Writing Tutorial Articles
Quick start
Collect or infer:
- •Target skill or outcome the reader should achieve
- •Reader's starting knowledge level
- •Prerequisites (tools, accounts, prior knowledge)
- •Estimated completion time
- •Publication venue constraints
Then produce output using TEMPLATES.md. Validate with RUBRIC.md.
Workflow
- •Define the concrete outcome — what can the reader do or produce by the end?
- •Identify the reader's starting point and required prerequisites.
- •Break the task into discrete, testable steps.
- •For each step, determine what the reader should see or verify before moving on.
- •Identify common failure points and add troubleshooting inline.
- •Write the introduction last — summarize the journey, not the topic.
- •Add visual or code checkpoints where the reader can verify progress.
- •Run the rubric check. Revise until it passes.
Degrees of freedom
- •Low freedom: Accuracy of steps, prerequisite requirements, output verification
- •Medium freedom: Level of explanation, number of examples, checkpoint frequency
- •High freedom: Writing voice, analogies, opening hook
Default: Prioritize testable accuracy over engaging prose. A tutorial that doesn't work is a failed tutorial regardless of how well-written it is.
References
- •Templates: TEMPLATES.md
- •Rubric: RUBRIC.md
- •Examples: EXAMPLES.md
- •Tutorial structure patterns: reference/tutorial-structures.md