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How to write a great README for your Actors
How to write a great README for your Actors

Learn how to write an effective README for your Actor and get started using our template.

Hany Duong avatar
Written by Hany Duong
Updated over 2 months ago

Check out our Actor marketing playbook if you want an even more detailed explanation of how to write great READMEs, improve SEO, and promote your Actors.

Writing a README can be difficult for developers, especially after spending a long time developing their Actor. However, it is the first page users will see when they try to use your Actor. Its job is to attract the users' attention and describe to them what the Actor does and how to use it. Thus, the complexity of the README should match the complexity of the Actor. The following article provides an example of how to write a README for your Actor. 

The README is written in the README.md file in your Actor's repository. From there, it is automatically fetched during the build process.

Structure

  • Introduction

  • Use Cases

  • Input

  • Output

  • Miscellaneous

First things first: to make your Actor easy to find, don't forget to word your Actor's title as we describe in the SEO for Actors article. Be sure to also use these principles in your Actor's description and throughout the README.md file. You don't need to repeat your Actor's README in the description - instead use it to provide a brief, search engine-friendly summary. 

Introduction
A detailed TEXT description of what your Actor can do and why you developed it. 

Use cases
LIST typical scenarios in which your Actor can be useful. Include information on how exactly your Actor can be used in these cases.

Input
LIST all possible inputs for your Actor. Do not go into the complete technical description - you can explain this in your Actor's Input Schema.

Output
CODE example of one of your results in JSON format. For brevity, only provide a snapshot of the Actor's output. For real-time examples, add a Public run ID in your Actor's Publication tab.

Miscellaneous
A short TEXT summary including some specific notes on your Actor. Additionally, include links to tutorials and other relevant sources.

A few examples


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