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
- Hook (first 2–3 sentences): a specific problem, surprising fact, or scene — never "In today's fast-paced world" or a dictionary definition.
- Promise: one sentence on what the reader gets by the end.
- 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.
- 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
- 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.
- Cut filler on sight: "very", "really", "it's important to note", "delve", "in order to", "landscape", "robust solution".
- Vary sentence length; read one paragraph aloud mentally per section.
- Titles: give 3 options — one direct/SEO, one curiosity, one contrarian. Never promise what the post doesn't deliver.
- Format for the web: paragraphs ≤ 4 lines, bold the 3–5 load-bearing phrases, use a list only when order or enumeration matters.
- Prefer one worked example over three abstract principles.
- 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)