As our team continues expanding and rebooting The Bionic Chips Diaries, we’ve noticed recurring confusion between our production documents and the in-universe materials created for the characters. This memo is intended to establish a consistent editorial standard for everyone contributing to the project.
The Core Principle
A writing document is not the same thing as a character document.
Although both may contain dates, schedules, or notes, they exist for entirely different purposes and should never be treated as interchangeable.
1. Writing Documents
Writing documents are internal production materials created for the writing team.
These include:
- Chapter outlines
- Timeline documents
- Story plans
- Scene breakdowns
- Character development notes
- Continuity documents
- World-building references
- Research notes
- ChatGPT brainstorming conversations
These materials exist solely to help writers organize the story, maintain continuity, and coordinate with one another. They are working documents and are never considered part of the fictional universe.
2. Character Documents
Character documents are in-universe artifacts that belong to the characters themselves.
Examples include:
- Personal diaries
- Daily planners
- Bullet journals
- School agendas
- Work planners
- Sketchbooks
- Notebooks
- Calendars
These documents should always reflect what the character would realistically create, not what the writing team needs.
A planner should contain appointments, reminders, deadlines, grocery lists, work schedules, or personal goals. It should not contain chapter summaries, scene descriptions, future plot points, or production notes.
The History of The Bionic Chips Diaries
The original The Bionic Chips Diaries was written by Bailee Song, writing in the voice of Julianne Blair. Those diary entries were presented as completed narrative pieces from Julianne’s perspective rather than as production notes or planning documents.
As the project has evolved into a collaborative effort with multiple writers, our internal documentation has naturally become much more extensive. We now rely on outlines, planning documents, and continuity guides to coordinate the growing cast, timelines, and interconnected storylines. These materials support the writing process but are separate from the fictional artifacts that appear within the story.
Applying This Standard
When creating a planner, always ask:
Would this character realistically write this?
If the answer is no, it belongs in a production document instead.
For example, Madison Yuan’s planner in early 2025 should primarily reflect her everyday responsibilities as an administrative assistant. It might include work shifts, meetings, errands, appointments, and personal reminders. It would not include chapter outlines, future character arcs, or references to events she has not yet experienced.
Likewise, a diary should capture a character’s thoughts, emotions, and observations from their own perspective at that moment in time. It should not explain information the character could not possibly know simply because the writers do.
Editorial Rule
Before publishing any diary, journal, planner, or notebook as part of the project, verify that it functions as an authentic in-universe object rather than a disguised writing outline.
If a document primarily helps the writers, it belongs in our production files.
If it primarily helps readers understand the character, it belongs in the fictional universe.
Maintaining this distinction keeps our workflow organized while making our fictional documents feel authentic, believable, and true to each character’s voice.
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