> For the complete documentation index, see [llms.txt](https://www.information-architecture.world/llms.txt). Markdown versions of documentation pages are available by appending `.md` to page URLs; this page is available as [Markdown](https://www.information-architecture.world/content-collection/collections/world-ia-day-2016/writing-the-rules-christopher-hess-wiad16-boise.md).

# Writing the Rules - Christopher Hess - WIAD16 Boise

## Writing the Rules: Substance and Structure for Modular, Reusable Content

### Resource information

* **Presenter:** Christopher Hess
* **Event:** World IA Day 2016 Boise
* **Date published:** 2016 Feb 23
* **Duration:** 29 minutes 49 seconds
* **Format:** Talk
* **Language:** English
  * **Original audio:** English
  * **Subtitles:** English (auto-generated)
  * **Transcript:** Available
  * **Transcript languages:** English
* **Tags:** information architecture, content strategy, structured content, modular content, content modeling, DITA, spatial schema diagram, semantic metadata

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### Summary

Chris Hess details Healthwise's transition to a **modular, reusable content strategy**, emphasizing how information architecture provides the necessary structure for language to become a "future-ready" asset. The presentation is highly valuable to the IA community because it demonstrates practical applications of **content modeling, DITA-based structures, and semantic metadata** to maintain consistency and accuracy across thousands of granular topics. It is ideally suited for **information architects and content strategists** tasked with managing complex, large-scale information systems that require dynamic content assembly for diverse user contexts.

### Key Takeaways

* **The "Mantra" for Structured Content:** Effective structured content is defined by **multiple sizes, meaningful metadata, and being written for reuse**. This allows content to be modular, flexible, and predictable without being locked into a single presentation or output.
* **The Concept and Aspect Model:** This framework is used to represent meaning with high precision. A **Concept** identifies the subject matter (e.g., pink eye), while an **Aspect** identifies the specific "slice" of that subject being addressed (e.g., "how to care for yourself" or "when to call a doctor").
* **Content Modeling as Documentation:** A content model serves as the official documentation of all content types, their elements, and the relationships between them. For example, Healthwise uses specific types like **info concepts, tasks, media references, and personal stories**.
* **Substance through the Lens of Structure:** Content strategy must move beyond just structural tags to focus on the **meaning and storytelling**—the "substance"—that lives between those tags.

{% hint style="info" %}
*Transcript, summary, and key takeaways generated using AI assistance and may not capture all nuances of the original presentation.*
{% endhint %}

## Video

{% embed url="<https://youtu.be/AM4UvrVhxSM>" %}

Watch on [YouTube](https://youtu.be/AM4UvrVhxSM)

***

## Related resources

### **Technical Tools and Systems**

* **Component Content Management System (CCMS):** A central tool used for authoring, where editorial guidance is built directly into the templates to ensure consistency.
* **Balsamiq:** Used during the early stages for creating mock-ups of specific content types, such as the video type template.
* **Excel and Spreadsheets:** Mentioned as tools for representing complex content models and for maintaining **scope notes**, which are living documents defining what belongs in specific content "aspects".
* **XML and DITA:** The **Darwin Information Typing Architecture (DITA)** is the XML-based specification the team migrated toward to handle structured content and reuse.
* **RDF (Resource Description Framework):** Used to construct "triples" to represent meaning and relationships within the content structure.
* **Future Delivery Platforms:** While not internal tools, Hess mentions **MapMyFitness**, **Strava**, and **Electronic Medical Records (EMRs)** as the types of third-party environments where their modular content must be able to function.

### **Industry References and Experts**

* **Abby Covert:** The President of the IAI, cited regarding the connection between information architecture (systems that describe structure) and content strategy.
* **Karen McGrane:** An information architect whose "mantra" for structured content—**"multiple sizes, meaningful metadata, written for reuse"**—serves as the team's guiding principle.
* **Joe Pearlman:** A figure in the DITA community from whom Hess "borrowed" the concept of **spatial schema diagrams**.
* **Sara Wachter-Boettcher:** Quoted on the importance of seeing content structures through the lens of **meaning and storytelling**.

#### **Internal References and Frameworks**

* **Content Model:** The foundational documentation defining all content types (e.g., info concepts, tasks, personal stories) and their elements.
* **Spatial Schema Diagrams:** Visual diagrams that represent the content model, including element names, requirements, and hierarchy.
* **In-Depth Style Guide:** A comprehensive resource containing detailed rules and examples for content developers, which is also distilled into "minimal versions" within CMS templates.
* **Scope Notes:** Living text accounts kept in spreadsheets that define the specific boundaries of an "aspect" space to keep large teams aligned.
* **The Lego Metaphor:** A daily reference used within the organization to explain how modular pieces of content should "snap together" according to a shared specification.

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### Part of Collections

* [World IA Day 2016](/content-collection/collections/world-ia-day-2016.md)

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*This resource is maintained by Grace Lau.*&#x20;