qual-memo git:20261106.bb3d139A

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---
name: qual-memo
description: Write analytical memos to capture emerging insights during manual coding
---

# Analytical Memo Writing

This command guides you through writing analytical memos - the essential practice that transforms coding from labeling into theorizing.

## What is an Analytical Memo?

Analytical memos are written records of your thinking as you code. They capture:
- Emerging patterns and hunches
- Questions and puzzles
- Connections and contradictions
- Methodological decisions
- Reflexive observations

Memos are where theory develops. They're not optional documentation - they're the engine of qualitative analysis.

## When to Write Memos

Write memos:
- **During coding:** When you notice something interesting
- **After each document:** To consolidate observations
- **When stuck:** To work through analytical challenges
- **At interpretive pauses:** Every 5 documents (our methodology)
- **When surprised:** Data that contradicts expectations

## Types of Memos

### Code Memos
Document the development of specific codes:
- What does this code capture?
- What are its boundaries?
- How is it similar to or different from related codes?
- What variations have you seen?

### Theoretical Memos
Develop conceptual insights:
- What patterns are emerging?
- How might codes relate to each other?
- What theoretical frameworks might be relevant?
- What story is emerging from the data?

### Process Memos
Document methodological decisions:
- Why did you code this way?
- What alternatives did you consider?
- What changed in your approach?
- What would you do differently?

### Reflexive Memos
Examine your own role:
- What assumptions are you bringing?
- How might your position shape interpretation?
- What surprises you and why?
- What are you avoiding or drawn to?

## Memo Template

```
MEMO: [Title that captures the insight]
DATE: [When written]
TYPE: [Code / Theoretical / Process / Reflexive]
RELATED TO: [Codes, documents, other memos]

---

[Your memo content here]

Key questions:
- [Question 1]
- [Question 2]

Next steps:
- [What to explore further]
```

## Writing Effective Memos

### Be Specific
Don't: "I'm seeing patterns around uncertainty"
Do: "In documents 3, 7, and 11, participants describe a moment where not knowing becomes generative rather than paralyzing. What makes uncertainty productive vs. debilitating?"

### Stay Close to Data
Reference specific quotes and documents. Memos should be traceable back to evidence.

### Think Relationally
Don't just describe codes in isolation. How does this connect to that? What's the relationship?

### Be Honest
Include doubts, confusion, and dead ends. These are often where insight lives.

### Date and Track
Memos document the evolution of your thinking. Being able to trace analytical development matters for confirmability.

## Memo Quality Indicators

Strong memos:
- Generate new questions
- Make connections you hadn't seen before
- Ground abstract insights in specific data
- Challenge your assumptions
- Build toward theoretical understanding

Weak memos:
- Merely summarize what informants said
- Stay purely descriptive
- Avoid uncertainty or complexity
- Don't reference specific data
- Don't build on previous memos

## Using Memos in Stage 1

During your manual coding phase:

1. **Start a memo file** for your project
2. **Write at least one memo per document**
3. **Write longer memos at interpretive pauses** (every 5 documents)
4. **Review memos before moving to Stage 2**

Your memos become the foundation for AI-assisted analysis. The theoretical sensitivity you develop here guides the partnership.

## Tools for Memo Writing

### Sequential Thinking
When working through complex analytical puzzles:
> "I'm noticing [pattern] but I'm not sure what to make of it. Help me think through what this might mean."

### Lotus Wisdom
When facing contradictory observations:
> "My data shows both X and not-X. How might I understand this apparent contradiction?"

## Memo Prompts for Stage 1

Use these prompts to generate memos:

**After each document:**
- What surprised me in this document?
- What codes did I use and why?
- How does this document compare to previous ones?

**At interpretive pauses (every 5 documents):**
- What patterns am I seeing across documents?
- What's my emerging framework looking like?
- What am I still not understanding?
- How has my thinking evolved?

**When stuck:**
- Why am I stuck?
- What assumptions am I making?
- What would it mean if the opposite were true?
- Who could I talk to about this?

## Philosophical Note

Memos externalize your internal analytical process. This serves two purposes:

1. **Analytical:** Writing clarifies thinking. You don't know what you think until you write it.

2. **Methodological:** Memos provide audit trail for confirmability. Others can trace how you moved from data to theory.

The craft tradition values memo writing as perhaps THE essential qualitative practice. Take it seriously.

## Next Steps

During Stage 1:
1. Develop consistent memo-writing habit
2. Review memos at interpretive pauses
3. Bring memos into Stage 2 as foundation for AI partnership
4. Continue memo writing throughout analysis