My Workflow as an Independent Developer

Independent development is not just about writing code.

For me, it is a complete process of finding problems, shaping ideas, building products, writing clearly, launching carefully, and learning from every project.

Over the past few years, I have built several small products and websites, including Vocheo, MinReply, WeFmt, LaunchCheck, and learning platform projects.

Each project is different, but my workflow has gradually become more structured.

This article is a look at how I work as an independent developer.

Starting from a real problem

Most of my projects start from a problem I personally understand.

I do not usually begin with a market trend or a random product idea. I begin with a situation that feels real to me.

For example, Vocheo came from my own need to practice spoken English more effectively.

MinReply came from the need to save and reuse useful AI replies.

WeFmt came from the need to turn Markdown writing into cleaner WeChat Official Account content.

LaunchCheck came from the repeated work of preparing an app before App Store submission.

When a problem appears again and again in my own workflow, I start to ask:

Can this become a small tool?

That question is usually the beginning of a project.

Thinking before building

Before writing code, I spend time thinking about the shape of the product.

I usually ask a few basic questions:

• What exact problem does this solve?
• Who is this for?
• What is the smallest useful version?
• What should the user do first?
• What should the product not do?
• Can I explain the product in one sentence?

The last question is especially important.

If I cannot explain a product clearly, I usually do not understand it well enough yet.

A clear product should have a clear center.

For Vocheo, the center is spoken English practice. For MinReply, the center is saving useful AI replies. For WeFmt, the center is turning Markdown into publishable content. For LaunchCheck, the center is helping app makers prepare for launch.

A small product becomes much easier to build when its center is clear.

Designing the first useful version

I do not try to build everything at the beginning.

My goal is usually to find the first useful version.

That means the product should be small, but not empty.

It should already solve one real problem.

For a first version, I care more about the core loop than the number of features.

A product becomes easier to design when I can see its core loop.

The core loop tells me which features matter and which features can wait.

Building with structure

My background is in software development, so I naturally think in structures and modules.

Even for small projects, I try to avoid building everything as one large piece.

I usually separate a project into parts such as:

• Data models
• Services
• UI components
• State management
• Storage
• User actions
• Error handling
• Content and copy

This makes the product easier to change later.

A small product often becomes complicated not because it has too many features, but because its structure is unclear.

Good structure gives me room to improve the product over time.

Using AI as a development partner

AI has become an important part of my workflow.

I use AI to help me:

• Explore product ideas
• Compare technical approaches
• Review code structure
• Improve UI copy
• Generate first drafts
• Think through edge cases
• Refactor complex modules
• Prepare App Store text and website content

But I do not treat AI as an automatic product builder.

AI is most useful when I already have a direction.

I still need to decide what the product should be, what should be removed, what should be simplified, and what kind of user experience I want to create.

In my workflow, AI is like a fast thinking partner.

It helps me move faster, but it does not replace product judgment.

Writing while building

One thing I have learned is that writing is part of product development.

When I write about a product, I understand it better.

Writing forces me to clarify what the product does, why it exists, who it helps, how it is different, what problem it solves, and why people should care.

This is why I often work on the product website, app description, feature text, and support pages during development.

If I cannot describe a feature clearly, the feature may not be clear enough.

Good writing helps good product design.

Preparing for launch

Launching is its own kind of work.

For an app, I need to prepare:

• App name
• App icon
• Screenshots
• Description
• Keywords
• Privacy information
• Support page
• Terms and policies
• Review notes
• Version information

For a website, I need to think about domain, homepage message, SEO title and description, project pages, contact information, performance, mobile layout, and long-term maintainability.

This is one reason I built LaunchCheck.

I wanted a more structured way to think about launch preparation.

Shipping a product is not just clicking a submit button. It is the process of making the product understandable, trustworthy, and ready for real users.

Keeping products focused

One of the hardest parts of independent development is deciding what not to build.

When I work alone, every new feature has a cost.

It increases development time, testing time, maintenance cost, UI complexity, and user confusion.

So I often ask:

Does this feature make the core experience stronger?

If the answer is no, I usually delay it.

I prefer small, focused tools over large, unclear platforms.

A focused product is easier to explain, easier to improve, and easier for users to understand.

Learning from each project

Every project teaches me something.

Vocheo taught me more about audio, captions, speaking practice, and App Store publishing.

MinReply helped me think about how people save and reuse AI-generated content.

WeFmt made me think about writing workflows and publishing formats.

LaunchCheck helped me organize the launch process itself.

Learning Platform Backend and Learning Platform Web helped me think more deeply about structured learning products, backend services, frontend workflows, and admin systems.

Each project becomes part of a larger learning system.

I do not see them as isolated products. I see them as connected experiments around software engineering, language learning, writing, productivity, and independent creation.

My current workflow

Today, my independent development workflow usually looks like this:

1. Notice a real problem
2. Write down the idea
3. Define the smallest useful version
4. Design the core user flow
5. Build the first version
6. Write the product message
7. Test and simplify
8. Prepare launch materials
9. Publish the product
10. Improve based on what I learn

This workflow is not perfect, but it helps me keep moving.

It also helps me avoid getting lost in endless ideas.

The goal is always the same:

Turn a real problem into a clear, useful product.

Final thoughts

Independent development requires more than technical skill.

It requires patience, structure, taste, writing, product judgment, and the ability to finish.

For me, the most meaningful part is not just building software.

It is turning small observations into tools that other people can actually use.

That is the kind of work I want to continue doing: building small, focused, and useful products for learning, writing, productivity, and independent creators.