"The powerful play goes on and you may contribute a verse. What will your verse be?"
WEEK 1 — Foundation + Planning All Finalize core features (no scope creep)
Decide DB schema (users, archives, items)
Define API contracts (very important before coding)
Backend (2 people) Setup Express project
Setup PostgreSQL (local first, Neon optional)
Setup folder structure (routes, controllers, db)
Create basic server (/health route)
Design DB schema:
users
archives
items (books/music/art/links)
Frontend (2 people) Create wireframes (home, login, archive page)
Decide design system (fonts, colors, layout)
Setup project (Next.js or simple React)
Build static UI:
Home page
Archive layout (record player + bookshelf concept)
WEEK 2 — Core Development Backend Auth:
Register
Login (JWT)
CRUD APIs:
Create archive
Add item
Get public archive
Middleware:
Auth check
Error handling
Frontend Connect to backend APIs
Build:
Login / Register UI
Create archive flow
Render archive page dynamically
Start music embed (Spotify iframe, no heavy logic)
WEEK 3 — Integration + Polish Backend Optimize queries
Add validation
Clean API responses
Test all endpoints
Frontend Improve UI polish (aesthetic theme)
Add:
Record player animation (CSS only)
Bookshelf layout
Handle loading + error states
All Integration testing (frontend + backend together)
Fix breaking issues
WEEK 4 — Deployment + Final Fixes Backend Deployment Push repo to GitHub
Deploy to Render
Add env variables:
DATABASE_URL
JWT_SECRET
Connect to Neon
Frontend Deployment Deploy to Vercel
Add API base URL
Final Checks Test full flow:
Register → Login → Create archive → View public page
Check mobile responsiveness
Fix bugs
Clean UI
API CONTRACT (decide early) Must finalize in Week 1:
POST /auth/register
POST /auth/login
GET /archive/:username
POST /archive
POST /items
DELETE /items/:id
IMPORTANT RULES No image uploads → only URLs
No video hosting
No real-time features
Keep backend simple (REST only)
Build locally first, deploy later