I would flip that around and put it this way:
- what can you write about that you know well
- does that thing attract any sort of audience as well?
Trying to pick a target topic is very difficult unless you have a deep interest.
I could probably try and write some articles about Angular, people seem interested in that. But I'm not that excited about it and would lose interest, and wouldn't make the distance.
I keep a to-blog journal and write topics down in that as the thoughts come to me. Only the things you're interested in are worth writing about - otherwise the writing will be dull, and you'll give it up because it is too much work.
Why do you expect that it would be interesting for others if you don't have something that's interesting for you to write about? Or something that you know in depth and you know most of the potential readers don't?
The right question would be something like "I have a lot of material about X, Y and Z but I can write only about one, let's vote."
And honestly, the first thing I thought reading your question was "somebody running a mechanical Turk web content farm asks for some new spamming ideas. Now he'll just collect the list of the answers here and give it to his slaves. On the second thought, he won't even bother making the list, he'll just send the link to the answers. The question was whole six words."
I think it's a good idea, writing about something others don't write enough. I like that you write about something you really know. I don't think you did "market research" but decided to write your own experiences instead. I wasn't able to see the list of the articles or the way to browse through them though. Is this intentional?
Wow that's a bit over the top. Maybe he just wants to produce content people actually want rather than posting things nobody cares about. Or do you think all tech blogs are "content farms for spamming ideas".
Hey OP. I like hearing about new technologies and seeing examples of implementation, getting a feel for where they actually fit in the landscape. What kind of tech are you looking at blogging about.
I'd find some arena of technical expertise where you frequently read blogs that you find have missing material, are hard to understand, frequently misrepresented by the media, don't make it easy to connect the dots and implications of the thoughts presented etc.
As has been said "If you cannot explain it simply, then you don't understand it well enough." Look for the complicated paradigms that have no simple explanations - things that fascinate you ideally; research them and cut through all the BS, connect the dots for people, explain the consequences and applications of the paradigms and make it simple for people to understand, don't dumb it down necessarily, but explain it in terms that non-genii can understand with real world metaphors that everyone has experience with ... and they will come. At least, I will :P
You could blog about controversial topics related to tech, and have a small chance of getting splashed around the news circuit. That article will be pretty much forgotten in a time-frame of a few hours to a few days. Very few articles live beyond that.
Or you could write things that are "googleable". Solve a hard python problem? write about it, found a bug in a framework? Blog about it.
People searching for those things will find it. It'll never make a "splash", but the tail is longer.
It depends on what you want to accomplish. Is the purpose of the blog to demonstrate to the world how "brilliant" you are? Or is it to genuinely help your fellow programmer man?
Or you could write things that are "googleable". Solve a hard python problem? write about it, found a bug in a framework? Blog about it.
People searching for those things will find it. It'll never make a "splash", but the tail is longer.
This makes sense to me. I don't read any programming blogs on a regular basis; I never have. I read individual posts that I find in web searches when looking for specific information. I couldn't care any less what the rest of the blog is about (though if I like one post, I may well read a few more while I'm there).
That is what the blog post I linked to in my other comment is basicly suggesting to start with. Post solutions to specific problems and other non-opinion things that will get found via google searches. Then when you feel more comfortable start posting more opinion type articles.
Regardless, I think the writing practice is valuable and you can build up a stable of articles to give to people when they ask your opinion on something.
Find a technology (or combination of technologies) that's widely used but not very well documented, and provide the missing documentation. That's exactly what I did with AngularOnRails.com and it's worked out great for me.
Don't write about what others would like to read. Write things that you yourselves would like to read, but can't find anywhere. It may be a simple blog post on a programming contest problem, or something reviewing a device that you feel hasn't been properly reviewed.
This. My blog is my notepad to myself. Stupid error numbers and trivial programming trivia that took longer than 5 seconds to find on Google. Apparently other people find those same notes useful as well...or some bot is getting really low quality scrapings.
I wrote a blog post about this exact point (why I write). Its still in draft, but a quote:
>I am not going to pick one topic every day and write about something new. I don't want to write something rubbish just for the sake of writing it. I ultimately want to write because I have something to say. It doesn't have to be unique or ground-breaking. What matters is that I want to write about it.
Another quote on that draft is by James Erwin (writer of Rome Sweet Rome) from an AMA:
>if you're going to write, write what you want to write. The odds against any creator are insane. If you're going to devote months of your time, don't let it be for an idea you think will sell. Odds are it won't. Write something you want to write, or need to write. Write for yourself before anyone else. I'd rather read someone who is excited and passionate about what they want to say than someone who's obviously trying to say what they think I want to hear.
Based on the adage of "you learn by teaching", blog on topics you want to know more about. Doing the research for your article citations will both broaden and deepen your knowledge of the subject, and writing it in such a way that you're instructing others will cement the knowledge in your own mind.
Pick something that interests you, in which you are not an expert, learn everything you can about it, and blog about your learning and practitioner experience. Eventually you can blog about your contributions to that something.
Sometimes people think writing a blog has to be "me telling you what I know." But it can instead be about you learning what you don't know. That allows you to start from a position of humility, and it's a lot less pressure.
I would really appreciate a good product review blog. Something that covered new software and devices, somewhere in between the depth of Ars Technica's MacOS X reviews and Engadget. It would be great to be able to go to a single source for trustworthy, honest, detailed executive summary reviews on email clients, tablets, laptops, displays, printers, etc. etc., with occasional vlogs.
A site that covered new startups, products, and services could be nice too. TechCrunch / The Verge / VentureBeat, but without the fluff and filler and drama and politics and marketing's sickeningly glossy fingers all over everything. Imagine Gruber covering the startup scene (only maybe with a little less of other aspects of his personality).
I really enjoy reading elite, in-depth troubleshooting posts. jgc, jwz, and especially rachelbythebay all produce some fantastic content along those lines. The variety of different ways that things break in this industry never ceases to amaze me. You'd have to be pretty deep into the troubleshooting trenches to produce good content that way though.
For lighter fare, I think Silicon Valley needs more Onion. A tech blog that just poked holes in Silicon Valley's obsession with itself and its favorite subjects could be a nice change of pace (and might even help reform it a bit). You have to be a rarely talented writer to pull that off though.
24 comments
[ 3.4 ms ] story [ 23.7 ms ] threadTrying to pick a target topic is very difficult unless you have a deep interest.
I could probably try and write some articles about Angular, people seem interested in that. But I'm not that excited about it and would lose interest, and wouldn't make the distance.
I keep a to-blog journal and write topics down in that as the thoughts come to me. Only the things you're interested in are worth writing about - otherwise the writing will be dull, and you'll give it up because it is too much work.
So blog about whatever you are passionate about. It's really the only way you have a chance of sticking with it long enough to get any traction.
Why do you expect that it would be interesting for others if you don't have something that's interesting for you to write about? Or something that you know in depth and you know most of the potential readers don't?
The right question would be something like "I have a lot of material about X, Y and Z but I can write only about one, let's vote."
And honestly, the first thing I thought reading your question was "somebody running a mechanical Turk web content farm asks for some new spamming ideas. Now he'll just collect the list of the answers here and give it to his slaves. On the second thought, he won't even bother making the list, he'll just send the link to the answers. The question was whole six words."
If all you have to contribute is discouragement, why bother saying anything.
Why blog? Why tech?
And as I've pointed to, we've already spent more time than he writing and thinking about it!
At least I won't anymore.
--
I see you mention your blog and I've taken a look
http://www.angularonrails.com/
I think it's a good idea, writing about something others don't write enough. I like that you write about something you really know. I don't think you did "market research" but decided to write your own experiences instead. I wasn't able to see the list of the articles or the way to browse through them though. Is this intentional?
Hey OP. I like hearing about new technologies and seeing examples of implementation, getting a feel for where they actually fit in the landscape. What kind of tech are you looking at blogging about.
As has been said "If you cannot explain it simply, then you don't understand it well enough." Look for the complicated paradigms that have no simple explanations - things that fascinate you ideally; research them and cut through all the BS, connect the dots for people, explain the consequences and applications of the paradigms and make it simple for people to understand, don't dumb it down necessarily, but explain it in terms that non-genii can understand with real world metaphors that everyone has experience with ... and they will come. At least, I will :P
Or you could write things that are "googleable". Solve a hard python problem? write about it, found a bug in a framework? Blog about it.
People searching for those things will find it. It'll never make a "splash", but the tail is longer.
It depends on what you want to accomplish. Is the purpose of the blog to demonstrate to the world how "brilliant" you are? Or is it to genuinely help your fellow programmer man?
People searching for those things will find it. It'll never make a "splash", but the tail is longer.
This makes sense to me. I don't read any programming blogs on a regular basis; I never have. I read individual posts that I find in web searches when looking for specific information. I couldn't care any less what the rest of the blog is about (though if I like one post, I may well read a few more while I'm there).
Regardless, I think the writing practice is valuable and you can build up a stable of articles to give to people when they ask your opinion on something.
Don't write for others, write for yourself.
>I am not going to pick one topic every day and write about something new. I don't want to write something rubbish just for the sake of writing it. I ultimately want to write because I have something to say. It doesn't have to be unique or ground-breaking. What matters is that I want to write about it.
Another quote on that draft is by James Erwin (writer of Rome Sweet Rome) from an AMA:
>if you're going to write, write what you want to write. The odds against any creator are insane. If you're going to devote months of your time, don't let it be for an idea you think will sell. Odds are it won't. Write something you want to write, or need to write. Write for yourself before anyone else. I'd rather read someone who is excited and passionate about what they want to say than someone who's obviously trying to say what they think I want to hear.
I call it the Roman Writer's Manifesto.
You can read the entire draft on github (https://github.com/captn3m0/captn3m0.github.com/blob/master/...)
Sometimes people think writing a blog has to be "me telling you what I know." But it can instead be about you learning what you don't know. That allows you to start from a position of humility, and it's a lot less pressure.
Or to quote from a famous movie "Sometimes nothing can be a real cool hand." https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zDYyg0QskRo
A site that covered new startups, products, and services could be nice too. TechCrunch / The Verge / VentureBeat, but without the fluff and filler and drama and politics and marketing's sickeningly glossy fingers all over everything. Imagine Gruber covering the startup scene (only maybe with a little less of other aspects of his personality).
I really enjoy reading elite, in-depth troubleshooting posts. jgc, jwz, and especially rachelbythebay all produce some fantastic content along those lines. The variety of different ways that things break in this industry never ceases to amaze me. You'd have to be pretty deep into the troubleshooting trenches to produce good content that way though.
For lighter fare, I think Silicon Valley needs more Onion. A tech blog that just poked holes in Silicon Valley's obsession with itself and its favorite subjects could be a nice change of pace (and might even help reform it a bit). You have to be a rarely talented writer to pull that off though.
Good luck!
1. What you know well.
2. What you want to learn about.