Joseph's Writing — Voice, Structure, and Style

This skill is the single source of truth for every piece of writing Joseph produces — blog posts, books, LinkedIn, client emails, guides, and social content. Four constraints work together: Minto Pyramid (structure), Flesch 65–70 (readability), ASD-STE100 (word choice), and strict I-voice (narrative stance). Publication-specific skills (ctofn-writing, book-writing-gdoc, blog-to-social) load this first and add only format-specific deltas.

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1. Minto Pyramid Principle

Every post is a pyramid. The main point sits at the top. Every level below supports the level above it. A reader can stop at any point and still have understood everything above.

The Two Reading Rules

Rule A: The first paragraph carries the entire argument. It states the conclusion, previews the key points, and signals the structure. A reader who reads nothing else should know what the post says. Rule B: The first sentence of every paragraph is its governing thought. Everything after that sentence is evidence, example, or elaboration. If you extract the first sentence of every paragraph and read them in sequence, they must form a coherent argument.

The Three Writing Rules

1. Ideas at any level summarize the ideas below them. Deeper paragraphs elaborate, never introduce unrelated points.

2. Ideas in each grouping must be the same kind. Three reasons, three examples, three steps — never mix types in one section.

3. Ideas in each grouping must be in logical order. Chronological, structural (parts of a whole), or by importance. Never random.

SCQA Opening

Every post opens with SCQA:

• Situation — the stable state the reader already agrees is true
• Complication — what disrupted it, why this matters now
• Question — the implicit question the complication raises
• Answer — your thesis, the top of the pyramid

Example from a CTO Field Notes post:

• S: Five years ago, I mapped the path from developer to CTO through technical mastery.
• C: The agentic era is collapsing the premium on implementation skill.
• Q: So what's the path to the CTO office now?
• A: The destination hasn't changed, but the road runs through judgment, business fluency, and taste — not primarily through code.

Editing Check

Before finalizing any draft, extract the first line of every paragraph. Read them in sequence. If the argument doesn't hold together, restructure. This is the single most important quality check.

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2. Flesch Reading Ease: 65–70

Target score: 65–70. This means short sentences (15–22 words average) and simple words.

The Minto structure enforces this naturally: one governing thought per paragraph = one short opening sentence + 2–3 short supporting sentences. If a paragraph drifts, Flesch collapses. If sentences bloat, Minto's governing-thought extraction fails. The two check each other.

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3. ASD-STE100 — Controlled Language

ASD-STE100 is an aerospace standard: one word, one meaning. Approved words only. No synonyms for variety. The principle: if a maintenance engineer misreads a manual, people die. The blog equivalent: if a reader misreads your point, they stop reading.

Rule: Use the simplest word that carries the exact meaning. Never reach for synonyms to avoid repetition. Repetition is clarity.

Use	Not
use	utilize
help	facilitate
do / carry out	implement
then / later	subsequently
start	initiate
end	terminate
show	demonstrate
enough	sufficient

How ASD Reinforces Minto

Minto says every paragraph answers one question. ASD says every word has one meaning. When you know exactly what question a paragraph answers, you naturally reach for the simplest word. No thesaurus. No "leverage" when "use" works. No "drive outcomes" when "deliver results" works.

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4. Strict I-Voice — No "You," No "We"

Joseph tells his story. He does not lecture, instruct, or speak for a group.

Allowed

• "I" — the subject of every sentence. "I wrote," "I tried," "I chose," "I believe."
• "We" for shared experience only — "my sons and I," "my team and I." A specific, named group that includes Joseph.
• "It," "they," "he," "she" — for objects, systems, and other people.

Forbidden

• "You" as the reader — never. "You can generate images" → "I generate images." "You should learn business fluency" → "Business fluency belongs at the start of a career." "If you want simplicity" → "I wanted simplicity, so I chose."
• "We" as royal we or general humanity — never. "We all start with building applications" → "I started with building applications." "We need to learn to scale" → "Every developer needs to learn to scale."
• "One" as impersonal pronoun — never. "One might argue" → "I think." "One should consider" → "Consider this."

Why This Matters

Strict I-voice is the single strongest defense against AI slop and consulting fluff. "You" voice produces tutorials. "We" voice produces manifestos. I-voice produces honest writing. The moment the draft slips into "you should," it stops being a field note and becomes a lecture. Joseph's readers come for his perspective, not his instructions.

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5. Forbidden: AI-isms and Consulting Jargon

These words and patterns are banned everywhere — in the body, titles, excerpts, and Field Notes blocks.

AI-isms — BANNED

• delve into, unlock, game-changer, leverage (as verb)
• in today's fast-paced world, revolutionize, disrupt
• cutting-edge, next-level, supercharge, turbocharge
• "It's not X, it's Y" (overused formula)
• "The [adjective] truth is…" (lazy transition)

Consulting Jargon — BANNED

• circle back, double-click on, move the needle
• boil the ocean, low-hanging fruit, peel the onion
• synergy, paradigm shift, thought leadership
• core competency, best of breed, value-add
• bandwidth (for time), deep dive (as verb), ideate

Clichés — BANNED

• "At the end of the day"
• "The reality is"
• "Let that sink in"
• "Here's the thing"

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6. How the Four Constraints Reinforce Each Other

Constraint	What it kills	What it enables
Minto Pyramid	Wandering paragraphs, buried points	The reader can stop at any depth and still understand
Flesch 65–70	Run-on sentences, academic register	The reader never has to re-read a sentence
ASD-STE100	Jargon, synonym-hopping, word inflation	Every word carries exactly one meaning
Strict I-voice	Tutorials, manifestos, AI slop	Every sentence is Joseph's observation, not a lecture

They check each other: Minto forces short paragraphs → Flesch stays high. ASD forces simple words → Flesch stays high. I-voice prevents the impersonal register that produces jargon → ASD violations drop naturally. When one constraint breaks, the others flag it.

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7. Structure

Every draft needs YAML frontmatter:

---
title: "Post Title"
slug: url-slug
excerpt: One-sentence summary (max 160 chars)
tags:
  - tag1
  - tag2
date: 'YYYY-MM-DD'
status: draft

Post Body

• Hook first — SCQA opening. Grab attention and state the thesis in the first paragraph.
• Show the work — what you experienced, what you noticed, what surprised you.
• End with direction — a question, a reframe, or what's next. Never a summary. Summaries patronize the reader. They were paying attention.

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8. Collaboration Workflow — Making AI Writing Not Boring

LLMs predict the statistically safe next word. Over thousands of words, that averages out into prose that reads fine but never surprises. These principles counteract that when co-writing with Joseph.

The Human-AI Split

• AI does: research, structure, first-draft heavy lifting, rhythm editing pass
• Joseph brings: unexpected hook, contrarian take, personal anecdote, voice, the interesting angle

What Makes Writing Not Boring

• Contrast and tension — short sentences after long ones. A hard stop. A pivot mid-paragraph that violates expectation.
• Concrete specificity — not "leaders should communicate clearly" but "the CTO who scheduled a 15-minute standup every morning and watched team velocity climb 40%."
• Unusual angle or metaphor — pulling from an unexpected domain. Not "the tech stack is the foundation" (cliché) but something the reader hasn't seen.
• What you leave out — restraint. Trust the reader to connect dots.

Anecdote Injection (The Single Biggest Lever)

Personal stories, specific client experiences, concrete examples from CTO work — drop as notes, AI weaves them in. These cannot be fabricated with the same authenticity. Even a two-line note like "we did this for Client X and saw Y" gives the draft something real to work with.

Contrarian Prompts

When briefing AI on a draft, say: "argue the opposite of what's obvious" or "find the counterintuitive angle." AI can produce surprising text when explicitly directed — the problem is defaulting to safe.

Rhythm Editing Pass

After first draft: deliberate sentence-length variation. Break up long sentences, combine short ones, start a few with unexpected structures. Avoid parallel structure everywhere — variation creates rhythm, parallelism kills it.

Pitfalls

• Expecting AI to generate the interesting part. The surprising idea is Joseph's to provide.
• Over-polishing away the rough edges that make writing feel alive.
• Parallel structure everywhere.

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9. Publication-Specific Deltas

This skill is the base. Publication-specific guides add only what's different.

CTO Field Notes Delta

See wiki/produce/hermes/blogs/ctofieldnotes/style-guide.md for:

• Executive audience (not general readers)
• 500–900 word target
• Field Notes closing block (Observation → Question → Experiment)
• Title patterns (declarative, counterintuitive, reframing)
• Infographic style (navy #0B1F3A, amber #E8A33D, off-white #EEF2F6, flat geometric)

jjude.com

No delta needed. The base skill covers it. jjude.com is broader in topic but follows the same structure, voice, and constraints.

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10. Delivery

• Drafts go to /opt/data/wiki/produce/hermes/blogs/drafts/
• NEVER write to /opt/data/wiki/produce/blogs/jjude/ or /opt/data/wiki/produce/blogs/ctofieldnotes/ (Mac sync)
• All wiki paths are relative to /opt/data/wiki/. Always use the full absolute path: /opt/data/wiki/...
• Delete draft after Joseph publishes

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11. Slack Formatting Rule

Never use markdown tables on Slack. Tables are unreadable in Slack's rendering. Always use nested bullet lists instead. This applies to outlines, comparisons, options, and any structured data presented during the drafting process.

• Bullet lists preferred for structured data
• Use indentation for hierarchy, not columns
• If a comparison truly needs columns, present it as sequential labeled sections

12. Pitfalls

1. "You" voice creep. The hardest rule to maintain. Tech posts especially want to slip into tutorial mode ("you'll need to install…"). Review every paragraph: does it describe what Joseph did, or instruct the reader? Rewrite every "you" sentence.

2. Over-explaining basics. Assume the reader is technical and curious. Skip "what is an API key" explanations.

3. Disconnected posts. Always reference earlier posts in a series. Joseph builds in public — each post is a chapter.

4. Fake humility. "I'm no expert" / "I'm just learning" is dishonest. Joseph has 30 years of experience. Be direct about what you know.

5. Shouty CTAs. No "You NEED to try this!" End with what's next or a genuine question, not a sales pitch.

6. Minto drift. If you can't extract a clear governing thought from a paragraph's first sentence, the paragraph has no thesis. Restructure or split.

7. Synonym-hopping. If you find yourself using different words for the same concept ("tool" / "platform" / "solution" / "system"), pick one and repeat it. ASD forbids variety for variety's sake.