Why creating a README has become my favorite part of development

As a seasoned full-stack developer with over a decade of experience, I‘ve seen firsthand how critical good documentation is to the success of any software project. Industry research backs this up: a study by the University of Cambridge found that well-documented code is 56% less likely to contain bugs than undocumented code. Another survey by GitHub found that incomplete or confusing documentation is the #1 pain point for developers when trying to understand a new codebase.

Yet despite its importance, writing documentation remains a struggle for many developers. A 2021 survey by Stack Overflow found that 60% of developers find documentation the least enjoyable part of their job. I used to count myself in that camp. Like many of my peers, I saw documentation as a tedious chore, something to begrudgingly do (if at all) at the very end of a project.

But in recent years, my perspective has completely shifted. What changed? I started practicing README-driven development – the simple habit of starting every new project by writing a comprehensive README file. This small tweak to my workflow has not only made documentation more palatable, it‘s made it downright enjoyable. Creating a great README has genuinely become my favorite part of development.

README-Driven Development in Action

So what exactly is README-driven development? The core idea is simple: make writing the README the very first step in your development process. Before you write a single line of code, you write the README to map out the project‘s purpose, architecture, usage instructions, and other critical details. Then, you treat the README as a living document throughout the project lifecycle, updating it continuously as you build.

When I first heard about this approach, I was skeptical. It sounded like a recipe for wasting time – why spend hours on documentation before I even start coding? But I decided to give it a try on a couple small projects, and I quickly saw the light.

Here‘s an example of how it played out on a recent full-stack web app I built for a client. Before diving into the code, I started by creating a new repo and committing an initial README covering:

• Project overview and business objectives
• Planned tech stack and architecture
• Breakdown of main components and their interactions
• API documentation and usage examples
• Setup instructions for development, testing, and deployment
• Project roadmap and release schedule
• FAQ with answers to anticipated questions
• Team contacts and communication channels

This initial README acted as a blueprint for the project. It clarified requirements, surfaced design decisions, and defined success criteria. Crucially, it forced me to think through the project end-to-end before getting lost in the weeds of implementation.

As I started development, I treated the README as my project North Star. I referred back to it constantly to guide my work and validate my progress. Whenever I made a key decision or learned a important lesson, I captured it in the README:

• Added architecture diagram after finalizing tech stack
• Documented tricky configuration steps after struggling through local env setup
• Expanded FAQ section with answers to questions from the client
• Added troubleshooting tips after hitting common errors in testing
• Updated API examples to match final implementation details

Bit by bit, commit by commit, the README grew in parallel with the codebase into a rich body of project knowledge. By the time we launched, it had everything a future developer would need to understand the project inside and out.

The Benefits of a Great README

After experiencing README-driven development on a few projects, I was hooked. The benefits were just too substantial to ignore:

1. Jump-starts development

Starting with the README clarifies your thinking and surfaces key decisions early, when they‘re easy to change. It‘s like a mini planning session that keeps the project on track from day one.

2. Captures fleeting project knowledge

README-driven development nudges you to write down important details in the moment, before you forget them. Things like command line snippets, configuration gotchas, and vendor documentation links. The README becomes a convenient knowledge base for the little details that are so easy to lose in the shuffle of daily development.

3. Makes writing documentation painless

By spreading documentation work throughout the project, rather than a massive dump at the end, it never feels overwhelming. Regular README updates become just another routine part of your development flow, like writing unit tests or conducting code reviews.

4. Produces great documentation

When you make the README a priority from the start, you naturally produce higher quality, more comprehensive documentation. You‘re able to capture nuanced details and important context that would be near impossible to recall at the end of a long project. And since you‘re updating the README regularly, it stays in sync with the codebase.

5. Eases onboarding and collaboration

A great README acts as a welcome mat for your project. It greets newcomers and gives them a gentle orientation to the codebase. All the key information they need to get started – setup steps, architectural overviews, coding conventions – is right there in one skimmable document. This can shave hours or even days off the onboarding process for new developers and contributors.

6. Acts as a collaboration hub

The README is also a natural place to surface important project info for stakeholders outside the immediate development team. Things like roadmaps, release schedules, support docs, and contact info. Centralizing this key info in the README (rather than scattering it across emails, chats, and docs) keeps everyone aligned throughout the project.

7. Becomes a valuable project artifact

Most importantly, an awesome README becomes a valuable artifact of your work. It captures the thinking and context behind the code, creating a lasting record of your contributions. Long after you‘ve moved on to new projects, your carefully crafted README will live on, helping future maintainers and reflecting positively on your abilities. A great README is like a gift you give to your future self and colleagues.

Tips for README-Driven Development

Sold on the idea of README-driven development? Here are some tips to get the most out of the practice:

Use templates and checklists

Having a standard README template ensures you cover key points consistently. I start all my READMEs with the following outline:

• Overview
• Requirements
• Installation
• Configuration
• Usage
• API
• Contributing
• License
• Contact

I then tailor this template to the specifics of each project, adding new sections as appropriate. The README Checklist is another great resource for key items to cover.

Leverage Markdown

Markdown is a huge reason writing documentation in the README is so pleasant. Its simple, intuitive syntax makes it a breeze to create nicely formatted README with minimal effort. Things like headings, lists, code snippets, tables, and links are just a few keystrokes away. Many Git hosting services like GitHub automatically render your Markdown README into clean, readable HTML.

There are also some wonderful tools to make working with Markdown effortless:

• Typora: My favorite Markdown editor, with elegant live previews
• VS Code has great built-in Markdown support
• Markdown All in One VS Code extension adds shortcuts and enhancements
• HackMD for collaborative Markdown editing
• StackEdit in-browser Markdown editor

Include visuals

Nothing brings a README to life quite like visuals. Screenshots, diagrams, flowcharts, and even GIFs can quickly convey complex ideas or provide instant context. I make a habit of sprinkling visuals liberally throughout my READMEs, especially in sections about architecture, configuration, or usage examples.

Some of my go-to tools for creating visuals:

• Excalidraw for quick architecture diagrams and flowcharts
• Carbon for code snippet images
• Recordit for capturing quick screencasts and GIFs
• LICEcap another easy GIF screen recorder
• Snagit powerful screenshot and recording tool

Treat it as a living document

The key to successful README-driven development is consistency. It‘s not about dumping everything into the README upfront, but rather steadily updating it throughout the project. Get in the habit of making README updates a regular part of your workflow.

Some key points to update the README:

• New environment setup or configuration steps
• Changes to architecture or key components
• Usage examples for new features
• Answers to questions from teammates or stakeholders
• Bugs, quirks, or "gotchas" you encounter in development
• Refactoring or documenting technical debt
• Release notes and change logs

I like to include "Update README" as a task in the definition of done for my user stories and bug tickets. This ensures no important details slip through the cracks.

Get the whole team involved

README-driven development works best when the entire team buys in. Encourage everyone, not just senior devs, to contribute to the README. Junior devs often have great insights, as they‘re seeing the codebase with fresh eyes.

Consider reviewing README updates in your team‘s code review process. This not only improves the quality of the documentation, but also gets more eyeballs on the README content.

You can even make updating the README a part of your onboarding process for new hires. Have them read through it and suggest improvements or clarity questions. This is a low-pressure way for them to add value while ramping up.

The Joy of README-Driven Development

I never expected to say this, but writing documentation has become a genuinely enjoyable part of my development practice. Starting each project with a README and steadily cultivating it throughout the development lifecycle has transformed documentation from a dreaded chore into an exciting opportunity.

There‘s a creative thrill in trying to craft the clearest, most helpful explanations and examples. It‘s satisfying to see the README evolve and expand, commit by commit, into a valuable trove of project knowledge. And it‘s always rewarding to hear that something I wrote in the README helped a colleague or made their job easier.

Since adopting README-driven development, the quality and comprehensiveness of my documentation has improved immensely. More importantly, so has my attitude towards it. I now approach documentation with the same artisanal care and attention to detail that I devote to my code. Because I‘ve discovered that like good code, good documentation is a craft to take pride in.

If you haven‘t tried README-driven development before, I highly encourage you to give it a shot. It may feel strange at first to start a project in a text document rather than an IDE. But once you experience the benefits – the clarity, the knowledge capture, the organizational power – you may just find that writing the README becomes your favorite part of development too.