When our readers see published posts at Urban Era Marketing’s websites, all they see are well-crafted articles from a dedicated team of writers who’ve excelled in their niches. What they don’t often see are the messy notes, rewrites, and long hours that went into it.
For a history writer like me, in particular, typing up words is just the first part of the job. The real work is making sure every date, name, and fact holds up. History has a way of punishing even the smallest slip-up, so accuracy and clarity sit at the center of the process.
That’s why our writing process doesn’t start with writing at all. They start by digging deep into sources, cross-checking, and questioning until the foundation is solid.
Without that groundwork, everything else collapses.
In this walkthrough, I’ll show you what happens behind the scenes: the research, the ugly drafts, the clarity checks, the teamwork, and the polish that makes each article worth your time.
So yeah, here’s a sneak peek at the writing process behind Urban Era Marketing’s stellar blog posts.
Table of Contents
- Step 1: The Research Deep Dive
- Step 2: Drafting (and Re-Drafting… and Re-Drafting)
- Step 3: Clarity Without Compromise
- Step 4: Teamwork Makes the History Work
- Step 5: The Final Polish and Publishing (Finally!)
- The Thorough Writing Process at Urban Era Marketing
- Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs)
Step 1: The Research Deep Dive
Hi! Welcome to my messy, nerdy mind.
Research is where historical writing begins, and it’s why it takes longer than most topics. (I’m the last one to submit my drafts, hehe).
Armed with my second cup of coffee for the day and Lo-fi girl as my go-to white noise, I spend hours researching and fact-checking. That involves checking primary and secondary sources and making sure that small details—like who led which kingdom in what year or when a treaty of what country was signed—are correct.
If I don’t nail those basics, I risk leading readers astray. And if there’s one thing this history writer doesn’t tolerate, it’s any form of historical distortions.
For sources, I pull from free-access published journals and credible history-based websites such as the Library of Congress and National Geographic. Sometimes that means reading multiple accounts of the same event just to understand which details are consistent and which are contested.
That also means an ungodly amount of tabs opened at once.
The notes I take at this stage would horrify anyone else. They’re full of typos, half-thoughts, questions in all caps, highlights, and side comments like “CHECK THIS” or “MORE RESEARCH ON THIS.”
Take this screenshot of my notes from an upcoming article about Cleopatra, for example:
They’re not meant for public eyes (except for this one time). And they’re not the most intricate and aesthetic notes, either. But it helps me formulate an article I’m proud of writing.
Readers never see this invisible layer. But it’s the part that prevents confusion, avoids errors, and builds trust. Good history writing is only as strong as the research buried underneath.
Step 2: Drafting (and Re-Drafting… and Re-Drafting)
Based on how I write my notes, you can easily tell that my first draft is rarely pretty. It’s more of a dump than a draft—throwing all my notes onto the page, trying to see which fits into the story I’m trying to tell.
The next thing I do is revise said draft. Repetition gets cut, arguments are rearranged, and the story begins to flow. Sometimes, I even scrap multiple paragraphs or whole sections because they don’t serve the central idea.
At this stage, it’s more about shaping information into something coherent and worth reading.
Side note: If you’re an aspiring writer reading this blog and don’t believe me when I say that revisions separate a good piece of writing from a great one, then listen to this podcast from the National Centre for Writing:
The later drafts are where I focus on voice and flow. This is where the article stops sounding like a research paper and starts sounding like a story. I add transitions, smooth awkward sentences, and double-check that my insights are front and center.
That last part matters to me most.
I don’t want to produce articles that are just fact compilations. Anyone can Google a timeline or an interesting factoid. My pieces, on the other hand, always carry insights grounded in contexts and evidence.
Step 3: Clarity Without Compromise
When writing about history, getting the point across is one thing; making sure that your readers understand what it is you’re talking about is an entirely different ball game.
Thank heavens I do have my social studies teaching background—yes, I’m a geek who studied the humanities in college—to aid with this writer-reader gap. The dilemma had always been how to tell a piece of history without “dumbing it down” for my audience.
One technique I use is breaking events into clear timelines. Rather than stating everything at once, I build the story step by step. For instance, in my article about why Ethiopia was never colonized, I started with the country’s ancient history before jumping to the time when the colonization attempts were happening.
I also always operate under the assumption that my readers aren’t that familiar with the concepts and contexts behind my point. That’s why I weave in brief backstories or explanations to make my discussion more accessible. You can see an example of this in my article about Ancient Roman gossip, where I included a short mythology lesson about Hercules and how Emperor Commodus tried to emulate the hero.
I find that providing historical contexts this way presents an easily digestible picture of what exactly happened at a certain point in time.
Plus, the side comments and fun facts I insert here and there also serve as a breather from all the info dump that comes from reading a history article of mine.
Step 4: Teamwork Makes the History Work
Some might argue that writing isn’t solitary, but working remotely with a team spread across countries can make it feel that way. Still, our culture at Urban Era Marketing ensures no writer works in isolation.
Yes, every article carries the author’s name, but behind it lies the input of many creative minds who shaped its conception and production.
At our company, publishing is a team sport. The process here involves layers of collaboration.
Prior to writing, our creative director, Trish, and SEO specialist, Novo, provide us with keywords and topics that align with Urban Era Marketing’s content objectives.
Then comes the rigorous task of drafting, where our resident writers—Leigh, Melody, and I—bring our expertise to the page.
Once a draft is ready, editors—including yours truly—step in, not just to check grammar, but to catch gaps in logic, missing examples, or points where readers might get lost. We also ensure sources are credible and images are properly credited. We always give credit where it’s due.
When an article gets the green light from the assigned editor, our operations director, Miguel, is notified to track the team’s progress. He’s also there to address any technical or logistical issues that could delay publication.
These are the people working behind the scenes every day, shaping each article we publish. No post ever goes live without passing through multiple sets of eyes for revision and refinement.
Step 5: The Final Polish and Publishing (Finally!)
We’re almost at the end!
At this stage, I shift gears from writer to reader. I check the tone: is it too academic? Or is it engaging enough to feel like a casual conversation with your history buff friend on a random afternoon?
One trick I use is reading the article out loud. It’s tiresome and I don’t enjoy it, to be brutally honest, but it always reveals clunky phrases and awkward transitions. If it sounds off, it reads off. And thus, it needs to be edited.
Formatting also matters. Headings, subheadings, and bulleted or numbered lists aren’t there for decoration. They’re there for better navigation and readability. I also maximize my use of photos, videos, and pull quotes so that they become a part of my storytelling. I’m not fond of using visuals as mere text breaks.
Our team here at Urban Era Marketing has a reader-first approach. That means using design elements not as filler, but as ways to enhance understanding.
The Thorough Writing Process at Urban Era Marketing
Having read through my writing process, one may think that it’s too over the top. But our goal here is consistency. We hold every detail up to scrutiny so that you, our readers, grow accustomed to a standard of excellence that can only be expected from Urban Era Marketing.
Plus, this is just one process from one writer! Good luck imagining the writing process that our mental health and social media writers go through each day. At the end of the day, the article you read may look polished, but behind it is a trail of messy notes, half-scrapped drafts, and team input. The invisible work we put out is what makes the visible result meaningful.
Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs)
What are the different steps of the writing process?
Sources vary on how many steps are involved in their writing process, but what they have in common are these four distinct steps: prewriting, drafting, revising, and editing.
Which step usually comes first in writing?
Usually, the first step is prewriting. This includes brainstorming, researching, or outlining ideas before drafting.
What are the three C’s of good writing?
The three C’s of good writing are clarity, coherence, and conciseness. Clear writing makes your point easy to understand, coherent writing makes your ideas flow logically, and concise writing cuts out the fluff so every word counts.
