TL;DR - Claude kept spitting out spaghetti until I fixed my process. README + task files + a new CLI (“Backlog.md”) took me from a 50 % to a 95 % success rate.

A few months back I started using Claude Code on an existing repo but I quit fast because, cleaning up its messes was slower than writing the code myself. My prompts were bare; no context files, no structure and no CLAUDE.md instructions.

1️⃣ First pass: 50 % success

I added a README.md and a CLAUDE.md with project context and basic instructions. Claude finally knew what it was building, and half the tasks were done correctly.

2️⃣ Second pass: 75 % success

Claude 4 dropped, but results barely changed. When Codex Web came out I wanted a to make a comparison so I wrote a task-plan.md for each feature. Results:

• Codex = better planner
• Claude = better implementer/reviewer

Splitting work into individual markdown files let both agents see what was done and what was next. Additionally the agents could work on each task in parallel (when possible).

Win: ~75 % hit rate.

3️⃣ Today: 95 %+ success

Fifty manual task files later I was done creating them manually, so I built Backlog.md, a CLI that turns a high-level feature description into task files automatically.

I used Claude/Codex and Backlog.md to build Backlog.md a bit recursively. Writing tasks in my own words forces the model to prove it understands me. Of course I need to spend some time checking each detail precisely but this is way better and faster than correcting some messy code.

My three-step loop now

1. Generate tasks: Ask Codex / Claude Opus to break down a PRD or feature note then self-review.
2. Generate plan: Same agents, “plan” mode on; review and tweak when necessary.
3. Implement: Claude Sonnet / Codex writes the code; review & merge.

For simple features I can run the whole loop from my phone:

1. ChatGPT app → Codex -> create task
2. GitHub app → review / merge task
3. ChatGPT app → Codex -> implement → GitHub merge

Happy to share Backlog.md if anyone wants to try and would be very happy about your feedback!