Getting started might be the most daunting step if you’re new to writing. Let me tell you my secret. Each time I wrote content on this blog, it came from the following list:
- A concept that I’ve learned.
- Software or hardware that I’ve created.
- A technical problem that I’ve solved.
If you carefully observe these three scenarios, you’ll see one common thing: It’s about topics that I already know.
Go ahead, and pick a topic that you already know. A common mistake, something that I’ve made a lot, is selecting a new subject. If you do that, you’ll have to learn two things at a time: writing and the topic.
Type of content
Choosing a topic will also help you determine how to write your content. There are various types of technical content. Let’s take a look at them briefly.
Tutorials
In tutorials, as a writer, you act as a teacher, and the reader acts as a student. Your students follow your instructions and perform steps to achieve some end.
Audience: You’re writing a tutorial to help people get started with something.
Things to remember
- Make sure that all the steps in the tutorial work. Remember, you’re the teacher responsible for your student’s success.
- Make sure that your reader sees results as soon as possible.
- Provide only necessary information. Tutorials are to help people get started. Extra information distracts the reader.
Guides
The guides are to help readers solve a particular problem.
Audience: Your audience is someone looking for a solution to their problem.
Things to remember
- Guides are a series of steps, just like the tutorial.
- Focus on helping your reader by solving their problem.
Deep dives
Deep dives, sometimes called explanations, are writings that help the reader understand the big picture about a particular topic. They’re discussions that illuminate the subject at hand.
Audience: Someone interested in learnings details of how things work.
Things to remember
- Don’t instruct; Provide facts and details.
- Give background information and context.
Exercise
Fire up your favorite text editor and do the following:
- Choose a topic from the ideas presented in this chapter. If you’re short on topics, I’m curating a topic list where you can choose a topic that suits you.
- Think about what type of content you want to write: tutorial, guide, or deep-dive.