Step-by-step workflows, real prompts, and practical templates for every major use case. Copy and adapt for your own work.
From first draft to polished final copy â Claude handles every stage of the writing process.
Key insight: Claude's writing shines when you give it a clear audience, tone, and purpose. Vague prompts produce generic writing. Specific prompts produce remarkable writing.
Don't ask Claude to write the whole post at once. Start with an outline â it gives you a chance to redirect before Claude writes 800 words in the wrong direction.
Create a detailed outline for a blog post titled "[YOUR TITLE]". Audience: [e.g. beginner marketers, experienced developers, small business owners] Tone: [e.g. conversational, authoritative, friendly] Goal: [e.g. educate, persuade, inspire action] Target length: [e.g. 800 words, 1500 words] Include: main sections, 2-3 bullet points per section, a suggested intro hook, and a call-to-action idea.
Once you approve the outline, ask Claude to write one section at a time. This gives you more control and produces better results than asking for the full post at once.
Using this outline: [paste outline] Write the introduction section. Make it: - Hook the reader in the first sentence with a surprising fact or bold statement - Set up the problem or opportunity clearly - End with a preview of what they'll learn - Around 150 words - Tone: [your tone]
Once you have a draft, ask Claude to improve specific aspects â not just "make it better" but be precise about what to fix.
Review this blog post draft and: 1. Identify 3 sentences that are too long or complex â rewrite them 2. Find any passive voice â convert to active 3. Suggest a stronger headline (give 5 options) 4. Check if the CTA at the end is compelling â improve it if not [paste your draft]
Write a follow-up email to a prospect who showed interest in our [product/service] at a networking event 5 days ago but hasn't responded to my first email. Context: - They are: [job title at company type] - Their pain point: [what problem they mentioned] - Our solution: [what we offer] - Tone: Professional but warm, not pushy Requirements: - Subject line: reference our meeting, not generic - Body: under 100 words - End with a specific, easy-to-answer question (not "are you interested?") - No "I hope this email finds you well"
Subject: Quick follow-up from [Event Name] â [their company]
Hi [Name],
Really enjoyed our chat at [Event] about the inventory tracking challenges at [Company]. Your point about the manual reconciliation process stuck with me â it's exactly the problem [Our Product] was built to solve.
We've helped similar [industry] companies cut reconciliation time by 60%. Worth a 20-minute call to see if there's a fit?
What does your calendar look like Thursday or Friday this week?
Best,
[Your name]
The secret: Claude writes better fiction when you give it constraints. Paradoxically, "write me a short story" produces weaker results than a highly specific prompt.
Write a short story (400-500 words) with these constraints: Genre: [e.g. psychological thriller, literary fiction, sci-fi] Setting: [specific time and place] POV: [first person / third limited] Main character: [2-3 defining traits, not a physical description] Central conflict: [internal or external â describe it in one sentence] Opening line: Must start with a piece of dialogue Ending: Ambiguous â don't resolve the conflict cleanly Tone: [e.g. tense, melancholic, darkly comedic]
From bug squashing to full feature builds â Claude is a powerful coding partner when used correctly.
Important: Always review Claude's code before running it in production. Claude can write excellent code but can also make subtle mistakes, especially with edge cases or security-sensitive logic.
The most common mistake is pasting only the error message. Claude needs the surrounding code, what you expected to happen, and what actually happened.
I'm getting this error in my [Python/JavaScript/etc] code: ERROR: [paste full error message and stack trace] Here is the relevant code: ```[language] [paste your code] ``` What I expected: [describe expected behaviour] What's actually happening: [describe the bug] Please: 1. Explain what's causing the error in plain English 2. Show me the fixed code 3. Explain what you changed and why
Once the main bug is fixed, ask Claude to look for other potential issues in the same code.
Now review the fixed code for: 1. Any other potential bugs or edge cases I should handle 2. Security vulnerabilities (especially input validation) 3. Performance issues 4. Any Python/JS best practices I'm not following Be specific â point to exact lines.
I need to build [describe the feature] in [language/framework]. Context about my project: - Stack: [e.g. Python/FastAPI, React/Node, etc.] - Database: [e.g. PostgreSQL, MongoDB, SQLite] - Existing relevant code: [paste any related functions/models] Requirements: 1. [Requirement 1] 2. [Requirement 2] 3. [Requirement 3] Please: - Write the complete implementation - Add comments explaining non-obvious logic - Include basic error handling - Show example usage at the bottom
Explain this code to me as if I'm a [junior developer / intermediate developer / non-technical person]: ```[language] [paste code here] ``` Please cover: 1. What this code does overall (1-2 sentences) 2. Walk through it line by line (or block by block for long code) 3. Explain any patterns, algorithms, or design choices used 4. Note anything that could be improved or is unusual
Claude is a powerful research assistant â best used to synthesise and analyse information you provide, rather than as a source of facts.
Critical note: Claude can hallucinate citations and facts, especially for obscure topics. Always verify specific claims, statistics, and citations against primary sources before using them in any important work.
I'm going to share a [report / paper / contract / article] with you. My goal is: [e.g. understand the key arguments, identify risks, extract action items] My background: [e.g. I'm not an expert in this field / I'm a specialist looking for a second opinion] Here is the document: [paste document] Please: 1. Give me a 3-paragraph executive summary 2. List the 5 most important points 3. Identify any claims that seem weak, unsupported, or contradictory 4. Note anything I should pay special attention to given my goal
Based on the document: - "What are the strongest counterarguments to the main thesis?" - "Compare the methodology in section 3 to standard practice in this field." - "What questions would an expert critic ask about this work?" - "If this report is correct, what are the practical implications for [my situation]?"
I have [number] sources on the topic of [topic]. I'll paste them below. SOURCE 1: [paste] SOURCE 2: [paste] SOURCE 3: [paste] Please: 1. Identify where these sources AGREE â what do they all say? 2. Identify where they DISAGREE â what are the key differences? 3. Assess which source seems most credible and why 4. Synthesise the key conclusions in 200 words 5. What questions remain unanswered across all sources?
From strategy to day-to-day operations â Claude can act as a full-time business thinking partner.
I run a [type of business] called [name] that [what you do] targeting [customers]. Our main competitors are: [list 3-5 competitors] Based on your knowledge of these companies, help me: 1. Identify the key differentiators each competitor uses in their messaging 2. Find gaps in the market none of them are addressing 3. Suggest 3 positioning angles we could use to stand out 4. What do their customers commonly complain about? (This is our opportunity) Format as a structured analysis with a summary recommendation at the end.
I need marketing copy for [product/service]. Target customer: [describe them in detail â job, frustrations, goals, what they read] Core value proposition: [the ONE thing that makes us different] Proof point: [a stat, testimonial, or result we can cite] Tone: [e.g. bold and direct / warm and friendly / professional] Platform: [e.g. homepage hero, Facebook ad, email subject line] Write: 1. Three headline options (under 10 words each) 2. Two subheadline options (under 20 words each) 3. A 50-word body copy option 4. Three CTA button text options
Help me write a constructive performance review for a team member. Role: [job title] Strengths I've observed: [list 3-4 specific examples] Areas for improvement: [list 2-3 with specific examples] Goal for next period: [1-2 key objectives] Overall rating: [e.g. meets expectations, exceeds, needs improvement] Tone: Honest, specific, encouraging, focused on growth Format: Professional written review, 3-4 paragraphs, no bullet points