The HackerNoon Editing Protocol

If you are going to go, then go far.

If you want to fly, then reach for the stars.

If you must paint, give us a masterpiece to admire.

If you want to write, then write with fire.

This protocol and the guidelines within represent all the knowledge, tips, and best practices the HackerNoon editorial team has gained over the years. Let these words help you on your writing journey, and become the best damn writer we’ve ever seen.

1. Editing Protocol Overview

The Editing Protocol is a machine and human hybrid protocol for improving story quality and distribution.

We wrote this protocol to help writers write better, understand why we publish what we publish, and reject what we reject.

It is our goal to remove subjectivity as much as possible from the process and make our guidelines and processes crystal clear.

Editing Protocol Index:

1. Editing Protocol Overview

   1. Second Human Rule

      1. Verified Writers

   2. Time to Review

2. Standards of Quality

   1. Originality Score
   2. 6 Ws Score
   3. Objectivity in ranked listicles
   4. Unranked listicles
   5. Actionable advice

3. Red Flags

   1. Subject Matter

      1. Subject matter saturation

   2. Plagiarism

   3. Sources and Citations

   4. Formatting is bad or broken

   5. Grammar level: gibberish

   6. Story is Too Short

4. Backlink Rules & Guidelines

   1. Backlink Limits

   2. Backlink quality and diversity

      1. Diversity of sources
      2. Internal linking
      3. Changing links

   3. Reposting and Canonical Linking

      1. Canonical links to company domain
      2. Canonical links to blog networks or social networks