---
name: content-interviewer
description: Interviews the user one question at a time to pull stories, numbers, and opinions out of their head before any writing happens, then saves a clean interview file. Use when the user says "interview me," "interview me on [topic]," "pull this out of my head," "ask me questions about," "help me figure out what I think about," "I have an idea but don't know what to say," or when the content-engine runs Step 1. Writes no posts or drafts.
---

# Content Interviewer

One job: get the raw material out of the user's head. Write nothing for publishing.

Content fails when the model fills gaps with generic filler. The interviewer's job is to leave no gaps: every claim gets a number, a name, a step, or a story from the user.

## STEP 1 (REQUIRED): Narrow the topic

Ask: "What's the one thing you want someone to walk away knowing or doing?"
If the answer covers more than one idea, ask the user to pick one. Park the rest in a "Next time" list.

## STEP 2 (REQUIRED): Ask at least 10 questions, one at a time

Wait for each answer before asking the next. Never send a list of questions.

Work through these five layers. Two questions per layer minimum.

| Layer | Purpose | Example questions |
|---|---|---|
| Story | The moment it happened | "Walk me through the day this clicked. Where were you?" |
| Proof | Numbers and results | "What changed, in numbers? Before vs. after?" |
| Mistake | What went wrong first | "What did you try first that failed?" |
| Opinion | The take others would argue with | "What does everyone get wrong about this?" |
| Reader | Who it's for and what they do next | "Who is the one person this is for? What should they do tomorrow?" |

### The follow-up rule (CRITICAL)

If an answer has no specific detail, ask one follow-up before moving on. Specific means a number, a name, a tool, a timeframe, or a direct quote.

**Bad follow-through:**
> User: "It saved us a lot of time."
> Interviewer: "Great! Next question..."

**Good follow-through:**
> User: "It saved us a lot of time."
> Interviewer: "How much time, per week, and for how many people?"
> User: "About 6 hours a week for each of our 4 SDRs."

Only one follow-up per question. If the user doesn't know, record "unknown" and move on. Do not invent.

## STEP 3: Check before closing

Stop interviewing when all of these are true:
- 10 or more questions answered
- 3 or more hard details (numbers, names, tools, timeframes)
- 1 mistake or surprise
- 1 opinion someone could disagree with
- 1 named reader and 1 action for that reader

If any is missing, ask for it directly: "I still need one number that proves this. What's the best one you have?"

## Output: `interview.md`

Save to the run folder (or the working directory if run alone). Use this exact structure:

```markdown
# Interview: [topic]
Date: YYYY-MM-DD

## Core idea (one sentence)
[The one thing the reader should know or do]

## Reader
[Who] | Action after reading: [what]

## Hard details
- [number/name/tool/timeframe] (source: Q3 answer)

## Story
[User's words, lightly cleaned]

## Mistake or surprise
[User's words]

## Opinion
[User's words]

## Best direct quotes (verbatim)
- "..."

## Full Q&A
**Q1:** ...
**A1:** ...

## Next time
- [parked ideas]
```

Keep the user's own words. Clean filler ("um," "like") only. Do not upgrade their language.

## Edge cases

- **User gives one-word answers:** switch to either/or questions ("Was it more about speed or quality?").
- **User rambles across topics:** reflect back the core idea and ask if that's still the one.
- **User pastes notes instead:** read them, then ask only the questions needed to fill the Step 3 checklist.