Gutenberg is WordPress’ new content editor which was rolled out in WordPress 5.0, last December 6, 2018. It replaced the Classic Editor which we were very familiar with.
What’s the Difference?
Content creation in Gutenberg is done using Blocks. By default, Gutenberg comes with the following content blocks:
Common Blocks
- Paragraph
- Image
- Heading
- Gallery
- List
- Quote
- Audio
- Cover
- File
- Video
- Columns
- Buttons
- Separator
There are still more. But for this article, we’ll just stick to the common ones.
Creating a Blog Post Using Gutenberg
Once you’ve logged into the dashboard, go to Posts and click Add New. This will take you to the Gutenberg Editor. Set up your blog posts by doing the following:
- Create a good title
- Assign categories
- Add tags
- Add a featured image
- Add your blog content into the content area
- Publish or schedule your blog post
Let’s look at these steps in detail:
1. Create a Good Title
A good blog title is short, attention-grabbing, and search engine friendly. It’s the first thing people see (and in the most part, will ever read) so, make sure it’s interesting. Don’t forget to include relevant search keywords too so people can find your blog post on Google or Bing.
Here’s a handy guide on how to write good blog titles.
2. Assign Categories
Categories are “groupings” for your blog posts. You can either choose from the list (if there’s one) or create a new category by clicking “Add New Category”.
3. Add Tags
Another great way to organise your blog posts is by adding tags. Tags are keywords that tell users and search engines that Blog Post A and Blog Post B are related despite not being in the same category.
Ideally, you should have between 1 to 3 keywords that you’ll reuse across multiple blog posts.
Add tags by typing the keywords in the tag box and then press enter. These tags are automatically saved for future use. Over time, you’ll accumulate enough tags for your needs. In this case, all you have to do is type in the first few letters and Gutenberg will intuitively suggest the tag to you.
4. Add a Featured Image
Think of the Featured Image as a visual summary of your blog posts. This image usually appears in the blog roll, category view, blog summaries in the homepage, and social media when your blog post gets shared.
5. Adding Your Blog Content
You can paste your blog post content and Gutenberg will automatically recognize your text and formatting. However, if you want to have more control as to how your blog post will look when published, you need to learn how to use blocks.
Blocks are found on the upper left corner of the content editor.
We don’t have to discuss each type of block here, as there are many. If you want to learn more about each block, just hover on the block and Gutenberg will show you a snippet of what it is.
Below are some examples:
Removing Blocks
Want to put an image instead of a list? Deleting a block is easy. Just click the block you want to delete like so:
Moving Blocks
You can also move blocks wherever you like. Again, just click on the block you want to move like so:
Adding Links
Want to link to another page or website? You can add a link to almost any block. Just look for the link icon:
If you want to add a link to a specific text. Just highlight that text and click the link icon.
6. Publishing Your Blog Post
All set? It’s time to hit that big blue Publish button on the upper right corner of the editor and watch your blog post come to life.
