APODICTIC Development Editor

How It Works — The Router

Start with /start. Three questions route you to the right workflow.

Q1: What do you have?

idea · fragments · partial · complete draft · series

→

Q2: What do you want?

options depend on Q1

→

Q3: Any constraints?

deadline · AI-written · nonfiction · risk

→

Workflow

routed automatically

Q1 determines what you're working with:

Idea — no prose yet (logline, premise, notes) → routes to Pre-Writing Pathway
Fragments — disconnected scenes/sketches, no continuous narrative → Fragment Synthesis
Partial — draft in progress, not finished → Core DE with partial-manuscript flag
Complete draft — beginning, middle, and end exist → Core DE
Series — multiple books in a shared world → series-aware routing

Q2 options change based on Q1. For a complete draft:

Figure out what's wrong → Core DE (general diagnostic)
Check submission readiness → Core DE → Pass 11
Clean up AI-assisted prose → Core DE + AI-Prose Calibration
Sort through beta reader feedback → Feedback Triage → Core DE

Q3 modifies how the workflow runs:

On a deadline → Fast Triage (Pass 1 only, 3 interventions max)
Parts written with AI → adds AI-Prose Calibration overlay
Nonfiction → nonfiction-specific workflow adjustments
Sensitive/risky content → adds risk flagging
Editing someone else's work → editor-facing output framing

What It Analyzes — Macro Blocks

The system runs the passes your question requires, grouped into blocks you can understand.

Structure Map

"Is the structure working?"

Pass 0: Reverse Outline Pass 2: Structural Mapping

Beat map, causal chain, proportional analysis. Identifies structural breaks, missing acts, proportion problems.

Reader Dynamics

"Does the pacing hold?"

Pass 1: Reader Experience Pass 3: Rhythm & Modulation

Naive-reader tracking: confusion, boredom, delight, belief breaks. Quantitative pacing analysis.

Character Architecture

"Are my characters landing?"

Pass 5: Character Audit Pass 7: POV & Voice +Pass 4 if emotionally driven

Psychology engine (Wound→Lie→Want→Need→Fear), agency quotient, arc tracking, voice distinctiveness, POV distribution.

Scene Delivery

"Are the scenes doing their jobs?"

Pass 6: Scene Function Pass 7: POV & Voice

Scene legitimacy, function verification (8 scene functions), scene-sequel mechanics.

Reveal Economy

"Is the information flow right?"

Pass 8: Reveal Economy

Information pressure, clue economy, fairness tests, dramatic irony tracking.

Theme & Continuity

"Does it cohere?"

Pass 9: Thematic Coherence Pass 10: Entity Tracking

Motif alignment, controlling idea, continuity of people/places/rules/facts.

Submission Readiness

"Is this ready?"

Pass 11: Critical Quality & Market Viability

Prose quality diagnostic, critical verdict, market reality check, first-50 conversion gate, revision economics.

Genre Modules — Loaded at Intake

Genre modules modify how passes run. They recalibrate thresholds, add tracking, and adjust false-positive warnings.

Genre Module

Literary Fiction

Thematic depth, ambiguity, psychological complexity. Priority: Pass 9.

Genre Module

Horror (Psychological)

Dread escalation, reality destabilization, certainty axis. Priority: Pass 4 + Pass 1.

Genre Module

Science Fiction / Fantasy

World rule consistency, Sanderson's Laws, integration tests. Priority: Pass 10.

Genre Module

Romance / Erotic

Relationship engine, trust-rupture-repair cycle, 15 named flags. Priority: Pass 4 + Pass 5.

Genre Module

Mystery

Information pressure, clue economy, fair play tests. Priority: Pass 8.

Genre Module

Thriller

Threat escalation, clock pressure, protagonist competence. Priority: Pass 3.

Specialized Audits — Deep Dives

Audits run alongside or after passes. Some are recommended automatically based on your genre and findings; all are available via /audit [name].

Craft (universal)

Genre-specific

Tag (experience layer)

Research mode

Craft

Character Architecture

Psychology engine, arc types, agency quotient

Craft

Scene Turn

Entry/exit charge, turn identification, scene-sequel

Craft

Emotional Craft

Emotional precision, earned moments, sentiment tracking

Craft

Dialectical Clarity

Argument structure, thesis-antithesis balance

Craft

Shelf Positioning

Target reader, comps, signal audit, BISAC codes

Craft

Series & Composite Novel

Standalone function, hope calibration, distance

Craft

Interiority Preservation

POV interiority during peak-intensity scenes

Craft

Female Interiority

20 flags for interiority thinning patterns

Craft

Banister (Epistemic Humility)

Rhetorical fairness, straw opposition

Craft

Literary Craft Deep Dive

22 flags, load-bearing vs. ornamental analysis

Craft

AI-Prose Calibration

Voice singularity, echo stacks, register seams

Craft

Force Architecture

25 flags, force-delivery integration, consequence

Craft

Short Fiction

Compression, single-effect design, ending resonance

Genre

Horror Craft Integration

23 flags, dread architecture, 9 subgenre calibrations

Genre

Mystery/Thriller Architecture

28 flags, information pressure, clue/herring/clock

Genre

SFF Worldbuilding Integration

20 flags, five-dimension framework, load-bearing

Genre

Comedy & Satire

Comedic timing, landing rate, tonal integration

Genre

Historical Fiction

Period authenticity, research integration

Genre

Memoir & Creative Nonfiction

Truth-craft balance, Gornick Layer, ethics

Genre

Narrative Nonfiction Craft

Scene construction, source integration

Genre

Fan Fiction Conversion

IP scaffolding, worldbuilding gaps, character independence

Genre

Queer Romance/Erotica

Pronoun clarity, trope navigation, joy/struggle

Tag

Cozy

Safety envelope, belonging engine, restoration arc

Tag

Philosophical

Question architecture, dramatic embodiment

Tag

Erotic Content

8 flags, consent calculus, heat level calibration

Tag

Consent Complexity

Consent timeline, boundary tracking, power dynamics

Research

Comp Validation

Verify comps are current and query-ready

Research

Genre Contract Currency

Current market expectations for your subgenre

Research

Factual Verification

Spot-check real-world claims

Research

Representation Context

Community discourse for outside-experience writing

Common Workflows

I have a complete draft and want to know what's wrong

/start → full_draft → repair → Core DE (passes 0, 1, 2, 5, 8) → Synthesis

My characters feel flat

/start → full_draft → repair (targeted: characters) → passes 0, 1, 5, 7 → Character Architecture audit

I have an idea and need to figure out the structure

/start → idea → draft → Pre-Writing Pathway

Is my horror novel ready to submit?

/start → full_draft → submit → all passes + Pass 11 + Horror Craft audit + Shelf Positioning

I'm stuck mid-draft and don't know why

/start → partial → repair (diagnostic) → Core DE (partial flag) → Synthesis

I used AI to draft and need to fix the voice

/start → full_draft → repair → constraint: AI → Core DE + AI-Prose Calibration

Plot Architecture — 48 Spines

Spine diagnosis, selection coaching, and structural triage. Available via /plot-coach or recommended during diagnosis.

Linear/Teleological (5): Save the Cat, Three-Act, Fichtean, Freytag, Hero's Journey

Circular/Recursive (4): Spiral, Fugue, Loop, Braided

Information/Knowledge (5): Mystery, Howcatchem, Revelatory, Conspiracy, Puzzle Box

Relationship/Erotic (5): Courtship, Seduction, Captivity, Training, Betrayal-of-Self

Moral/Social (4): Corruption, Redemption, Justice/Revenge, Scapegoat

Constraint/Environment (4): Siege, Countdown, Procedural, Quest

Time/Causality (3): Nonlinear, Reverse Chronology, Two-Handed

Existential/Identity (5): Bildungsroman, Doppelgänger, Transformation, Aftermath, Prophecy

Tonal/Hybrid (4): Thriller, Psych Horror, Faustian, Rashomon

Rhythm/Intensity (3): Wave/Pulse, Lullaby, Pressure Cooker

Format/Frame (4): Episodic, Clinical Case File, Nested Dolls, Talisman

Transformation Extended (2): Heroine's Journey, Seven-Point