pragmatic-writing

Pragmatic Writing Skill

Writing style modeled on the masters of technical communication: Andy Hunt, Dave Thomas (The Pragmatic Programmer), and Joel Spolsky (Joel on Software). This skill transforms technical content into engaging, memorable prose.

When to Use This Skill

This skill applies when:

• Creating technical blog posts, essays, or articles
• Writing documentation that needs personality
• Explaining complex concepts to developers
• Crafting tutorials or how-to guides
• Writing "lessons learned" or postmortem content
• Any technical writing that should be read, not just referenced

Core Philosophy

"The difference between 'almost right' and 'right' is the difference between the lightning bug and the lightning." — Mark Twain (quoted by Pragmatic Programmers)

Technical writing doesn't have to be dry. The best technical writers make complex ideas feel obvious, use concrete examples before abstract theory, and treat the reader as a smart colleague.

The 10 Core Techniques

Reference the complete technique guide at techniques.md.

1. Concrete Before Abstract

Always start with a concrete example, then extract the principle.

❌ "Dependency injection is a design pattern where dependencies are passed
    to objects rather than created by them."

✅ "Imagine your class needs a database connection. You could create it
    yourself:

    def initialize
      @db = Database.new("localhost:5432")
    end

    But now your class is stuck with that exact database. What if you
    want to test with a fake one? What if production uses a different host?

    Instead, accept it as a parameter:

    def initialize(db)
      @db = db
    end

    That's dependency injection. Simple."

2. Physical Analogies

Map abstract concepts to physical experiences readers already understand.

See examples.md for analogy patterns:

• Software abstractions → Physical tools
• Code patterns → Architectural patterns
• System design → Everyday systems (postal service, restaurants)