# roads-starter. A minimal ICM workspace you can copy.

ICM is folder structure as agent architecture. No framework. Numbered folders are
stages. Plain markdown carries the context that tells one agent what to do at each
step. You review the output between stages.

Here is the smallest version that still works.

---

## the shape

```
my-workspace/
  CLAUDE.md            where am I. identity and the rules.
  CONTEXT.md           where do I go. the map of stages.
  stages/
    01_research/
      CONTEXT.md       what this stage does. the contract.
      references/      rules and material this stage reads.
      output/          what this stage writes.
    02_draft/
      CONTEXT.md
      references/
      output/
    03_final/
      CONTEXT.md
      references/
      output/
  _config/             shared voice, brand, style. any stage can read it.
```

Numbered folders are the running order. Each folder is one job. Each output is a
handoff point you can open and read.

---

## the stage contract

Every stage CONTEXT.md says three things. Inputs, process, outputs.

```markdown
## Inputs
- working: ../01_research/output/
- reference: ../../_config/voice.md

## Process
Turn the research into a draft. Match the voice in voice.md.

## Outputs
- draft.md -> output/
```

The agent reads the contract, loads only what the inputs name, writes to output.
That is the whole interface. Plain text in, plain text out.

---

## how you run it

1. Point an agent at stage 01. It reads the contract, writes to 01_research/output.
2. You open the output. Edit it, rerun it, or pass it.
3. Point the agent at stage 02. It reads what you left in 01's output.
4. Repeat to the last stage.

You are on the loop, not in it. You see every step because every step is a file.

---

## the rules that make it work

- One stage, one job.
- Plain text is the interface. Nothing a text editor cannot open.
- Every output is an edit surface. Change it before the next stage runs.
- Configure the factory once, then run the product as many times as you want.

---

## where it does not fit

Real-time multi-agent, high concurrency, automatic branching mid-pipeline. That is
a framework's job. ICM is sequential and human-reviewed by design, and that is most
work.

Copy this folder. Rename the stages. You just laid a road.

//A<3