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Make a start
One step at a time.
3 steps
Start with the synthetic worked example or other non-sensitive inputs. Run one prompt at a time in your chosen AI tool. Replace any bracketed placeholders with the requested material, check each reply, and supply the source or earlier outputs that step needs. Paste them again if the tool lacks that context.
Start with the synthetic example, then adapt each prompt to your task.
01
Open a chat and use the complete sample
An empty state is the message shown when a screen has no content to display. Open https://chatgpt.com. If you have access, choose New chat. Copy all the instructions below (the prompt), including the SAMPLE INPUT, into the message box and send it. You do not need to upload a file. You should see three screen-copy blocks with distinct reasons and actions. The wording can differ from the worked example, but the facts and constraints must agree. If you cannot access this service, use another text assistant available to you; account requirements and limits may differ.
Your starting prompt
Write empty-screen copy for the three specified states. Make the reason and next action different in each. Never describe a loading failure as an empty library. Use only the supplied facts; mark missing information rather than inventing it. Return written text only. Do not send, publish or change anything in another service.
SAMPLE INPUT
Made-up example for practice. All people, organizations, records and product behavior below are fictional.
Fictional app: Shelf project library. State A: user has no saved projects; Add project opens a blank project form. State B: saved projects exist but the current search has no matches; Clear search removes only the search text, not any saved project. State C: a connection problem prevents the project list loading; Try again retries loading and the app cannot currently know whether the library is empty. Need title, one-sentence body, and one button per state. No illustrations required.
02
Compare, correct and save
Compare the answer with the complete sample input and the checks below. State C does not claim the library has no projects. If a fact is missing, changed or invented, paste the correction prompt below into the same chat. Read the revised result again; if it still fails, correct the text yourself before using it. Copy the reviewed result into a new note or text document. Keep real publication, decisions and sending for a separate human review.
Your starting prompt
Check your previous answer against the SAMPLE INPUT in my first message. Test each point below. For a failure, show the problem and then return a complete corrected answer; for a missing source fact, keep it explicitly unknown. Do not invent a successful check.
- State C does not claim the library has no projects.
- Clear search is described as removing search text, never deleting projects.
- Only the three supplied button labels are used.
03
Optional: use your own facts
Open a new chat. Copy the prompt below and replace [PASTE YOUR INPUT HERE] with your own non-sensitive source text, facts and limits for this task. Include any desired headings, count or length. Send the whole message. Expect the same kind of written result, using your facts. Check every source fact and limit yourself; the example’s names and totals do not apply. If a detail differs, show the exact mismatch and ask for a complete correction. Save the checked draft before any separate decision to use or send it.
Your starting prompt
Write empty-screen copy for every state below, using its actual reason and available next action. Keep genuinely empty, filtered-out and failed-to-load states distinct. Do not invent app features.
Use only my input. Ask for information needed to finish rather than guessing. Return written text only; do not send, publish, book, submit or change another service.
MY INPUT
[PASTE YOUR INPUT HERE]
Optional: improve the result
Write a compact layout version
Try shorter wording without erasing the distinction between states. This extension uses the worked example. Return to that example chat, or paste its input and your checked example answer into a new chat first. Do not apply its sample values unchanged to your own input.
Advanced prompt
Rewrite each title under six words and each body under 18 words. Keep all three meanings and exact button labels. Keep the same SAMPLE INPUT from my first message unless I explicitly replace it.
Show, then try
See the shape of the result.
This input is synthetic. The output is a written illustration of the intended result, not a verified AI-tool run.
01 / The starting point
Synthetic input
Made-up example for practice. All people, organizations, records and product behavior below are fictional.
Fictional app: Shelf project library. State A: user has no saved projects; Add project opens a blank project form. State B: saved projects exist but the current search has no matches; Clear search removes only the search text, not any saved project. State C: a connection problem prevents the project list loading; Try again retries loading and the app cannot currently know whether the library is empty. Need title, one-sentence body, and one button per state. No illustrations required.
Copies text only. For image or file tasks, use the source files named in the steps too.
Worked example written for this guide, not output recorded from a live AI session.
A | First use
Title: Add your first project
Body: Your project library is empty; create a project to start keeping your work here.
Button: Add project
B | No search matches
Title: No projects match this search
Body: Clear your search to see your saved projects again.
Button: Clear search
C | Loading failed
Title: We could not load your projects
Body: A connection problem stopped the list from loading; try again when your connection is available.
Button: Try again
These checks use the worked example and its particular facts. With your own material, check your actual names, numbers, sources and rules; do not reuse the sample’s values as the answer.
Unsaved checks stay in this tab and reset when you reload. If you choose Save guide, its current example checkmarks are kept in this browser when storage is available.
!
A few things to watch for.
Using the same “nothing here” text for every state can make people think their work disappeared.
Do not invent a new control to make the copy sound helpful.