Ask HN: How to Create a Simple Blog?

[sibila]

I'm very into blogging, but the blogs I had in the past were all hosted on blogging platforms like blogspot and WordPress. I would like to switch to something more... Indie.

I wonder - - I follow and envy a lot of personal websites shouted out here on HN. They generally have a nice, simple and clean interface. How can I create something like that? Whichs tools do you use?

I have some background in CSS/HTML and data visualization, I would like to try out some things just fun. What would you suggest?

Thanks in advance for your time :)

[coolhoody]

Yep, I would suggest to go indie instead of using a posting platform. Platforms die, limit your control and growth options.

Grab a domain ($1 sale at Namecheap atm), generate the site from simple markdown files using Zola (it's basically a better Hugo — if you've heard of it), and host at Netlify for free.

People who prefer a specific language would prefer a framework / generator in that language. Zola is a somewhat neutral option — since you didn't mention your preferences for the language.

Same with the services. I personally prefer Cloudflare as both registrar and hosting, but Netlify would be a bit more intuitive to start with.

Like you, I love clean blog layouts. Shouldn't be a problem if you have a CSS background, but there are themes at the Zola site if you are busy. Not all are great, but there are a couple of neat and clean ones.

P.S. At first I was a bit surprised to see such question here, but then realized that it's actually smart to ask HK — as most of the googleable content is affiliate crap.

https://www.namecheap.com/promos/new-2-year-com-promo

https://www.getzola.org

https://www.netlify.com

[sibila]

Many thanks for the pointers!

[adingus]

Anything based on a static website generator is my go-to. It offers a lot of control but its really quick and easy to get up and running. I like Hugo. I built a blog in django but I found it more trouble than it was worth, at least as a blog back end. I spent more time building and tweaking the thing than writing. Now I deploy with hugo and don't do any tweaking or writing.

[sibila]

I admit I was not at all aware of the many static site generatores there are... What a brave new world HN here introduced me too! I have a lot of studying to do. Thanks :)

[embeng4096]

Perhaps mataroa.blog or blot.im?

Mataroa is freemium ($ for auto-export and custom domain features, all else is free). Blot.im is paid, like a CI/CD that turns a git repo or a folder in your Dropbox or Google Drive into a static site.

I've not used mataroa, but did use blot.im when I was blogging.

Otherwise I second the recommendation for a static site generator, like Jekyll or Hugo.

[jethronethro]

How simple do you want to go? I don't blog myself, but I kind of like the barebones, minimalist blogs hosted via Bear, Mataroa, and Write.as. The latter you can host yourself using WriteFreely.

Or you can pick a static site generator and a clean, simple theme. Lots of options, whether you want to DIY or go hosted.

[sibila]

Thanks for your input :) I would like to go simple but not straightforward 100% plain text. I'd like room for experimentation. Add images, a colour palette, search functionality,...

Even though I like Mataroa's philosophy, it seems waaay too minimalist for me. I didn't know that was possible!

[7402]

If you don't care about having user comments and you don't post all that often, you can do it all in handwritten HTML/CSS. Zero dependencies! (That's what I do with mine, at <https://7402.org>)

[quintes]

I was using blogger then started using medium and since a Jekyll site. Now on my old sites I leave the posts and indicate the new home.

Reason for leaving was I felt like it was free material for those Platforms (sure I get the views) and wanted portability

[itazula]

My workflow is Hugo, GitHub, AWS Amplify. All page creation is on my laptop. GitHub commits are done using the GitHub desktop app. Commits trigger AWS Amplify, and my site is updated.

[sibila]

Nice! Thanks for sharing your workflow :)

[jppope]

This is what I use and I love it => https://lumeland.github.io/

[sibila]

I actually browsed through the showcase gallery and liked what can be accomplished with it. I care mostly about the writing but I also want to be able to add some images and get a little creative - I want -my- site to show off some of my personality, ultimately - and Lume seems to accomplish that. Will be exploring it. Thanks!

[type0]

Try Hugo if you are into static site generators https://gohugo.io/

[sibila]

thanks!

[type0]

> CSS/HTML and data visualization

I think there are ways to turn Jupyter notebooks into a blog, that could be a great way to do a data viz blog

[joshbochu]

my blog https://www.joshbochu.com/ is based on Nextra;

https://nextra.vercel.app/get-started

[sibila]

Simple but no simpler! Thanks for sharing :) (already added your Good Reads articles to my pocket list....)

[pankajtanwar]

[I've mentioned it quite a times on HN]

Ghost - If you are really serious about writing and monetizing it. Not useful if you are not earning from your writing

Medium - If you are gonna write once in a year. or. you are happy putting your articles behind their paywall

dev.to - If you don't have a niche, just writing for the community whenever you feel

hashnode - If you prefer having custom domain, writing for beginners, love SEO, want to build personal brand, and a bit serious about technical writing.

SSG + Github Page - If you love getting your hands dirty in coding & willing to spend sometime to learn a new tech. (plus point, you have full freedom to design it in your own way)

- My self-hosted blog built with NextJs. https://pankajtanwar.in/blogs

[sibila]

Thanks for sharing! dev.to and hashnode seem very nice indeed for work-related topics that I have on my mind to write about

[fetus8]

Python - Flask, and then find a decent hosting option.

[slater]

micro.blog might be worth looking in to

[sibila]

Will be! Thanks :)