prd-task-creator

PRD Task Creator

Write a clear, actionable PRD or task — output depends on where the user tracks work.

Contract

Inputs:

• Feature, bug, enhancement, or planning request
• Destination preference: GitHub issue, local PRD/task file, or both
• Optional parent issue, labels, assignee, and priority

Outputs:

• Draft PRD or task body
• Destination-specific create command or file path
• Created issue/file URL or path after approval

Creates/Modifies:

• Local .agents/memory/<kebab-name>.md PRD files only after draft approval
• GitHub issues/sub-issues only after draft approval

External Side Effects:

• Reads GitHub issue state
• May create GitHub issues, sub-issues, or issue branches

Confirmation Required:

• Always show the draft before creating files or GitHub issues
• Ask before linking sub-issues or creating issue branches

Delegates To:

• spec-first when implementation constraints are still unclear
• tdd when the work should be executed test-first
• gh-fix-ci for CI failures after implementation
• roadmap-analyzer for roadmap-level planning
• cto-advisor for technical strategy and architecture tradeoffs

Step 1: Detect workflow preference

Check in order:

1. User explicitly says "GitHub issue", "local file", or both
2. Check if gh auth status succeeds and a GitHub remote exists → GitHub available
3. If ambiguous, ask: "GitHub issue, local PRD file in .agents/memory/, or both?"

Step 2: Understand the request

Ask only what's missing:

• What problem does this solve?
• Who's affected? (user-facing, internal, infra)
• Any hard constraints or dependencies?
• Is this part of a larger epic? (→ sub-issue)
• Priority: critical / high / medium / low

Step 3: Research before writing

• Read relevant architecture docs in .agents/memory/ (look for architecture, summary, or context files)
• Search codebase for related patterns
• Check for existing issues: gh issue list --search "[keyword]"

Step 4: Write the PRD

See references/full-guide.md for the full PRD structure.

A good PRD has:

• Problem — why this exists, what breaks without it
• Goal — one sentence, measurable outcome
• Scope — what's in, what's explicitly out
• Acceptance criteria — EARS (WHEN/WHILE/WHERE/IF … THE SYSTEM SHALL …), testable, not vague
• Technical notes — approach, risks, dependencies

Acceptance criteria must be EARS-shaped and checkable by a human.

Agent-ready issue rules

When the output is an issue for an autonomous or AFK agent, write it as an agent brief, not a stream-of-consciousness plan:

• Describe behavior and contracts, not file-by-file instructions.
• Avoid line numbers and brittle file paths unless the path is itself the contract.
• Include current behavior, desired behavior, acceptance criteria, and out of scope.
• Name public interfaces, CLI commands, API shapes, config keys, or data contracts when known.
• Keep implementation notes as constraints, not a script the agent must follow.

Vertical-slice breakdown

When breaking an epic, PRD, or plan into issues:

• Prefer thin vertical slices that produce a verifiable outcome.
• Mark each issue as AFK when an agent can complete it without more human input.
• Mark each issue as HITL when it needs a human decision, design review, credential, or product judgment.
• Publish blockers before blocked issues so dependencies can reference real issue IDs.
• Keep each sub-issue small enough for one focused PR.

Step 5: Output to correct destination

GitHub (primary if available)

New issue:

gh issue create \
  --title "[type]: clear title" \
  --body "$(cat <<'BODY'
[PRD content here]
BODY
)" \
  --label "type:feature" \
  --assignee "@me"

Sub-issue (linked to parent):

# Create sub-issue
gh issue create --title "..." --body "..." 

# Link as sub-issue to parent #N
gh issue develop N --checkout  # only if needed
# Use: gh api repos/{owner}/{repo}/issues/{parent}/sub_issues --method POST -f sub_issue_id={child_id}

Draft PR from issue:

gh issue develop [issue-number] --branch "feature/[name]"

Local files (optional, or when no GitHub)

• PRD: .agents/memory/[kebab-name].md

See references/full-guide.md for local file templates.

Step 6: Get approval before creating

Show the draft PRD. Wait for "looks good" or edits. Then create.

Rules

• disable-model-invocation: true → only runs when user explicitly invokes
• Never create files or GitHub issues without user seeing the draft first
• Sub-issues should be small enough to ship in one PR
• If requirements are unclear, write the problem statement first — not the solution
• If rejecting an enhancement as out of scope, record durable reasoning in .out-of-scope/<concept>.md when the repo uses local out-of-scope memory.

Related

• spec-first — spec-driven development before writing code
• tdd — red-green-refactor execution for tasks with clear behavior
• gh-fix-ci — fix CI on existing PRs
• roadmap-analyzer — broader roadmap planning
• cto-advisor — technical strategy and architecture tradeoffs