There is a lot of talk about “prompt engineering” as though it were a new technical discipline. Mostly, it is just writing clearly.
Say what you actually want
Vague instructions produce vague results — from people and from models alike. The discipline of stating your goal, your constraints, and your audience is the same discipline good writers have always practised.
Context is everything
A model, like a colleague, can only help with what it knows. Giving it the relevant background is not a trick; it is basic courtesy that happens to improve the output.
Edit ruthlessly
The first response is a draft. Treat it like one. The value is in the revision, not the generation.