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✨ The Complete Guide to Prompt Engineering

Master the art of communicating with AI for better, more consistent results across all Vigthoria products.

25 min read Essential Updated July 2025

What is Prompt Engineering?

Prompt engineering is the art and science of crafting effective instructions for AI systems. Just like giving directions to a person, how you ask for something dramatically affects what you get back.

Think of the AI as a brilliant but literal assistant. It has vast knowledge but needs clear guidance on exactly what you want. The difference between a vague prompt and a well-crafted one can be the difference between a useless response and a perfect solution.

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The Golden Rule
Be specific, provide context, and state your desired outcome clearly.

The Fundamentals

1. Be Specific, Not Vague

The more specific your prompt, the more likely you are to get what you want.

❌ Vague

"Write me some code"

✅ Specific

"Write a Python function that validates email addresses using regex, with docstrings and error handling"

2. Provide Context

Give the AI background information it needs to understand your situation.

Good Context
"I'm building a Node.js REST API for a small e-commerce site. I need a middleware function that rate-limits API calls to 100 requests per minute per user, using Redis for storage. We're already using Express and have Redis connected."

3. Specify the Format

Tell the AI exactly how you want the output structured.

Explain the SOLID principles in software development.

Format: 
- Use bullet points for each principle
- Include one code example per principle (in TypeScript)
- Keep explanations under 50 words each

4. Set the Tone and Style

Tell the AI who the audience is and what tone to use.

Technical Audience

"Explain like I'm a senior developer familiar with design patterns"

Beginner Audience

"Explain like I'm new to programming, avoid jargon, use analogies"

5. Use Examples (Few-Shot Prompting)

Show the AI what you want by providing examples of the input and desired output.

Few-Shot Example
Convert these company names to URL-friendly slugs:

Examples:
- "Apple Inc." → "apple"
- "Johnson & Johnson" → "johnson-and-johnson"
- "3M Company" → "3m"

Now convert:
- "Mercedes-Benz AG"
- "The Coca-Cola Company"

Techniques for Vigthoria Operator

Vigthoria Operator excels at complex reasoning, research, and multi-step tasks. Here's how to get the best results.

Break Down Complex Tasks

For complex requests, break them into numbered steps:

I need to plan a software architecture. Please:

1. First, analyze the requirements I'll describe
2. Suggest 3 possible architecture patterns with pros/cons
3. Recommend one based on our team size (5 developers)
4. Create a high-level component diagram in ASCII

Requirements: [describe your project]

Use Role Prompting

Ask the AI to take on a specific role for more focused responses:

Act as a senior DevOps engineer with 10 years of experience in AWS. 
Review my Terraform configuration and identify security vulnerabilities 
and cost optimization opportunities. Be thorough but prioritize by severity.

Chain of Thought

Ask the AI to explain its reasoning for better, more accurate results:

Analyze this SQL query for performance issues. 
Think through it step-by-step, explaining your reasoning 
before giving recommendations.

[paste your query]
Pro Tip

Adding "Let's think step by step" to complex reasoning tasks often improves accuracy significantly.

Techniques for Vigthoria Coder

When using Vigthoria Coder and ViaGen6 for code generation, these techniques help you get production-ready code.

Include Technical Constraints

Always specify your tech stack, versions, and constraints:

Create a user authentication component with the following requirements:

Tech Stack:
- React 18 with TypeScript
- TailwindCSS for styling
- React Hook Form for form handling
- Zod for validation

Requirements:
- Email and password login
- "Remember me" checkbox
- Error handling with user-friendly messages
- Accessible (ARIA labels, keyboard navigation)
- Mobile-responsive

Provide File Context

Reference existing code structure when adding to a project:

I have an existing Express API with this structure:
- /src/routes/ - route handlers
- /src/middleware/ - custom middleware
- /src/services/ - business logic
- /src/models/ - database models (using Prisma)

Add a new endpoint for user profile updates following 
the existing patterns in the codebase.

Request Specific Code Qualities

Write this code with:
- Full TypeScript types (no 'any')
- Comprehensive error handling
- Unit tests using Jest
- JSDoc comments
- Performance optimization for large datasets
Common Mistake

Don't just say "make it good" — specify exactly what "good" means for your use case: fast, readable, maintainable, minimal dependencies, etc.

Techniques for Music AI

Music AI interprets both lyrics and style prompts. Here's how to get the sound you want.

Genre + Subgenre + Modifiers

Layer your style descriptions from broad to specific:

❌ Too Vague

"rock"

✅ Layered Description

"90s alternative rock, grunge-influenced, raw guitars, melancholic, mid-tempo, male vocals"

Reference Emotions & Imagery

Describe the feeling or scene you want the music to evoke:

Style: Cinematic orchestral, building tension, dark fantasy atmosphere, 
like riding into battle at dawn, brass swells, thunderous drums, 
heroic but bittersweet, epic choir in final chorus

Lyrics Structure Tags

Use structure tags to control song sections:

[verse]
Walking through the city lights
Memories of better nights
Everything we left behind
Playing movies in my mind

[chorus]
We were young and so alive
Dancing through the neon sky
Now those days have passed us by
But I still see you in my eyes

[bridge]
Maybe someday we'll return
To the places where we learned
How to live, how to love...

Voice Selection Tips

Pro Tip

Listen to the first 30 seconds and regenerate quickly if it's not right. Early regeneration saves time compared to waiting for the full track.

Advanced Techniques

Prompt Templates

Create reusable templates for common tasks:

Code Review Template
Review this [LANGUAGE] code for:
1. Security vulnerabilities (rate: critical/high/medium/low)
2. Performance issues
3. Code style and readability
4. Potential bugs or edge cases

Format findings as a table with: Issue | Severity | Line | Suggested Fix

```[LANGUAGE]
[PASTE CODE HERE]
```

Iterative Refinement

Build on previous responses to refine output:

  1. Start with a general request
  2. Ask for specific modifications: "Now make it more concise"
  3. Request specific changes: "Change the function to be async"
  4. Request optimization: "Optimize for readability over performance"

Negative Prompting

Sometimes telling the AI what NOT to do is as important as what to do:

Write a Python data processing script.

DO NOT:
- Use pandas (we can't add dependencies)
- Use global variables
- Print to console (use logging instead)
- Ignore errors (must handle all exceptions)

Meta-Prompting

Ask the AI to help you write better prompts:

I want to create a prompt that will help me generate [describe your goal].
What questions should I answer in my prompt to get the best results?
What details would help you give me exactly what I need?

Troubleshooting Bad Outputs

Output Too Generic

Problem: The response is too basic or doesn't fit your specific needs.

Solution: Add more context about your specific situation, constraints, and requirements. Provide examples of what you're looking for.

Output Too Long/Short

Problem: The response is either overwhelming or lacks detail.

Solution: Explicitly state length requirements: "In 3 paragraphs..." or "In detail, covering at least..."

Wrong Format

Problem: The output isn't structured the way you need it.

Solution: Provide a template or example of exactly how you want the output formatted.

Inconsistent Results

Problem: Same prompt gives different quality results each time.

Solution: Make your prompt more specific and constrained. Add validation criteria the output should meet.

AI "Hallucinating" Information

Problem: The AI makes up facts, APIs, or code that doesn't exist.

Solution: Ask the AI to only use information it's confident about. Request sources or ask it to flag uncertain information.

When All Else Fails

Start fresh with a new conversation. Sometimes conversation context can confuse the AI. Write your best prompt from scratch in a new chat.

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Key Takeaways
Be specific • Provide context • Specify format • Use examples • Iterate and refine
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