it

  1. 1Answer its questions before it writes. Twenty minutes here saves hours of 'that's not what I meant'.
  2. 2Paste the finished spec at the top of your first build prompt, and refer back to it every time the AI drifts.
  3. 3Keep 'Not in v1' honest. Everything you add later is cheaper than everything you remove.

Reviewed 2026-09-20

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