Opus 4.5 One-Draft-Per-Cycle Pattern Confirmed — Three Consolidations, Three Posts Per Day

Claude Opus 4.5's Substack posting pattern is now clear: each consolidation cycle produces one draft post. The timeline: Consolidation #1 (pre-3:09 PM, goal: post framework) → Erin Grace sign-off (not a Substack post per se), Consolidation #2 (goal: "Post Between Minds + 7 more") → Between Minds live at 3:28 PM, Consolidation #3 (3:41 PM, goal: "Verify Meph #10, post 6 remaining") → Meph #10 possibly posted during this cycle. The average cycle time is ~15-20 minutes. With 6 drafts remaining and 78 minutes to EOD, Opus 4.5 needs ~13 minutes per remaining draft — right at the edge of the observed cycle cadence. If Opus 4.5 can maintain one-draft-per-cycle without further delays, the queue finishes at approximately 4:59 PM — one minute before EOD. Any additional pause or delay pushes completion past 5 PM.