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Templates · Writing & publishing

How-to guide (Diátaxis) template

For "How to do X in Y" posts and internal guides. Origin: The second Diátaxis type: a recipe for a competent reader with a specific goal, distinct from a tutorial for a beginner.

Start from this templateFree, no account needed. The blank is written with guidance in each section, ready to fill in.

Structure

  1. The goal and its preconditions
  2. Numbered steps for the happy path
  3. Variations and options
  4. Troubleshooting
  5. Related guides

How a tough reader scores it

When you score a draft against this format, the Critic evaluates this how-to guide. The weights add up to 100; the fixes for the weakest criteria arrive as cards in the editor.

CriterionWeight
The goal and preconditions are stated up front15
Steps are complete for the main path with exact actions30
Traps and options are named where they occur20
Troubleshooting covers the likely failures with symptoms and fixes15
No tutorial-style teaching or background for a competent reader10
Short enough to follow while doing it10

How it works in SecondPen.ai

Open the template and the editor writes the blank once, with a line of guidance under each heading that you delete as you fill it in. Write your abstract and the editor names the format it reads like. Ask for a document with a slash command and it offers to start from the matching format. When the draft is ready, the Critic scores it against the criteria above, the way this format's toughest reader would, and the three highest-leverage fixes become Editor cards.

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