Markdown Language Explained With Examples

by Francis

What exactly is Markdown?

Markdown is a minimal syntax for marking up your documents with formatting, using punctuation and special characters.

Sound like Geek Speak?

The simplest way to explain it is that you can write normal text when making your blog posts and by just adding some characters your text will come out formatted with correct HTML.

Formatting words as bold or italic, adding images, and creating lists are just a few of the things we can do with Markdown.

EXAMPLES

e.g. by typing **this text is bold**

The text on your post will look like this: this text is bold

e.g. by typing ==this text is highlighted==

The text on your post will look like this: this text is highlighted

e.g. by typing

* List item 1

* List item 2

* List item 3

The text on your post will look like this:

  • List item 1
  • List item 2
  • List item 3

Ghost has Markdown built in to help you write your posts faster and easier while still making them look great!

How long does it take to learn?

It took me 20 minutes. In many ways, thanks to the nice shortcuts that Ghost has included on the blog platform.

e.g. ⌘B instantly bolds the selected text. (use Ctrl B on a Windows computer)

So why is Markdown language so useful?

I think so many people love it because:

  • you don't have to be a technical genius to use it
  • it allows you to write articles all the time wherever you are
  • since it is just text, you don't need any special apps to write it
  • you can write your text in any kind of text editor (even a note taking app)
  • when you get in front of a computer to publish your post, you don't have to add any formatting (just copy and paste your text into the Ghost admin panel - then publish!)
  • it is really easy to learn
  • it is really easy to use

Where can I learn more?

You can check out this Markdown Sample Page. It shows every single command that Ghost uses or you can go to the reference links below.

Reference Links:

http://ghost.skillshub.info/markdown-language-complete-command-guide

https://help.ghost.org/hc/en-us/articles/224410728-Markdown-Guide

http://daringfireball.net/projects/markdown/