# Quality Bar

## Table of Contents

- 1. Non-negotiables
- 2. Final review questions
- 3. Spoken-language cleanup rules
- 4. Deepening rules
- 5. Structure-preservation rules
- 6. Revision triggers

## 1. Non-negotiables

Before delivering the result, make sure all of the following are true:

- the author's core meaning is preserved when source material exists
- the central thesis is stable when the piece is topic-driven
- obvious duplicate viewpoints have been merged
- the logic chain is visible at section level
- the structure matches the accepted Stage 2 outline
- supplemental content is relevant, not decorative
- the prose reads like formal writing rather than raw transcript or brainstorming notes

## 2. Final Review Questions

Ask these questions before finalizing:

1. Can each major section be summarized in one clear sentence?
2. Does every section have a distinct job?
3. Is any claim repeated in more than one place?
4. Does any paragraph feel movable to almost any article?
5. Did the draft add explanation where the source was thin, instead of merely rephrasing?
6. Did any added example or background distort the source's original stance?
7. Are transitions carrying real logic rather than decorative wording?
8. Is the language appropriate for the inferred audience?
9. If the user gave no audience, are the assumptions stated clearly?
10. If the source material was spoken, does the result now read like writing?
11. If the piece is topic-driven, does each section genuinely advance the thesis?
12. If data or examples are mentioned, are they actually supported?

## 3. Spoken-Language Cleanup Rules

Remove or rewrite:

- filler words
- self-corrections that do not change meaning
- repeated sentence starts
- incomplete clauses that add no useful nuance
- oral pacing markers that feel unnatural in writing

Keep or transform when they carry meaning:

- hesitation that reveals uncertainty
- repetition that signals emphasis
- digressions that contain valuable examples

## 4. Deepening Rules

Add material only when it improves one of these dimensions:

- comprehension
- mechanism
- evidence
- example
- contrast
- implication

Cut added material when it only does one of these:

- repeats the same claim in smoother words
- broadens the topic without helping the thesis
- adds generic observations anyone could predict
- inflates length without increasing clarity

## 5. Structure-Preservation Rules

After Stage 2 is accepted:

- do not change the macro section order without user approval
- do not split one accepted section into many unless needed for readability
- do not merge accepted sections if it would erase a meaningful distinction
- do not introduce a new top-level argument that the outline never promised

Local paragraph-level improvements are still allowed:

- rewrite transitions
- adjust sentence order
- fold duplicated support into one place

In source-driven mode, preserving structure means preserving the source's core frame.

In topic-driven mode, preserving structure means preserving the accepted thesis path and section jobs.

## 6. Revision Triggers

Revise before delivery if any of the following is true:

- the same point appears under two headings
- the article feels like a cleaned transcript instead of an authored piece
- one section is much shallower than the rest
- the conclusion introduces ideas not prepared earlier
- the brief and the final draft no longer describe the same article
- the article sounds broad and serious but still cannot answer its own core question