Write essays with research and section feedback
Teresa Torres drafts outlines with Claude Code in VS Code, asks it to improve hooks, add cited research, and review each section as she writes.
- Agent or tool
- Claude Code
- Topic
- Research & Data
- Reported on
- Lenny's Newsletter
- Added
- 2026-10-15
Why it matters
Research is mostly gathering, cleaning and comparing. Handing that groundwork to an agent leaves the person with the part that needs judgment: deciding what the findings mean. It is one of 67 sightings filed under Research & Data on Agent Sightings (number 21 by interest), and one of 164 involving Claude Code.
How you could try it
Here is a reusable prompt, written by us in our own words, that captures the task. Paste it into Claude Code or any similar agent and adjust the details to your situation.
Help me outline this essay. Strengthen the hook, research supporting points with citations, then review each section I paste back for clarity and evidence without rewriting my voice.
Tip: Start small: run it once on a low-stakes example, read what the agent did, and only then let it run on real work.
Source
Read the original first-hand account on Lenny's Newsletter: https://www.lennysnewsletter.com/p/everyone-should-be-using-claude-code. Our summary is a paraphrase; details are in the source.