The Ideation Issue
Where the first week went — nine studios on writing before sketching, and what that did to the work.
The week writing replaced sketching. Several studios described a new first week: not sketching, but writing. A page of prose about what the thing should feel like before anyone opened a canvas.
That shift is not romantic. It is practical. When generation is cheap, the expensive move is deciding what deserves to exist. The ideation week used to be sticky notes and a wall. Now it is a document you can argue with — and a set of rejects you can show without shame.
Nine voices disagree on tools and agree on tempo: slow the front so the middle can be ruthless. This issue is that argument, laid out.
“We stopped asking what it looks like. We asked what it refuses.”
Written by the Club. Not an interview template. Scan the numbers; linger where you argue.