Writing, Editing, and Publishing: The Complete Tobesee Article Workflow

Articles are the core of any content website. In Tobesee, articles are Markdown files stored in your GitHub repository, managed through a web-based admin panel, and rendered as styled HTML pages by Next.js. This guide walks through the entire workflow — from opening the editor to seeing your published article live on the web.

Opening the Article Editor

Navigate to https://yoursite.com/admin and log in with your access password. From the dashboard, click "Manage Articles" to see your existing articles listed with their titles, descriptions, and dates.

To create a new article, click the "New Article" button. To edit an existing one, click "Edit" next to the article you want to modify.

The Article Editor Fields

Each article has four fields:

Title

The title appears as the H1 heading on the article page and in search engine results. Keep it between 50-60 characters for optimal display in Google search results. Be specific — "Setting Up Tobesee on Ubuntu 22.04" is more useful than "Setup Guide".

Description

The description serves as the meta description for SEO and appears as the subtitle on the article page. Aim for 150-160 characters. Include your primary keyword naturally and give readers a reason to click.

Slug

The slug becomes part of the URL: yoursite.com/posts/your-slug-here. Use lowercase letters, numbers, and hyphens. Keep it short and descriptive. Once published, avoid changing the slug — it breaks existing links and hurts SEO.

Content

The main body of your article, written in Markdown. This is where you spend most of your time.

Writing in Markdown

Markdown is a lightweight formatting language that converts to HTML. Here is a quick reference for the syntax you will use most often:

Headings

## Section Heading
### Subsection
#### Sub-subsection

Use H2 (##) for main sections and H3 (###) for subsections. Do not use H1 (#) in the body — the article title is already H1.

Text Formatting

**Bold text** for emphasis
*Italic text* for titles or terms
`inline code` for commands and variable names
~~Strikethrough~~ for corrections

Links and Images

[Link text](https://example.com)
![Alt text for accessibility](https://example.com/image.jpg)

Always include descriptive alt text for images — it helps visually impaired users and improves SEO.

Code Blocks

For multi-line code, use triple backticks with a language identifier:

```javascript
function greet(name) {
  return `Hello, ${name}!`;
}
```

Supported languages include javascript, typescript, bash, python, html, css, json, and many more.

Lists

Unordered:
- First item
- Second item
  - Nested item

Ordered:
1. Step one
2. Step two
3. Step three

Tables

| Feature | Tobesee | WordPress |
|---------|---------|-----------|
| Database | None | MySQL |
| Cost | Free | $5+/month |

Blockquotes

> This is a quote from another source.
> It can span multiple lines.

YAML Frontmatter

Every Markdown file in Tobesee starts with YAML frontmatter — metadata enclosed between --- markers:

---
title: "Your Article Title"
description: "A brief description for SEO"
date: "2026-02-17"
---

The admin panel fills this in automatically when you use the editor. If you edit files directly in GitHub, make sure the frontmatter is present and correctly formatted.

Publishing and Syncing

When you click "Save" or "Publish" in the admin panel:

Tobesee creates or updates the Markdown file in data/md/your-slug.md
It updates the article index in data/json/articles.json
Both changes are committed to your GitHub repository
Your hosting platform (Vercel) detects the change and redeploys

The article typically appears on your live site within a few minutes of saving.

Editing Published Articles

Click "Edit" next to any article in the admin panel. Make your changes and save. The updated content replaces the previous version in GitHub, and a new commit records exactly what changed. You can view the diff on GitHub to see the before and after.

If you make a mistake, you can revert to any previous version through GitHub commit history.

Writing Articles That Rank Well

Structure for Readability

Start with a clear introduction that tells readers what they will learn
Use headings to break content into scannable sections
Keep paragraphs short — 3-4 sentences maximum
Use lists for steps, features, or comparisons
Include code examples for technical topics

Internal Linking

Link to other articles on your site when relevant. This helps readers discover related content and signals to search engines that your site has depth on a topic.

For setup instructions, see our [deployment guide](/posts/gitbase-install-guide).

Keyword Placement

Include your target keyword in:

The title (near the beginning)
The description
The first paragraph
At least one H2 heading
Naturally throughout the body

Do not force keywords where they do not fit. Search engines penalize keyword stuffing.

Content Length

For technical articles, aim for 1,000-2,000 words. Shorter articles may not provide enough depth to rank well. Longer articles should be well-structured with clear headings so readers can find what they need.

Content Strategy Tips

Consistency Over Volume

Publishing one well-researched article per week is more effective than publishing five thin articles. Quality signals matter more than quantity for both readers and search engines.

Topic Clusters

Organize your articles around core topics. For a Tobesee site about web development:

Pillar article: "What Is Tobesee?" (broad overview)
Supporting articles: Installation guide, environment variables, article management, AdSense integration
Each supporting article links back to the pillar and to related supporting articles

This structure helps search engines understand your site expertise on a topic.

Updating Old Content

Revisit published articles every few months. Update outdated information, fix broken links, and add new sections based on reader feedback or changes in the technology. Updated articles often see a ranking boost in search results.

Troubleshooting

Article Not Appearing After Save

Check the Vercel deployment dashboard. If the deployment failed, your changes will not be visible. Common causes include environment variable issues or build errors introduced by other changes.

Markdown Not Rendering Correctly

Double-check your syntax. Common mistakes:

Missing blank line before a list or code block
Incorrect number of backticks for code blocks
Missing closing markers for bold or italic text
Spaces in image URLs (use %20 instead)

GitHub Sync Errors

If the admin panel shows a sync error:

Verify your GitHub token has not expired
Check that the token has repo scope permissions
Ensure GITHUB_OWNER and GITHUB_REPO match your repository exactly

Summary

The article workflow in Tobesee is straightforward: write in Markdown, save through the admin panel, and let GitHub and Vercel handle the rest. Focus your energy on creating useful, well-structured content — the platform takes care of storage, versioning, and delivery.