Your README Sucks: How to Write Documentation Developers Actually Read

Documentation is the user interface of your code. You can write the most elegant, performant algorithm in history, but if the documentation is a wall of unformatted text, nobody will use it.

The Visual Hierarchy

Developers scan; they don't read. Your README needs visual anchors.

• Badges: Use shields.io to show build status, npm version, and license. It signals "this project is alive."
• Code Blocks: Show, don't tell. The very first thing after the title should be a code snippet showing how to install and use the library.
• Tables: Use tables for Props and Configuration options. Lists get messy.

Markdown Tricks

Markdown is more powerful than people realize. You can use HTML inside it. You can create collapsible sections using <details> and <summary> tags to hide advanced configuration options, keeping the main view clean.

<details>
  <summary>Advanced Configuration</summary>
  <p>Here are the scary settings...</p>
</details>

Preview Before You Push

Nothing looks more amateurish than a README with broken links or unrendered tables. Don't treat your main branch as a testing ground for typos.

Use a Markdown Previewer to render your syntax into HTML before you commit. Verify that your tables align and your images load. Documentation quality is a proxy for code quality in the eyes of the user.