My big sister is a SAHM (stay-at-home-mom) who cooks from scratch, then blogs about it. She shares her own recipes or ones that she picked up from other blogs. These days she’s pretty good about how she posts her recipes. In earlier days, however, it wasn’t always so easy to follow.

When you’re blogging about something that you do often, it’s easy to forget the things that you do automatically. Remember: people are reading your blog to find new information, recipes, and ideas. If readers already knew how to make spaghetti sauce, they wouldn’t be searching your blog. Don’t skip steps or make assumptions. Room temperature at my house during the winter is 65 degrees. When I finally found a recipe explaining how warm it should be to activate the yeast, my bread dough started rising. Don’t assume that the reader knows these things – be specific.

Here are some samples of things I’ve seen on different cooking blogs.

1. Heat tomato puree, garlic, and wine on the stove – okay, but how hot? Am I boiling or simmering?

2. Use 1/2 cup coconut oil (if it’s solid, warm it up) – how warm? softened or melted?

3. Heat milk over medium-high – OMITTED: stir frequently – my sauce burned.

4. Bake for 60 minutes. Cool on rack – cool the muffins in the pan on the rack, or take the muffins out and let them cool?

In many cases I’ve ruined my first batch of casserole/dessert/sauce because the directions were unclear. I’m pretty competent in the kitchen, so I make notes and don’t repeat my mistakes later. For inexperienced cooks, however, one bad batch of brownies might just turn them away from your blog for good.

Whether you’re blogging about food, clothes, or traveling, test your directions first. It’s easy to miss a step when you can do it without thinking. Have a friend make your soup according to your directions, then have her knit that hat as you described. Make sure it works before you share it with the world.