Stuck on a draft? Answer a few questions first.

Claude interviews you one question at a time until your idea has a real claim, then hands back an outline shaped for the channel you picked. It never writes the piece, so the argument stays yours.

Built by Atharva Shah. Outline Interviewer costs $19, paid once. Buy Outline Interviewer. The skill folder and setup guide arrive by email.

Outline Interviewer at a glance

Outline Interviewer is an AI agent skill for Claude Code, Codex CLI, Gemini CLI, and other agents that read SKILL.md. Interviews you one question at a time, then builds the outline for the channel you picked. Best for: blog outline generator.

Works with
Claude Code, Codex CLI, Gemini CLI, Cursor, GitHub Copilot
Category
Writing and voice
Price
$19, one payment
Requirements
Needs a Claude plan with skills, such as Claude Code or the Claude app. It produces outlines only and never drafts the piece.
Included
Six channel interviews, Outline template, Gap list, Write-first pointer

What Outline Interviewer produces

A real outline note, Iteration Is Perfection, with its thesis equation highlighted in yellow.
The claim, stated. A vague topic leaves as one clear claim, so every section has something to prove.
A dark outline card with title, claim, sections, payoff, write first and bracketed gaps, the gaps circled.
The handover outline. You get the claim, the sections, the payoff, and every missing fact in brackets. (sample output)
A real outline note, Plan 3 Months of Content in 30 Minutes, with three timed steps highlighted.
Sections with a job. Each section names its step, its time box and its tools before you draft.

Most stuck drafts are an unfinished decision.

The questions make the decision with you. Every outline takes three steps.

  1. Name the channel. An article, a LinkedIn post, a short note, a tweet or thread, a sales page, or a video script. Each one gets a different shape.
  2. Answer the questions. It asks one question at a time and waits. It skips anything you already told it and pushes once on a vague answer.
  3. Take the outline. You get a title, the claim, each section and what it does, the section to write first, and a list of facts you still owe.

Asking AI for an outline gives you a summary of the topic.

A generic outline has no claim. A writing coach has one hour a week.

Outline Interviewer

  • The claim comes first. No outline until you can say it in one sentence.
  • Channel-specific questions. A thread and a sales page get different interviews.
  • Gaps kept visible. Every fact you owe stays in brackets.
  • Tells you where to start. It names the hardest section to write first.

One-shot AI outlines

  • An invented angle. The model picks a claim you never made.
  • Any-article shape. Intro, three points, conclusion, on every topic.
  • Made-up facts. Numbers appear that you then have to check.
  • One shape for all. A post and an article get the same skeleton.

Writing coaches

  • Booked a week out. The idea cools before the call.
  • Priced per session. Each call is billed, ready idea or not.
  • General advice. Tips about writing, instead of this piece.
  • Your schedule, theirs. Stuck at 11 p.m. means waiting until Tuesday.

The outline holds your argument, never a guess.

It asks, it waits, and it builds only from your answers. When an idea is not ready, it says so and suggests you park it in your ideas folder. You can add your own list of post formats so social outlines name the format you use most.

Questions about Outline Interviewer

How is this different from a blog outline generator?

Generators guess your angle. This skill asks you first, one question at a time, so the outline carries your claim and your examples.

Does it write the article for me?

No. It stops at the outline. You or your usual writing tool drafts from it, and the argument stays yours.

Which channels does it cover?

Long-form articles, story-led or technical. Also LinkedIn posts, short notes, tweets and threads, sales pages and email sequences, and video scripts.

How many questions does it ask?

Usually five to seven, one at a time. It skips any question your first message already answered.

What if I cannot name the claim?

It pushes once. If the claim is still vague, it tells you the idea is not ready and suggests you park it for later.

Which Claude plan do I need?

A paid plan that runs skills. Pro is enough for daily use.

What else do I pay for?

Nothing. It needs no API keys or extra tools.

Will it fill in facts I do not have?

No. Every missing number, name, or example goes into a gap list in brackets for you to supply.

Can I change the questions?

Yes. Each channel has its own short question set in plain text, so you can edit or add one for a channel you use.

What if the first outline is not useful?

Tell it which section does not serve the claim. It cuts or rebuilds that section. A sharper claim almost always gives a sharper outline.

Does this skill work with Gemini CLI, Codex, Cursor, or GitHub Copilot?

Yes, with one caveat. The skill is a SKILL.md folder in the Agent Skills open standard, which Claude Code, Codex CLI, Gemini CLI, Cursor, and GitHub Copilot all load. It is built and tested on Claude Code. Steps that lean on Claude-only features, such as parallel subagents, run one after another or need a manual step in other agents.

How do I install an agent skill?

Copy the skill folder into your agent's skills directory: ~/.claude/skills for Claude Code, or the skills folder your agent documents for Codex CLI, Gemini CLI, Cursor, or Copilot. The agent reads the description and loads the skill when your request matches it. Each skill ships with a setup guide for any tool it needs.

Related skills

  • Deslop Audit: Scores a draft for machine tells, then reviews it, interviews you, or rewrites it clean.
  • Thinker Lens: Rewrites your piece through the method of Graham, Munger, Feynman, and five more.
  • Substack Writing Harness: Triage the idea, draft the essay, and push the score to zero before you publish.
  • Substack Publisher: Push, update, and publish Substack drafts and Notes from your own files, and schedule releases.

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