Guides · 4 min read
How to turn an article into an honest first draft
Most posts about articles are recaps. Readers can get a recap anywhere. What they can't get anywhere else is your view: what you agree with, where you push back, and what it reminds you of from your own work.
1. Pick an article you reacted to
Don't pick the most popular article this week. Pick the one that made you nod, wince or argue. A reaction is the raw material for a point of view.
2. Write your stance in one sentence
Before anything else, finish this sentence: "I think…". Keep it short and specific. "Pilots fail because nobody owns the changed workflow" beats "Interesting piece on AI adoption."
3. Find the angle
The same stance can become very different posts:
- A practical lesson: what someone should do differently on Monday.
- A challenging opinion: where the article, or the conventional view, is wrong.
- An unexpected connection: how this links to something from another field or from your own experience.
Pick the one you can back up with something you've seen.
4. Draft, then cut
Write the first draft fast. Then cut the summary down to one line, and spend the words on your view and your example. If a sentence could appear in anyone's post, delete it or make it yours.
5. Check before you post
- Is every fact right, and is the article credited?
- Would you say this out loud to a client or colleague?
- Is there one concrete example from your own work?
If yes to all three, post it.
Doing this with LinkSmith
LinkSmith follows the same order: you save the article and write your stance first, it suggests three angles, and it drafts from the one you choose. You edit, copy and post it yourself. Nothing is published for you.