WF-002: Hemingway Technique

DOCUMENT CONTROL

Field	Value
WF ID	WF-002
Version	1.0
Status	Active
Last Updated	December 2025

Overview

The Hemingway Technique involves stopping work at a point where you know what comes next, making it easier to resume. With Happy Coder, you can set up tomorrow's work from bed without being at your desk.

The Concept

Ernest Hemingway would stop writing mid-sentence, knowing what came next. This made it easier to start the next day. Happy Coder enables the same pattern for coding:

┌─────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────┐
│                  HEMINGWAY TECHNIQUE FOR CODING                 │
├─────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────┤
│                                                                 │
│  TRADITIONAL                         WITH HAPPY CODER           │
│  ┌─────────────────┐                ┌─────────────────┐        │
│  │ Work late to    │                │ Relax in bed    │        │
│  │ finish feature  │                │ with phone      │        │
│  │      OR         │                │      ↓          │        │
│  │ Leave it broken │                │ 5-min planning  │        │
│  │ until tomorrow  │                │ with Claude     │        │
│  └────────┬────────┘                │      ↓          │        │
│           │                         │ Go to sleep     │        │
│           ▼                         │      ↓          │        │
│  ┌─────────────────┐                │ Wake up to      │        │
│  │ Hard restart    │                │ completed code  │        │
│  │ next morning    │                └─────────────────┘        │
│  └─────────────────┘                                           │
│                                                                 │
└─────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────┘

Workflow Phases

┌─────────────┬─────────────┬─────────────┬─────────────┐
│  EVENING    │  PLANNING   │  OVERNIGHT  │  MORNING    │
│  SETUP      │  SESSION    │  EXECUTION  │  REVIEW     │
├─────────────┼─────────────┼─────────────┼─────────────┤
│ Open app    │ Describe    │ Claude      │ Wake to     │
│ in bed      │ tomorrow's  │ works while │ notification│
│             │ task        │ you sleep   │             │
│ Instead of  │             │             │ Review      │
│ scrolling   │ 5-min       │ Code gets   │ completed   │
│ social      │ planning    │ generated   │ work        │
│ media       │ mode        │             │             │
└─────────────┴─────────────┴─────────────┴─────────────┘

Step-by-Step Procedure

Phase 1: Evening Setup (5 minutes)

Time: Before bed, instead of scrolling social media

1. Open Happy Coder on your phone
2. Start the bedtime agent:

   /bedtime

3. The agent searches for simple, actionable tasks
4. Review suggestions - agent shows:
   • Issue title and ID
   • "Quick Win Factor" rating
   • Missing information needed
   • Overnight success probability

Phase 2: Planning Session

1. Select a task from agent recommendations
2. Describe any additional context:

   "For the logout button, put it in the settings dropdown,
   and make sure it clears the auth token"

3. Enter planning mode:

   /plan

4. Review Claude's approach - 2-3 minutes
5. Approve the plan

Phase 3: Overnight Execution

1. Put phone on charger
2. Go to sleep
3. Claude works on your task
4. Relay server stores encrypted progress

Phase 4: Morning Review

1. Wake up to notification: "4 files to review, 237 lines added"
2. Open Happy Coder or go to desktop
3. Review the changes
4. Start day with momentum

Bedtime Agent Configuration

Add to ~/.claude/agents/bedtime.md:

---
name: bedtime
description: Find simple coding tasks for overnight work
tools: [Linear MCP tools, Read, Write]
model: opus
color: pink
---

You are a friendly issue analyst helping find simple,
actionable tasks perfect for evening coding sessions.

**Selection Criteria:**
- Clear, well-defined scope
- Bug fixes or small features
- No architectural decisions needed
- Completable in single session
- Enough context to start immediately

**Avoid:**
- Major refactoring
- Needs stakeholder input
- Ambiguous requirements
- Critical infrastructure changes
- Needs design mockups

Example Session

10:30 PM - In Bed

You: /bedtime

Agent: Found 3 good candidates for tonight:

🌙 **Add rate limiting to API** [PROJ-234]
📝 The Pitch: Simple middleware addition, well-documented
   pattern already exists in codebase
⚡ Quick Win Factor: Simple
❓ Missing Info: None - ready to go!
🎯 Overnight Success: High
💡 Approach: Copy existing rate limiter pattern from
   auth endpoints

---

I'd tackle the rate limiting tonight. Here's your plan_mode
prompt: "Add rate limiting to /api/data endpoint using the
same pattern as auth endpoints, limit 100 req/min per user"

You: "Go with the rate limiting one"

10:35 PM

[Claude enters planning mode]
[You approve 3-step plan]
[Put phone on charger]
[Sleep]

7:00 AM - Morning

Notification: "✅ Rate limiting complete - 3 files changed"

[Review shows clean implementation]
[Tests passing]
[Ready to merge]

Success Criteria

• [ ] Task selected in under 5 minutes
• [ ] No complex decisions required
• [ ] Claude can work autonomously overnight
• [ ] Wake up to reviewable code
• [ ] Start day with forward momentum

Why This Works

Factor	Impact
Low activation energy	5 minutes vs 20+ minutes at desk
Uses otherwise wasted time	Replaces social media scrolling
Hands don't hurt	Voice or minimal typing
Builds habit	Easy enough to do consistently
Compounds	Small wins add up

Related Documents

• SOP-004: Voice Coding
• WF-001: Mobile Development Workflow