I'm convinced one of the most valuable tricks Joel picked up in his long career is that of producing "truly engaging writing."
Vision statements are common sources of yawns, but Joel doesn't ever let that happen.
Vision statements are common sources of yawns, but Joel doesn't ever let that happen.
It also helps to have some personality and humor. You get that by reading funny writers, laughing, and loosening up.
- A history of long mails with my best friend (literally totaling several thousand pages)
- Blogging – and not the boring vanilla blogging, but actually building up essays
Being able to write well is really an ace in the hole. I mean, think about it – we know who people like Joel Spolsky and Paul Graham are because of their writing, not because of their software. The software just lends them some credibility when they decide to write about it.
I even use casual associates; I call them out of the blue months later to catch up, and when it's time for me to answer the "so what you been up to" question, fireworks happen.
- Humour which is just a case of reading/watching a lot of funnies and generally understanding humour.
- Self-deprecation, grow thick skin and loosen up. ;)
- But most importantly you need some STRONG opinions.
Creative inspiration is required to write the best stuff and strong opinions will mean you are more inspired to write about particular topics. Find those topics, use all of the above skills and then suck for about 5 years until you get good at it! :)