Writing Rules

Amazon's Writing Rules

\Writing Tips From Amazon:

• Use less than 30 words per sentence.
• Replace adjectives with data
• Eliminate weasel words, for example: "nearly all customers", "signifigantly better"
• Do your writing pass the "so what?" test
• Answer questions with one of the 4 amazon answers: Yes, No, a number, or I don't know.
• Be objective, avoid adjectives and adverbs
  • Sales increased signifigantly => Increased by 40% in Q4 2011
• Avoid jargon and acronyms as they exclude non-experts and newcomers
• Always explain technical terms, acronyms, and abbreviations, the first time they appear.
• more weasel words to avoid:
  • would help the solution
  • might bring clarity
  • should result in benefits
  • arguably the best
• Use subject-verb-object sentences with "doers" and "action"

Rules for Developer or Online Content

• Write out acronyms in the first mention
• Break content into sections
• Use bullet points instead of paragraphs.
• Use descriptive anchor text.
• Avoid saying "follow simple steps or "its easy" or "its obvious." These can make your reader feel stupid.
• Use AlexJS a tool to help identify insensitive language.

Rules to avoid:

These tend to be fluff, cutting them makes your writing more clear.

• just
• that
• very
• really
• literally
• actually
• certainly
• probably
• basically