Medium Article Writer Skill

Purpose: Automatically generate Medium-style technical articles from projects, achievements, or workflows with consistent L>> voice and structure.

Reference: See reference.md for full templates, voice guidelines, and examples.

Core Principle

Transform technical implementations into engaging, story-driven articles that:

1. Hook readers with relatable pain points
2. Explain the problem clearly
3. Detail the solution with technical depth
4. Quantify results (time saved, metrics improved)
5. Share philosophy (why it matters beyond code)

Voice: L>> style (direct, punchy, personal, technical, occasionally meta)

Article Types

Standard Sections

1. Punchy Title - Benefit-focused
2. Subtitle - Relatable hook
3. Opening Hook - Pain point, frustration
4. The Problem - What's broken
5. The Breakthrough - Key insight
6. Solution Steps - Technical with code blocks
7. Real-World Example - Before/after
8. Results - Quantified metrics
9. Implementation Guide - How-to
10. Lessons Learned - What worked/didn't
11. Philosophy - Higher-level takeaway
12. Resources - Links, tags

Writing Process

Step 1: Information Gathering

/remind-yourself <topic>

Extract: Problem, implementation, results, files, timeline.

Step 2: Generate Outline

Template variables:

• {PROBLEM} - What's broken
• {SOLUTION_NAME} - Name of tool/system
• {KEY_INSIGHT} - Breakthrough moment
• {TIME_SAVED} - Quantified benefit

Step 3: Write Sections

• Hook: Start with relatable frustration, use second person
• Problem: Specific pain points, bullet symptoms
• Solution: Code blocks with "What this does:" explanations
• Results: Tables for quantified data, before/after

Step 4: Add Metadata

• Title formula (see reference.md)
• 5-10 tags (technologies, categories)
• Unsplash image placeholders

Step 5: Save

Location: ~/CodeTonight/medium_articles/YYYY-MM-DD_slug.md

Voice Guidelines (L>> Style)

Do

• Be Direct: "This drove me insane."
• Use Second Person: "You know the drill..."
• Be Specific: "25 minutes → 30 seconds"
• Include Meta Moments: Self-aware, recursive
• Technical Without Jargon: Explain first use

Don't

• Corporate speak ("leveraging synergies")
• Hedging ("might possibly help")
• Over-explaining basic concepts
• Underselling results

Code Block Guidelines

Always follow code with explanation:

### What this does
- Point 1
- Point 2

Syntax highlighting:

• bash for commands
• typescript for TS code
• yaml for GitHub Actions
• json for configuration

Response Format

# Medium Article Created! ✅

**File:** `~/CodeTonight/medium_articles/YYYY-MM-DD_topic.md`
**Title:** "How I {Did Thing} (And {Benefit})"
**Length:** ~X,XXX words (~Y-min read)
**Tags:** #tag1 #tag2 #tag3

## Article Structure
- ✅ Hook (relatable pain point)
- ✅ Problem explanation
- ✅ Solution breakdown
- ✅ Real-world example
- ✅ Quantified results
- ✅ Implementation guide
- ✅ Philosophy section

## Next Steps
1. Review content
2. Add images
3. Update index
4. Publish to Medium

Best Practices

1. Research First

Use /remind-yourself for accurate implementation details, code snippets, and metrics.

2. Show, Don't Tell

Bad: "The system is fast." Good: "11 hours → 23 minutes (28x faster)"

3. Include Failures

Readers relate to mistakes. Include "What Didn't Work" section.

4. Make It Actionable

Every article should include "How to Implement" with copy-pasteable code.

Integration

Skill Status: ✅ Active Maintainer: LC Scheepers Last Updated: 2025-11-06

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