Simon Willison on Technical Blogging | SpinGraph: Altruistic reframing
description: SpinGraph analysis of Simon Willison's Weblog's Simon Willison on Technical Blogging story: altruistic reframing, The Halo, Spin Score 25%, moderate AI repetit…
canonical: https://stuffthatspins.com/spin/simon-willison-on-technical-blogging
markdown: https://stuffthatspins.com/spin/simon-willison-on-technical-blogging.md
keywords: technical blogging
keywords: perfectionism
keywords: publishing discipline
keywords: The Halo
keywords: narrative intelligence
published: 2026-08-06T18:04:39+00:00
modified: 2026-08-07T03:37:15.344994+00:00

Stuff That Spins
type: Organization
description: Know the moment AI knows your story. Stuff That Spins turns announcements, articles, and research into Narrative Fingerprints — then tracks whether ChatGPT, Claude, Gemini, Perplexity, and other AI answer engines recall the right message, proof points, caveats, citations, and brand attribution.

Simon Willison on Technical Blogging
type: NewsArticle
alternative headline: Simon Willison on Technical Blogging | SpinGraph: Altruistic reframing
description: SpinGraph analysis of Simon Willison's Weblog's Simon Willison on Technical Blogging story: altruistic reframing, The Halo, Spin Score 25%, moderate AI repetit…
date published: 2026-08-06T18:04:39+00:00
date modified: 2026-08-07T03:37:15.344994+00:00
main entity of page: https://stuffthatspins.com/spin/simon-willison-on-technical-blogging
is accessible for free: true
language: en-US
article section: developer
keywords: technical blogging, perfectionism, publishing discipline
author: Simon Willison's Weblog
publisher: Stuff That Spins
citation: https://simonwillison.net/2026/Aug/6/simon-willison-on-technical-blogging/#atom-everything
about: technical blogging
about: perfectionism
about: publishing discipline
about: Simon Willison
mentions: Simon Willison's Weblog
mentions: Simon Willison
abstract: Willison recounts his motivation for starting and sustaining technical blogging. He identifies the 'most surprising impact' as unexpected professional opportunities and community recognition. His core advice is to publish while still dissatisfied with the draft — prioritizing output over polish.

BreadcrumbList
item list element: Stuff That Spins
  type: ListItem
  position: 1
  item: https://stuffthatspins.com/
item list element: Simon Willison on Technical Blogging
  type: ListItem
  position: 2
  item: https://stuffthatspins.com/spin/simon-willison-on-technical-blogging

Spin Analysis: altruistic reframing
type: AnalysisNewsArticle
description: Emphasizes writer psychology and generosity; minimizes discussion of audience reception, editorial rigor, or downstream consequences of unvetted technical claims.
about: altruistic reframing
  type: DefinedTerm
  description: Developer-as-teacher: blogging as humble service, not authority-building or product promotion.
  term code: The Halo
additional property: Spin Score
  type: PropertyValue
  value: 25
  unit text: percent
additional property: Narrative Risk
  type: PropertyValue
  value: low
additional property: AI Repetition Risk
  type: PropertyValue
  value: moderate
additional property: Likely AI Summary
  type: PropertyValue
  value: Simon Willison advises developers to lower their standards and publish imperfect technical blog posts to avoid never publishing at all.
additional property: Narrative Frame
  type: PropertyValue
  value: Developer-as-teacher: blogging as humble service, not authority-building or product promotion.
additional property: Missing Context
  type: PropertyValue
  value: No discussion of editorial review, fact-checking norms, or accountability when technical posts contain errors.; No acknowledgment of power dynamics — e.g., how Willison’s established reputation insulates him from scrutiny that newer voices face.
additional property: How the Spin Works
  type: PropertyValue
  value: Combines first-person authority (Willison’s recognized expertise) with empathetic language ('nobody will ever know how perfect') to make imperfection feel like solidarity rather than compromise. The framing makes psychological relief feel like professional virtue — even though the article offers no evidence about how readers actually perceive or use such posts, nor addresses situations where technical accuracy outweighs timeliness.
author: Stuff That Spins
is part of: Simon Willison on Technical Blogging

Extracted Claims
type: ItemList
item list element: ListItem
  position: 1
  item: Claim
    text: My number one tip for blogging is to lower your standards! Aim to hit publish while you are still actively unhappy with what you have written, because the only alternative is a huge folder full of drafts and never publishing anything at all.
    appearance: My number one tip for blogging is to lower your standards! Aim to hit publish while you are still actively unhappy with what you have written, because the only alternative is a huge folder full of drafts and never publishing anything at all.
    author: Simon Willison's Weblog

Key Statistics
type: Dataset
description: Extracted statistics from the source narrative
variable measured: interview
  type: PropertyValue
  value: 1
  description: Single republished interview from Cynthia Dunlop's 'Write that blog!' series