I’m planning to post a few essays on LW soon, on my experiences with topics like productivity systems, inner resistance, akrasia etc.
Do you have any tips for posting your first essay to the site, e.g. re: style, or re: obvious things to do or to avoid, in order to get a better reception and maybe some comments?
Having someone else proofread it, or just generally give style feedback, is often quite valuable. You can post in the Open Thread with a link to a Google Doc, or you can ping me on Intercom, and I can take a look and suggest any obvious improvements that stand out.
Also, there is value to independently posting a link to your essay via other non-LW channels. E.g. sharing it on Facebook or Discord or wherever you might find others interested in it.
I have heard the following hack mentioned (not sure where—it might have been in response to a similar question, or an observation):
Start your own blog and write stuff on it. (While this advice might not take into account the cost, or explain how to mitigate it, it seems to suggest that a) writing helps you at getting better at writing, b) it can be a way of getting feedback in order to improve.)
This has the following advantage: (unless you were to implement such a thing, somehow) no one can downvote stuff on your blog. (Even if you accidentally post a draft.*)
*This is in fact my main advice: Avoid accidentally posting a draft. (If you’re not sure about the interface:
don’t draft it here
‘Name’ the post something like ‘testing saving draft of post on LW’ (and remember to remove that before actually posting it)
I’m planning to post a few essays on LW soon, on my experiences with topics like productivity systems, inner resistance, akrasia etc.
Do you have any tips for posting your first essay to the site, e.g. re: style, or re: obvious things to do or to avoid, in order to get a better reception and maybe some comments?
Currently I’m planning to at least reread the SSC essay on Nonfiction Writing Advice.
Having someone else proofread it, or just generally give style feedback, is often quite valuable. You can post in the Open Thread with a link to a Google Doc, or you can ping me on Intercom, and I can take a look and suggest any obvious improvements that stand out.
Also, there is value to independently posting a link to your essay via other non-LW channels. E.g. sharing it on Facebook or Discord or wherever you might find others interested in it.
I have heard the following hack mentioned (not sure where—it might have been in response to a similar question, or an observation):
Start your own blog and write stuff on it. (While this advice might not take into account the cost, or explain how to mitigate it, it seems to suggest that a) writing helps you at getting better at writing, b) it can be a way of getting feedback in order to improve.)
This has the following advantage: (unless you were to implement such a thing, somehow) no one can downvote stuff on your blog. (Even if you accidentally post a draft.*)
*This is in fact my main advice: Avoid accidentally posting a draft. (If you’re not sure about the interface:
don’t draft it here
‘Name’ the post something like ‘testing saving draft of post on LW’ (and remember to remove that before actually posting it)