The Vibe Requirements Document (VRD): A New Framework for Prompt Crafting and Creative AI Design

As artificial intelligence rapidly becomes a creative partner in everything from writing and design to app development and storytelling, our approach to working with it will evolve. Traditional frameworks like Product Requirements Documents (PRDs) do a great job in structured environments with clear technical deliverables. But AI, especially generative AI, thrives in ambiguity, artistry, and intuition. It’s not just about what something does, it’s about how it feels. This is the foundation of a new creative methodology: vibe coding. And to guide that method, we need a new tool: the Vibe Requirements Document (VRD).

What Is Vibe Coding?

Before we dig into the VRD, let’s define vibe coding.

Vibe coding is the art of working with language models (or other generative AI systems) by focusing not on logic or explicit functionality, but on tone, emotion, style, and aesthetic intent. Rather than writing precise functions or specs, you guide the AI through narrative energy and emotional resonance. You’re not coding what it should do, you’re coding how it should feel.

This might sound abstract, but it’s something creatives have done for years. A film director doesn’t tell a composer what notes to use, they describe mood. A brand strategist doesn’t define exact pixel arrangements, they outline energy, values, and personality.

Vibe coding applies this mindset to AI. And just like any other design process, it benefits from a shared reference point. That’s where the Vibe Requirements Document comes in.

Why We Need the VRD

LLMs like GPT-4 and Claude, as well as AI web development agents like Bolt and Lovable, respond not just to data but to contextual signals. A prompt written with a cold, formal tone will produce a cold, formal output. One written with poetic rhythm and metaphor will tend to evoke something more lyrical. Prompt engineering, then, is not just about content, it’s about the vibe and feel of the prompt.

Yet for beginners, or even seasoned creatives working with LLMs, it’s easy to get lost in iteration loops. You try one prompt, then another, then adjust a few words, and eventually you forget what the original goal even was. The vibe drifts.

The VRD solves this problem by offering a written, human-centered blueprint for the intended tone, emotion, and expressive boundaries of an AI interaction. It’s a prompt about the prompting. A declaration of aesthetic intent.

Rather than focusing on outputs like “a chatbot that answers questions about my brand,” the VRD focuses on intent like “a chatbot that feels like a supportive big sister who gives real talk in the style of Gen Z memes meets Maya Angelou.”

In short, it captures the soul of the experience, not just the skeleton.

What’s Inside a Vibe Requirements Document?

A VRD isn’t rigid or technical. It’s part design document, part mood board, part manifesto. Here's what a typical VRD might include:

1. Vibe Summary

A short, high-level paragraph that describes the overall aesthetic goal. Think of this like a cinematic pitch or mood-setting statement.

“This experience should feel like a late-night conversation in a quiet diner—intimate, a little melancholic, but full of hope. The tone is gentle but real. Think early Springsteen lyrics meets a warm cup of coffee.”

This sets the compass for everything that follows.

2. Emotional Targets

What should the user feel? Confident? Curious? Nostalgic? This section outlines the emotional trajectory.

• Initial feel: Welcoming, slightly mysterious
  
  

• During interaction: Stimulated, emotionally engaged
  
  

• After interaction: Reflective, inspired, quietly moved
  
  

This isn't fluff, these affective signals shape how the AI is prompted and how the experience is tuned.

3. Stylistic Anchors

Here you list cultural or creative references that help define the tone, such as:

• "Imagine if Wes Anderson directed a TED Talk on ethics."
  
  

• "Tone like the 'Letters to a Young Poet' but with the wit of Fleabag."
  
  

• "Visual aesthetic: vaporwave x Bauhaus typography"
  
  

These anchors help align everyone working on the project, whether prompt writers, designers, or collaborators.

4. Creative Constraints

Boundaries aren’t limitations, they’re catalysts. Constraints help maintain coherence and avoid derailment.

Examples:

• Avoid: Corporate buzzwords, overly polished motivational phrases
  
  

• Must exclude: Explicit advice-giving unless prompted by the user
  
  

• Form: Dialogue-style only, no paragraphs longer than 4 sentences
  
  

These guide not only the AI but also the human operators shaping it.

5. User Profiles by Vibe

Traditional user personas focus on demographics or behavior. In the VRD, we care about resonance.

• The Wistful Explorer: A 30-something feeling stuck in routine, looking for something that rekindles wonder
  
  

• The Playful Creator: A teen building a zine and hungry for surreal inspiration
  
  

• The Skeptical Analyst: Wants data but will only trust it if it feels authentic
  
  

These vibe-centric personas help fine-tune how the AI “speaks” and how it adapts.

What Makes a VRD Different from a PRD?

While PRDs are engineered for functional clarity, VRDs are designed for emotional coherence. Here’s how they differ:

PRD

What does it do?

Defined features and specs

Stakeholder approval

Optimized for logic and code

Objective scope

VRD

What does it feel like?

Defined tone and emotional outcomes

Vibe alignment

Optimized for LLM and generative AI

Subjective resonance

They’re not enemies, they’re complementary. But when building for LLMs or any expressive interface, a VRD often matters more.

Who Should Use VRDs?

You don’t need to be a software engineer to write a VRD. In fact, VRDs are designed for creators without coding backgrounds. Artists, writers, brand strategists, solo entrepreneurs, UX designers, and product thinkers can all benefit from this tool.

Here are a few specific roles and how they might use it:

• Writers building a fictional world with AI assistance: Use a VRD to keep voice and atmosphere consistent.
  
  

• Startups designing AI-driven onboarding experiences: Use a VRD to ensure the tone matches their brand.
  
  

• Educators crafting an LLM tutor: Use a VRD to guide tone (e.g., “gentle Socratic mentor with a Mr. Rogers calmness”).
  
  

• Artists generating iterative visual prompts: Use a VRD to keep style cues aligned with the intended emotional arc.
  
  

Examples of VRD Applications

1. Brand Voice Training

A solo creator wants ChatGPT to write tweets in their voice, which is irreverent, slightly chaotic, but heartfelt. They create a VRD to train the model:

• Vibe Summary: Feels like your favorite aunt giving life advice while slightly tipsy on kombucha.
  
  

• Stylistic Anchors: Reductress headlines, Jerry Seinfeld, early Tumblr
  
  

• Emotional Target: Laughing, thinking, crying, in that order
  
  

2. AI Dungeon Master

A game designer creates a VRD to guide an LLM in narrating tabletop RPG campaigns:

• Vibe Summary: A haunted librarian telling you stories from the forgotten wing of the castle.
  
  

• Constraints: No fourth-wall breaking, avoid modern references, vocabulary skewed toward Victorian gothic
  
  

• Target Audience: 20–40 y/o narrative-driven players who enjoy melancholy mixed with mystery
  
  

Tips for Writing a Great VRD

• Write like you’re describing a film scene, not a spec sheet.
  
  

• Use evocative language—the document is about resonance, not precision.
  
  

• Update as you go. VRDs evolve with creative iteration.
  
  

• Involve others. Co-create the VRD if you’re working in a team; it helps align everyone emotionally.
  
  

• Test with output. Regularly check if AI responses still align with your VRD. If not, revise.
  
  

Conclusion: Vibe-First is the Future

As generative AI becomes more ubiquitous, we need tools that reflect the reality of how we build with it. Vibe coding isn’t a passing trend—it’s a recognition that modern tools respond to intention more than instruction.

The Vibe Requirements Document (VRD) is a compass for that intention. It gives language to what we often feel but can’t always articulate. It’s especially powerful for non-programmers, artists, and visionaries who want to shape AI experiences without getting lost in code.

More than anything, VRDs remind us that creation is not just about what we make—but how we make people feel.

And if you get the vibe right, who knows what will happen.