# writing Advice

Original: https://swyx.io/writing-advice
Published: 2020-01-18

> Some thoughts on writing your first few writings

> Note: this was an unfinished draft, but i hit publish anyway. may revisit in future.

ann handley: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FYLVFK12ERY
- up goer five text editor
- whats in it for them
- skip the running start
- "screw and do" - one main point, one call to action, must be clear


https://twitter.com/nbashaw/status/1237131727635501056?s=20
When I sent people drafts of my posts for feedback, I never knew what to say if they asked "what kind of feedback would be helpful?"

Now I use the "ABCD" framework:

- what's Awesome?
- what's Boring?
- what's Confusing?
- what Didn't you believe?

 https://danluu.com/corp-eng-blogs/
 https://twitter.com/michael_nielsen/status/1237871186752573442 terry tao


PG: writing usefully: http://paulgraham.com/useful.html, http://www.paulgraham.com/talk.html

 Stephen King: on writing https://www.amazon.com/dp/B000FC0SIM/ref=dp-kindle-redirect?_encoding=UTF8&btkr=1

 Scott Adams: https://dilbertblog.typepad.com/the_dilbert_blog/2007/06/the_day_you_bec.html




## How to write well?

- Writing well
	- AIDA - attention interest desire action
	- get to the point, add rhythm https://twitter.com/david_perell/status/1127348174404890625
	- more tips: https://twitter.com/david_perell/status/1116485842615377921
	- talk like you write: http://www.paulgraham.com/talk.html
	- rapid prototyping: https://terrytao.wordpress.com/advice-on-writing-papers/write-a-rapid-prototype-first/
	- writing for work: https://danluu.com/corp-eng-blogs/
	- better writer: https://dilbertblog.typepad.com/the_dilbert_blog/2007/06/the_day_you_bec.html
- The Benefits of Writing A Lot For My Software Career


## Writing

- brandon sanderson - [have a group when writing](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-6HOdHEeosc)
- https://twitter.com/dickiebush/status/1482350753691881473?s=21
- storytelling https://twitter.com/patriciamou_/status/1449897168316387329?s=21 
@jeremywaite's hand-illustrated 1-pagers on storytelling methods from: 
	  - Harry Potter
	  - Pixar Studios
	  - Studio Ghibli
	  - Greek Orators
- https://thefrailestthing.com/2014/03/30/10-points-of-unsolicited-advice-for-technology-writers/
- Write funny https://copywritingcourse.com/writing-funny/
- summarize the top books in your field https://www.nateliason.com/notes
  - better input
  - build following with zero authority
- Writing Process
  - Mise en Place :)
  - [Rapid Prototyping](https://twitter.com/michael_nielsen/status/1237871186752573442)
- david perell - 2 forms of writing
  - https://twitter.com/david_perell/status/1287081150523965441?s=20
- the 4 months of quiet
  - https://twitter.com/dollarsanddata/status/1079721632816685057?s=20
  - https://twitter.com/JamesClear/status/1108397795763990528
- [Only 2 Things that matter](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7HI5CISSPms&feature=youtu.be) 
  - Entertain
  - Inform
- things that don't matter if you have the above
  - Perfect Grammar
  - Perfect Structure
  - Perfect Timing
- FCC writing guidelines https://www.freecodecamp.org/news/developer-news-style-guide/
- writing better
  - Up Goer Five https://xkcd.com/1133/
  - https://www.factoftheday1.com/facts/amazon-writing-style-tip
	- https://twitter.com/destraynor/status/1258372157706510336?lang=en
  - One Main Point
  - One Call to Action 
    - Attention - first sentence https://twitter.com/bradwolverton/status/1246503536332099584
    - Interest
    - Desire
    - Action
  - Skip the running start
  - What's in it for them? [Write Usefully](http://paulgraham.com/useful.html)
  - [Write Like You Talk](http://www.paulgraham.com/talk.html)
  - [Write Simply](http://paulgraham.com/simply.html) - PG writing process http://byronm.com/13sentences.html
  - https://twitter.com/fortelabs/status/1251598088294158337
  - https://jvns.ca/blog/2020/11/15/simple-explanations-without-sounding-condescending/
- [Asking for feedback](https://twitter.com/nbashaw/status/1237131727635501056?s=20) ABCD
  - what's Awesome?
  - what's Boring?
  - what's Confusing?
  - what Didn't you believe?
- writing for work 
  - Memos/Narratives https://slab.com/blog/jeff-bezos-writing-management-strategy/
  - Design Docs https://www.industrialempathy.com/posts/design-docs-at-google/
  - Corp Eng Blogs https://danluu.com/corp-eng-blogs/
- daily writing
  - https://patwalls.com/
  - https://seths.blog/
  - https://avc.com/
  - https://marginalrevolution.com/
  - https://nathanbarry.com/commitment-changed-career/
- further inspo
  - Ann Handley https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FYLVFK12ERY
  - Scott Adams https://dilbertblog.typepad.com/the_dilbert_blog/2007/06/the_day_you_bec.html
  - Stephen King https://www.amazon.com/dp/B000FC0SIM/ref=dp-kindle-redirect?_encoding=UTF8&btkr=1
  - Scott Hanselman https://www.hanselman.com/blog/BlogInteresting32WaysToKeepYourBlogFromSucking.aspx ([talk](https://vimeo.com/15475011))
  - Ultimate Guide https://www.perell.com/blog/the-ultimate-guide-to-writing-online
  - Writing for Software Devs https://philipkiely.com/wfsd/
  - editing https://blog.regehr.org/archives/1471
  - https://adamfaliq.com/2020/10/28/write-well/
  - punctuation and mood. https://twitter.com/david_perell/status/1340150916109004800?s=20
  - http://paulgraham.com/writing44.html
  - https://medium.com/practicecomesfirst/dr-jordan-b-petersons-10-step-guide-to-clearer-thinking-through-essay-writing-1ab79a94937
  - https://www.collaborativefund.com/blog/why-everyone-should-write/
  - write clearly https://gilest.org/2021/how-to-be-clear/
  - writing https://twitter.com/Julian/status/1356979505475313665
  - on writing well https://sive.rs/book/OnWritingWell
- the three genres of Julia Evans https://jvns.ca/blog/2020/12/05/how-i-write-useful-programming-comics/
- write in plain English http://www.plainenglish.co.uk/how-to-write-in-plain-english.html
- compendium https://arewordsjustwords.com/2021/02/12/la-creme-de-la-creme-of-writing-online
- https://theamericanscholar.org/writing-english-as-a-second-language/
	- "I have four principles of writing good English. They are Clarity, Simplicity, Brevity, and Humanity."
- Framing https://www.frameworksinstitute.org/tools-and-resources/framing-101/
- write drama writing advice https://twitter.com/TrungTPhan/status/1372061109461512193?s=20
- https://builtbywords.substack.com/p/writing-tools-i-learned-from-the
- writing short form
	- http://www.covingtoninnovations.com/mc/WriteThinkLearn.pdf
	- https://twitter.com/b0rk/status/1433785375638577156?s=20
- write active verbs
	- https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=X3bQfP_2ALs 
		- do not use any form of "to be"
		- be different - "step 1 drink a shot of tequila"
- writing habit/process https://twitter.com/david_perell/status/1462455011716202499?s=20
- writing motivation https://blog.pragmaticengineer.com/writing-motivation/
- dan luu writing advice https://danluu.com/writing-non-advice/
- headlines https://twitter.com/amandanat/status/1473698351141036040


write something that could be rejected - get in the game