A checklist for improving the writing style of technical blog posts

I thought this was a pretty neat example of irony. His title is "Keeping It Brief", but I noticed the wide format of the text coupled with the scroll indicator on the right, and I was a little horrified. This is brief?!

Not one to be intimidated by voluminous text, I began to read anyway, and found in the very first sentence: "Why few blogs are very popular, and most practically ignored?" ...Well, I dunno, why tiger run?

So, now I'm faced with the prospect of reading a large text which the author apparently didn't even bother to proofread. Oh joy. My well-honed, internet-trained skimming instinct kicks in: skim skim skim Write like Joel skim skim skim Write like Jeff skim skim skim Write like Seth...

Where in the hell is the actual checklist? Why not let it speak for itself? Oh, wait, here at the very bottom. OK, so what's on it?

Well, the same generic, overgeneral tired stuff that every mediocre writer keeps saying, that's what. It even comes with the arrogance to suggest that you might want to download it in PDF.

Try this instead:

1. Is it brief?

2. Can you remove anything else from it, especially stuff that the reader will find completely useless? (Example: "I read many blogs for professional reasons, and some among these are a real pleasure to read." The reader doesn't care about what you read, or why. Strike it out.)

3. What are you saying? Are you giving the reader useful information? An insightful story? Or are you just trying to keep your tired blog "fresh"?

4. Did you make your point clearly?

5. Did you check your facts? (Your article does contain facts, doesn't it?)

6. Did you proof-read it? Twice?

7. Did you get a friend to proof-read it?

8. Did you break up your paragraphs whenever possible?

9. Have you reviewed and used basic typographical rules, like those outlined in http://www.smashingmagazine.com/2009/04/03/8-simple-ways-to-... ?

I started blogging recently (the start of the new year, actually), and it's been quite interesting watching the analytics bounce up and down depending on what I've posted that Monday/Wednesday/Friday.

Perhaps the most striking thing I've noticed is that when I blog about Haskell, I get a lot of hits. :-) Perhaps that says something about the importance of keeping audience in mind.

As your standard egotistical human being, I'd love to increase readership. That's a great validation for me. But it definitely means that you have to write about more popular/accessible subjects. And there's a lot more competition there.

It doesn't matter how to be popular, let's not forget the power of being a hardcore technical blogger who only have few visitors (but awesome followers). Blogs that only a few can read and understand. There is nothing wrong with, we can't expect that every niche blog will have millions of visitors.

If you want to be popular choose popular topics, explain them in the most clear (KISS) way, then keep doing it. Now and then post a blog with some religious stuff in it. Post obvious stuff but, put lovely pictures, cure kittens and try to explain one simple thing like no one knows it.

Unfortunately more and more blogs are getting empty, good stories, lots of bollocks but not a damn real thing, or the same things over and over with a new narrative...

So please, please, please don't improve your technical writing style to be "yet another 'I write nice blog posts about mass technical(ish) people' blogger.

No offence to Joel or Jeff, they are doing something nice, but we don't need more Joels or Jeffs, that area already have been covered.

Write pure technical blogs and deep subjects if you dare, not stories.

people, this is ridiculous.

Why few blogs are very popular, and most practically ignored?

the first sentence isn't even grammatical.