A Lesson I’ve Learned About Common Knowledge and Advice Writing

Some of the most successful and appreciated blog posts I’ve written elsewhere have been complete surprises to me. As I wrote them, I worried that they’d be criticized as being too basic, and as merely restating common knowledge.

One thing I’ve learned is that what is common knowledge for us may be a revelation to others, particularly if we have significant experience in our field. In the field of meta-blogging, I’ve always been surprised by the success of posts compiling information which, to me, seems like very basic stuff.

What I’ve come to realize is that most readers of advice writing are beginners, and for them, succinct explanations of basic principles are very useful.

This blog is deliberately aimed at a more settled and comfortable group of bloggers, webmasters and web workers, who are looking to add another layer of knowledge, skills, innovation and philosophy on top of the basics. I suspect that an article on the basics of blogging, for example, would not go down well here!

If you are not deliberately writing for a more experienced or knowledgeable base, however, compiling what you see as common knowledge can be something your readers truly appreciate.

Always remember that as an advice writer you are more experienced in your field of expertise than most of your readers. What is interesting and revelatory for you might go well above their heads. What is common knowledge to you can be vital content for them.