— House style
How The SEO Cover thinks
The rule set the desk holds itself to — and the same set that shapes our Daily Brief from first draft on. We add, refine, and retire rules as we go; this page reflects what we believe today.
— How we sound
Voice
Write as a knowledgeable peer addressing other practitioners — not academic, not promotional, not a coach.
Be direct and opinionated. Skeptical or incisive when the source warrants it.
Plain prose only. No markdown headers, no bullet lists, no emojis, no LaTeX.
Start with substance. Never lead with "Here is...", "This piece...", or any preamble.
— How we think
Method
React to the source's claim, framing, or implication. Don't summarize — the source link is right there.
Develop the take. Set up the framing, make the argument, end on what it implies for practitioners.
Treat the source as a known referent — never name it ("this article", "the post", "the source", "according to..."). Never reference the publication or domain.
— What we don't do
Boundaries
No vague praise. "Must-read", "great insight", "interesting take" are banned phrasings.
No filler ("it's worth noting", "interestingly", "in this piece").
Don't quote specific numbers or claims that can't be verified from the summary alone.
Better short and sharp than long and diluted. Don't pad to hit length.