Create New Post
Clicking New Post anywhere in My Calling Posts opens a 3-step wizard that collects just enough context to start a strong draft: a theme to anchor the angle, an idea or starting point, and the intent and length. The editor opens with the first draft already running.
The wizard solves the two failure modes of regular posting: the blank-page mornings when nothing comes, and the days when you have a half-thought but cannot quite turn it into a post. In both cases you walk in with very little and leave with a draft already in the editor.
Where to Open It From
The wizard can be opened from anywhere in My Calling Posts that exposes a New Post button:
- My Posts list: the New post button at the top of the table.
- My Themes tab: the New post button on any theme card pre-fills the selected theme.
- Calendar View: the New post button in the toolbar, and the + affordance on any future date (which also pre-fills a scheduled date).
Step 1: Pick a Theme
Theme anchors the angle, tone, and reference material the AI uses. It is the first thing the wizard locks in.
Your active Writing Themes are rendered as colored tone-cycle tiles, each with a letter badge and the theme description. Click any tile to select it. A small Create a new theme link below the grid opens the per-theme editor inline if you realize the theme you want does not exist yet (the new theme is auto-selected when you save).
A subdued No theme row sits beneath the grid for one-off posts that do not fit any of your pillars. Picking it is allowed but flagged as Not recommended: the resulting post will not flow into per-theme analytics, and the AI tiles on step 2 that depend on theme context are hidden.
Click Next to continue.
Step 2: What's On Your Mind?
The merged "what to write about" step. The textarea is the primary path; the preset chips below are an escape hatch when you are dry.
The screen is dominated by a single large textarea labeled "What's on your mind?" with a voice-dictation control built in:
- Type or dictate a few sentences. A question, a half-formed idea, or a paragraph all work.
- Paste a URL anywhere in the text. The wizard auto-detects http(s) links and the chain scrapes the first one into the editor's references before the first draft generates.
- Paste or drop in an image. Pasted images appear as thumbnails below the textarea and are attached to the post on Create draft.
If you have an idea, that is all you need. Click Next to move to step 3.
Or pick a starting point
Below the textarea, a row of preset chips offers AI-seeded directions for when you do not know what to say. Picking one dims the textarea (you can click back in to reactivate typing):
| Chip | What it does | When to pick it |
|---|---|---|
| Surprise me | The AI picks the direction freely based on your theme and your profile | When you have no preference and want the AI to make a call |
| A current trend | Reacts to something trending in your theme space | When you want to comment on what is happening in the field right now |
| From your background | Anchors the draft in a specific story, lesson, or pattern from your resume | When the most authentic post would be the one only you could write |
| A bold take | Generates a contrarian or sharp opinion that challenges conventional wisdom | When you want a post that gets engagement, not just impressions |
| A recent article | The AI picks a real recent article, scrapes it, and seeds the draft as a reaction | When reacting to a specific source feels stronger than reacting to a general trend |
Every preset except Surprise me needs a real theme, so they are disabled when you picked No theme on step 1.
Open blank editor
Below the chips, a wide subdued row reads Open blank editor. Picking it skips the AI entirely (and skips step 3 of the wizard) and drops you into a blank editor with the theme tagged for filtering and analytics.
Step 3: Intent and Length
The final step exposes the two stylistic levers that shape every draft: how the AI should approach the post, and how long it should be.
The step is skipped when you picked Open blank editor on step 2, since there is no AI to steer.
Intent
A visual picker with seven options:
| Intent | What it tells the AI |
|---|---|
| Auto | Default. Pick the best shape from the typed idea or chosen starting point. |
| Announcement | Share something new: a launch, update, change, or event. |
| Instruction | Teach with clear steps, checklists, or how-tos. |
| Explanation | Break down a concept, trend, or idea in simple terms. |
| Opinion | Share a thought, take, or belief. Argue a point of view or react to something you read. |
| Story | Tell what happened to you or to someone, and what it taught you. |
| Promotion | Encourage action with a clear call to try, join, or buy. |
A feed that is 80% Promotion posts exhausts the goodwill of anyone reading it; a feed that mixes Story, Opinion, Explanation, and the occasional Announcement is the one people actually keep following. When you plan your next handful of posts, glance at the Posts list and notice which intent tags are dominating. If Promotion is over-represented, spend the next two or three drafts on Story or Opinion instead.
Length
Three buckets, picked visually:
- Short form (about 280 characters): X-style one-liner.
- Medium form (up to about 2,200 characters): LinkedIn-style post.
- Long form (essay length): for posts that need room to breathe.
Length is the starting point. The system-managed format in the editor adjusts automatically as the body grows, so picking the wrong bucket here is not a trap.
Click Create draft to confirm. The wizard closes and the editor opens with the progress overlay running. Some paths (like "A recent article" or a typed URL) take a few extra seconds because the AI has to fetch the article first.
After Create Draft
Clicking Create draft closes the wizard and opens the Post Editor on a new draft. The first version of the body streams in while you watch on the Write stage.
From there you can edit by hand, talk to the Ghostwriter to refine the draft, generate or upload cover images on the Cover stage, and ship from the Publish stage. If you change your mind, just close the editor. The post stays in your list as a draft and you can come back later, or delete it.
Tips & Best Practices
- Pre-pick the theme by clicking New post on a theme card. It is faster than scrolling the theme grid inside the wizard.
- Type something, even rough, on step 2. Two or three sentences gives the AI a much better anchor than a tile on its own.
- Paste the URL into the textarea, not a separate field. Auto-detection means you do not need an extra step.
- Use the preset chips when you are stuck, not as a default. The most authentic posts are the ones you start from your own raw take. Treat the chips as an unblocker.
- Pick the right Intent. Auto is fine for most posts, but if you specifically want a contrarian take or a teaching post, set the intent explicitly.
- Open blank editor without guilt. If neither path fits what you want, the blank row is one click away.
Frequently Asked Questions
Q: Can I save my progress in the wizard and come back later? A: No. The wizard state is in-memory only. Closing it discards everything except the pre-created empty post, which you can delete from the Posts list. The wizard is designed to be short enough to finish in one sitting.
Q: What if the AI draft is not good? A: That is what the Post Editor is for. The first AI draft is a starting point. Talk to the Ghostwriter on the Write stage to refine the body, drop personal anecdotes into Context references and ask for a rewrite, or edit by hand. See Posts & Post Editor.
Q: What happens if a pasted URL cannot be scraped? A: The new post is created with whatever the AI could draft from your typed text alone, and the URL stays available for you to retry from the editor.
Q: What is "No theme"? A: The escape hatch on step 1 for one-off posts that do not fit any of your Writing Themes. The resulting post is not tagged to any theme, so it will not flow into per-theme analytics, but it can still be published normally. Preset chips that need theme context are hidden when "No theme" is selected.
Q: Can I attach images at this stage or do I have to wait for the editor? A: Both. Pasting or dropping images into the step 2 textarea attaches them on Create draft. You can also add or generate more images later from the editor's Cover stage. See the post image generation section in Posts & Post Editor.
Related Topics
The fastest path from a vague idea to a strong post is not staring at a blinking cursor. The wizard makes the first move for you so you can spend your effort on the only part that has to be yours: the specific, personal anchor that turns a generic take into something only you could have written.