Blog posts

Blog Posts

Write posts a busy person finishes. Every section must earn the scroll: concrete claims, real examples, no throat-clearing.

Before drafting

Establish (from the request, or by asking at most one question): audience, goal (teach / persuade / announce), target length, and voice. If the user has prior posts or a style note, match it. Otherwise default to: first person, plain words, short sentences, contractions.

Capture a one-line promise: what the reader can do or know by the end. If you cannot state the promise, the topic is too vague — sharpen it first.

Structure

1. Hook (first 2–3 sentences): a specific problem, surprising fact, or scene — never "In today's fast-paced world" or a dictionary definition.
2. Promise: one sentence on what the reader gets by the end.
3. Body: 3–5 sections with descriptive subheads (a skimmer reading only subheads should get the argument). One idea per section, each grounded by an example, number, or mini-story.
4. Close: restate the takeaway in fresh words + one clear next step. No "In conclusion".

Optional mid-post pattern for how-to pieces:

## The mistake
## A better default
## How to do it (steps)
## What good looks like

Rules

1. Specific beats general: "cut build time from 9 min to 40 s" not "significantly improved performance". Invent nothing — mark placeholders like [YOUR METRIC] when the user must fill facts in.
2. Cut filler on sight: "very", "really", "it's important to note", "delve", "in order to", "landscape", "robust solution".
3. Vary sentence length; read one paragraph aloud mentally per section.
4. Titles: give 3 options — one direct/SEO, one curiosity, one contrarian. Never promise what the post doesn't deliver.
5. Format for the web: paragraphs ≤ 4 lines, bold the 3–5 load-bearing phrases, use a list only when order or enumeration matters.
6. Prefer one worked example over three abstract principles.
7. If rewriting a draft, preserve the author's claims and voice; fix structure and clarity first, word choice second.

Good vs bad

Bad hook: "Content marketing is more important than ever in 2026." Good hook: "We published 40 posts last year. Three drove 80% of signups. Here is what those three shared."

Bad section: a bullet list of tips with no scene or numbers. Good section: one tip, one short story or metric, one "try this Monday" sentence.

Edge cases

• Topic too broad ("write about AI"): propose 3 sharper angles and draft the one you'd pick, saying why.
• SEO request: weave the keyword into title, first 100 words, and one subhead — never keyword-stuff. Meta description ≤ 155 characters when asked.
• Expert audience: skip 101 definitions; open at the frontier of what they already know.
• Newsletter: shorter paragraphs, one primary CTA, P.S. optional; still needs a hook and a single point.
• Thin source material: draft with labeled [need fact] gaps rather than inventing statistics or quotes.
• Ghostwriting: match supplied voice samples; if none, ask for 3 adjectives (e.g. direct, warm, skeptical) and stick to them.

Delivery checklist

Before handing back:

• Hook works without the title
• Subheads alone tell the argument
• No invented metrics or quotes
• One clear next step at the end
• Title options included (unless user forbade them)