PROMPT ENGINEERING GUIDE
Modular prompts, organized by axis
This is a working reference for prompt engineering. Every entry is a stand-alone instruction that can be dropped straight into a new prompt, appended to one you are already writing, or pasted into an ongoing conversation when the model's output misses the mark.
SIMPLIFY · AXIS 01
Simplify prompts
Prompt
Action
Meet the basic criteria defined by the Plain Writing Act.
Write to be understood.
Don't take any background knowledge for granted.
Use only the 1000 most common words in English.
Over-explain.
Walk through a specific example scenario.
Conclude by asking the reader if they would like an even simpler rephrasing.
Conform to the writing guidelines on Simple Wikipedia.
Pause after each point to ask if I follow.
Avoid all jargon, acronyms, and industry-specific terminology.
Flag any sentence exceeding an 8th-grade reading level.
Limit yourself to a Lexile level no more than 700L.
Err on the side of explaining too much rather than too little.
Use zero subordinate clauses; write only in simple sentences.
Leave nothing implicit.
Prompt the reader to rate clarity on a scale of 1–5 after each explanation.
Can the intended reader find, understand, and use the information without rereading?
Role-play a three-way conversation: Expert A teaches 8th grade English, Expert B enforces the Plain Writing Act of 2010, and Expert C edits Simple English Wikipedia. Walk through the text together, with each expert adding to, and refining, the prior expert's suggestions.
CONCISE · AXIS 02
Concise prompts
Prompt
Action
Say more with less.
Cut every word that doesn't carry meaning.
Assume the reader is busy and impatient.
Adhere to the AP Stylebook's guidance on economy of language.
Provide 10 diverse ideas for making that more concise.
Give me the cliffnotes version.
Pack in as much substance as you can within the strictest of word limits.
Deliver only the need-to-know.
Provide the shortest path to comprehension.
Avoid filler phrases ("it's worth noting," "in general," "essentially").
Write at the compression ratio of a well-edited abstract.
What can be cut without sacrificing clarity?
What's removable without any loss of comprehension?
Merge adjacent sentences that share a subject.
Collapse prepositional chains.
Default to the densest accurate phrasing available.
Act as a senior copy editor at The Economist whose only job is to cut word count by 40% without losing a single fact.
Prefer a single precise word to a longer descriptive workaround.
SYSTEMATIC · AXIS 03
Systematic prompts
Prompt
Action
Ask me clarifying questions along the way.
Let's think step-by-step.
First, define what a successful answer would look like in measurable terms.
Start broad, then narrow.
What quality standards do you think I have in mind for your answer?
Give frequent prompts to ensure the progression is followed at every stage.
After drafting, critique your own output against the success criteria you defined at the start.
AUDIENCE · AXIS 04
Audience prompts
Prompt
Action
Picture [audience] reading this line by line. Narrate their inner monologue as they move through it.
Build a one-paragraph persona (age, occupation, expertise, mood, device, time of day) before drafting.
Anticipate the top three objections this audience will raise, and address them inline.
Produce a version you'd write if no one were watching. Then stress-test it against [audience]'s likely critiques.
Review line by line as the [audience]: note where they'd say "exactly" and where they'd say "hold on."
Replace absolutes ("always," "never," "guaranteed") with measured qualifiers.
Surface any phrase that presumes the reader's agreement ("obviously," "clearly," "as everyone knows") and strike it.
Imagine the [audience] reading this next to three competing pieces on the same topic. What makes them stay with yours?
ORIGINALITY · AXIS 05
Originality prompts
Prompt
Action
Avoid the five most obvious answers; give me the sixth through tenth.
Skip what would show up in the first page of Google results.
If your answer could be the median response to this question, throw it out and try again.
Ban platitudes, aphorisms, and motivational-poster phrasing.
Abide by the torrance tests of creative thinking.
What would a contrarian in this field say?
Borrow a solution from a completely unrelated field.
What's the question I should be asking instead of the one I am?
Ask: "What did I actually add that a search engine couldn't?"
Use the "six thinking hats": answer from emotional, optimistic, pessimistic, creative, analytical, and procedural stances.
REWRITE · AXIS 06
Rewrite prompts
Live prompt preview
Rewrite your response to be more clear.
Pick an adjective
Quick pick
BE LESS · AXIS 07
Be-less prompts
Live prompt preview
Be less redundant.
Pick a flaw
Quick pick
Prompt
Action
Be less redundant.
Be less self-referential.
Be less tangential.
Be less cloverleafed.
Be less piecemeal.
Be less front-loaded.
Be less back-loaded.
Be less rushed.
Be less disjointed.
Be less circular.
Be less fragmented.
Be less assuming.
Be less insular.
Be less mirroring.
Be less formulaic.
Be less patronizing.
Be less meandering.
Be less verbose.
Be less aggressive.
Be less preachy.
Be less scattered.
Be less vague.
Be less jargon-heavy.