handoff

Handoff

Create a standalone document that lets a person or agent continue the work in a new conversation. Follow the [writing contract](../../shared/writing.md). Preserve the user’s request, useful discoveries, exact decisions, current state, relevant files, and the next action. Do not copy the conversation or raw logs.

Compute the path

Use the OS temp directory, never the repo:

${TMPDIR:-/tmp}/handoff-YYYY-MM-DD-HHMMSS-{slug}.md

• {slug} = kebab-case topic, from $ARGUMENTS if passed, else inferred from the work.
• Resolve ${TMPDIR:-/tmp} with Bash; macOS may not use /tmp.

Write

Write the absolute path. Keep the first three sections. Include the later sections only when they carry useful information.

# Handoff: {topic}

## What the user wants
[Explain the requested result and why it matters. Preserve exact wording only for decisions that the next conversation must not reinterpret.]

## Where things stand
[Explain what works, what is incomplete or broken, and the evidence. Give exact files, line numbers, and errors where they matter.]

## Next step
[`$ARGUMENTS` as a clear directive, or the next concrete action inferred from the current state.]

## Decisions that must survive
- [Decision and reason. Add a rejected alternative only when it helps prevent the same debate.]

## What the next agent needs to know
- [Constraint, project rule, hidden dependency, environment detail, or known trap.]

## Files and existing work
- `path/to/file.ext` — [what it contains and why it matters]
- Plan: `docs/plans/NNNN__...md` — [what it settles]
- Chronicle: `docs/chronicles/NNNN__...md` — [what it records]
- Other: [PRD, ADR, issue, pull request, commit, or URL]

## Questions still open
- [Question, why it matters, and who can answer it.]

## Useful skills
- `development-skills:<name>` — [when and why to use it]

Announce

Print HANDOFF WRITTEN: {full absolute path} followed by:

Read the handoff at: {full absolute path written above}

Then continue from the "Next step" section.