Guide for Documentation Contributions

Encouraging Documentation Contributions

Documentation contributions are often overlooked but are among the most valuable contributions a project can receive. Good docs reduce support burden and make the project accessible to a wider audience.

Types of Documentation Contributions

Typo and grammar fixes -- The lowest-barrier contribution. Encourage contributors to submit PRs directly for small fixes without opening an issue first.

Improving existing docs -- Clarifying unclear explanations, adding missing context, or restructuring information for better readability.

Adding examples -- Code examples, screenshots, and diagrams that illustrate concepts. Examples are particularly valuable because they bridge the gap between reference docs and practical usage.

Writing tutorials -- Step-by-step guides for common use cases. These require more effort but have high impact.

API documentation -- Documenting function signatures, parameters, return values, and edge cases.

Documentation Guidelines

## Documentation Standards

- Use clear, concise language
- Write for an international audience (avoid idioms)
- Include code examples for every API method
- Use present tense ("The function returns..." not "The function will return...")
- Keep paragraphs short (3-5 sentences)
- Add alt text to all images

Documentation Tech Stack

Mention your documentation tools so contributors know what to expect:

• Static site generator (Docusaurus, VitePress, MkDocs)
• Markdown flavor (GFM, MDX)
• Image hosting conventions
• How to preview docs locally

Review Process for Docs

Documentation PRs should be reviewed for technical accuracy by a maintainer and for clarity by someone unfamiliar with the feature. This dual review catches both factual errors and unclear explanations.