---
title: "Turn notes into a publishable article"
description: "Extract claims, separate fact from opinion, build an outline with evidence slots, then draft without inventing a source or a number."
canonical: "https://www.diginomads.win/prompts/notes-to-article"
source: "content/pages/prompts/notes-to-article.md"
updatedAt: "2026-11-10"
---

## Copy-ready prompt

~~~text
You are turning notes into a publishable article.

Notes: [NOTES]
Reader and publication: [READER]
Sources I have opened: [SOURCES]
Target length: [LENGTH]

Work in this order:
1. Extract every claim the notes could support. Write each as one sentence.
2. Classify each claim: "fact with source", "opinion", "experience" or "unknown". A claim without a source is not a fact.
3. Build an outline with a slot for each claim and the evidence it needs. Mark slots with no evidence "needs source".
4. Draft only the sections whose evidence exists. For every fact, cite the source from [SOURCES] by name and link. If a fact is not in [SOURCES], leave a visible gap rather than filling it.
5. Add a section called "What this does not cover" with the boundaries of the notes.
6. End with a checklist of the claims that still need a source before publication.

Rules:
- Do not invent a source, a statistic, a date or a quote.
- Do not present an opinion as a finding.
- Quote exactly or paraphrase with the source named; never split the difference.
- Keep the article's claims no stronger than the evidence.
- If the notes contradict each other, show both and explain the disagreement.
~~~

**Use when:** You have a pile of notes, links and half-formed opinions and need a draft that survives a fact-check.

**Output contract:** A claim ledger, an outline with evidence slots, a draft that fills only supported claims, and a list of what still needs a source.

**Inputs you need:**

- Raw notes, links and quotes
- The reader and the publication
- The sources you actually opened

| Variable | What to put there |
|---|---|
| [NOTES] | Everything you have: fragments, links, interview notes, your own arguments. Mark which parts are yours and which are quoted. |
| [READER] | Who the article is for and what they already know. The same notes become a different article for a beginner and a practitioner. |
| [SOURCES] | Only the sources you have actually opened, with URLs. Do not include a search result you have not read. |
| [LENGTH] | A word range. Short pieces force the claim ledger to do more work. |

## How to use it

1. Paste the raw notes and the source list separately. Mixing them makes it hard to see which claims have evidence.
2. Read the claim ledger before the draft. Delete any claim you cannot defend, then rerun.
3. Check every citation in the draft against the source list. The model will cite a source it was given even when the source does not support the sentence.
4. Publish the gaps section. It is more credible than a smooth ending.

## Guardrails

- Every fact has a source you opened and can link.
- Opinion and experience are labelled, not disguised as findings.
- No invented statistic, date, quote or study.
- The article's conclusion is no stronger than the weakest load-bearing claim.

## Variations

### If the piece is an argument, not a report

Ask for a “steel-man” section: the strongest version of the opposing view and the evidence that would change your mind. An argument without that section is a monologue.

### If the notes are an interview

Add: “Keep the speaker's exact words for anything controversial; paraphrase only the setup.” Misquotation is the fastest way to lose a source.

## Why this works

The dangerous moment in drafting is not the blank page; it is the sentence that sounds right and has no source. A model will produce that sentence happily if you ask for “a compelling article”. The claim ledger makes the missing source visible before the prose makes it invisible.

Separating fact, opinion and experience is not pedantry. It is the difference between a piece a reader can use and a piece they have to re-report.

## What good looks like

The outline should have holes. If every section has evidence on the first pass, either the notes are unusually complete or the model is filling gaps. Check the citations one by one.

A good “what this does not cover” section is specific: “This covers the visa application, not the tax residence question that follows it.” That sentence saves the reader from a wrong inference.

## Adapt it to your work

For a newsletter, keep the ledger internal and publish the gaps. For a client report, turn the ledger into an appendix. For a personal essay, keep the “experience” label and cut the fake statistics entirely.

## Failure modes

- **The draft cites a source that does not say it.** Ask the model to quote the supporting sentence for every citation. If it cannot, remove the claim.
- **The article is all caveat.** That is a different failure. Keep the caveats that change the conclusion, cut the ones that only protect the writer.
- **The notes are too thin.** A shorter article with an honest gap beats a longer one with a fabricated bridge.

## Related templates

- [Rewrite a draft for one named reader](/prompts/rewrite-for-a-reader)
- [Red-team a plan before you commit](/prompts/red-team-a-plan)
- [The writing-room skill pack](/skills/writing-room)

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