ldstephens

You Can Build Your Own Static Blog - Here's How!

Posted on January 24, 2025 by Loren

Hey friends, I bet a lot of you with a personal blog on platforms like Bear Blog, Pika, Write.as, have thought about building your own blog at some point. I know I was curious—until I finally decided to do for it! I didn’t have much knowledge of HTML or CSS, but I knew just enough to want to give it a shot. Plus, I figured I could use AI tools like ChatGPT or Claude to help me get started and tackle the stuff I didn’t know how to do. And the result? This blog.

Maybe you’ve thought about creating your own blog too but felt overwhelmed by HTML, CSS, or all the technical details. Don’t worry, you’re not alone! The great news is that you can build a basic static blog site without needing a static site generator, the terminal, or advanced coding skills. With a little help from AI tools, it’s totally doable to create a site with an Atom feed for RSS.

Let’s break it down step by step. I’ve asked ChatGPT for assistance with this task. The final outcome is a very basic, static blog that serves as a step-by-step guide to help you get started.

Step 1: Understand the Basics

Before diving in, let’s get some quick definitions out of the way:

  • Static site: A website that doesn’t require a database or fancy backend. Think of it as a collection of simple HTML files.
  • Atom feed: A type of RSS feed that allows people to subscribe to your blog and get updates when you post new content.

You don’t need to be an expert at these. Just know that they’re essential to making a functional blog.

Step 2: Pick the Right Tools

AI can do a lot of the heavy lifting for you. Here are some tools you’ll use:

  1. AI Code Generators: Platforms like ChatGPT can generate the HTML, CSS, and Atom feed for you.
  2. Text Editor: Use a simple editor like Visual Studio Code (free) to tweak the code.
  3. Hosting Service: GitHub Pages or Netlify are great free options for hosting your static blog.

Step 3: Create the CSS File

Start by asking the AI to create a CSS file for your blog. Use this prompt:

“Create a CSS stylesheet for a blog with a header, main content area, and a footer.”

Here’s an example of what the AI might generate:

/* styles.css */
body {
   font-family: Arial, sans-serif;
   line-height: 1.6;
   margin: 0;
   padding: 0;
}

header {
   background: #333;
   color: #fff;
   padding: 1rem 0;
   text-align: center;
}

main {
   padding: 2rem;
   max-width: 800px;
   margin: 0 auto;
}

footer {
   background: #333;
   color: #fff;
   text-align: center;
   padding: 1rem 0;
}

nav a {
   margin: 0 1rem;
   text-decoration: none;
   color: #007bff;
}

nav a:hover {
   text-decoration: underline;
}

.blog-list {
   margin-top: 2rem;
}

.blog-list a {
   text-decoration: none;
   color: #007bff;
}

.blog-list a:hover {
   text-decoration: underline;
}

Save this file as styles.css.

Step 4: Link the CSS File in Your HTML

Next, update your HTML files to reference the CSS file. For example:

<!DOCTYPE html>
<html lang="en">
   <head>
      <meta charset="UTF-8" />
      <meta name="viewport" content="width=device-width, initial-scale=1.0" />
      <title>My Blog</title>
      <link rel="stylesheet" href="styles.css" />
   </head>
   <body>
      <header>
         <h1>Welcome to My Blog</h1>
         <nav>
            <a href="index.html">Home</a>
            <a href="blog.html">Blog</a>
         </nav>
      </header>
      <main>
         <p>
            This is the home page of my blog. Use the navigation to explore
            posts!
         </p>
      </main>
      <footer>
         <p>&copy; 2025 My Blog</p>
      </footer>
   </body>
</html>

Save this file as index.html. It will serve as the homepage for your site.

Step 5: Create the Blog Page

Next, ask the AI to generate a separate page for listing blog posts. Use this prompt:

“Create an HTML file for a blog page listing multiple posts with links to individual post pages.”

Here’s an example:

<!DOCTYPE html>
<html lang="en">
   <head>
      <meta charset="UTF-8" />
      <meta name="viewport" content="width=device-width, initial-scale=1.0" />
      <title>Blog</title>
      <link rel="stylesheet" href="styles.css" />
   </head>
   <body>
      <header>
         <h1>Blog</h1>
         <nav>
            <a href="index.html">Home</a>
            <a href="blog.html">Blog</a>
         </nav>
      </header>
      <main>
         <section class="blog-list">
            <h2>Recent Posts</h2>
            <ul>
               <li><a href="blog/post1.html">Post 1</a></li>
               <li><a href="blog/post2.html">Post 2</a></li>
               <li><a href="blog/post3.html">Post 3</a></li>
            </ul>
         </section>
      </main>
      <footer>
         <p>&copy; 2025 My Blog</p>
      </footer>
   </body>
</html>

Save this file as blog.html. It will serve as the blog page for your site.

Step 6: Create Individual Blog Posts

For each blog post, create a separate HTML file. Here’s an example for post1.html:

<!DOCTYPE html>
<html lang="en">
   <head>
      <meta charset="UTF-8" />
      <meta name="viewport" content="width=device-width, initial-scale=1.0" />
      <title>Post 1</title>
      <link rel="stylesheet" href="../styles.css" />
   </head>
   <body>
      <header>
         <h1>Post 1</h1>
         <nav>
            <a href="../index.html">Home</a>
            <a href="../blog.html">Blog</a>
         </nav>
      </header>
      <main>
         <article>
            <p>This is the content of Post 1. Welcome to my first blog post!</p>
         </article>
      </main>
      <footer>
         <p>&copy; 2025 My Blog</p>
      </footer>
   </body>
</html>

Place this file in a blog folder (e.g., blog/post1.html). Repeat for each new post, updating the links in blog.html.

Step 7: Create an Atom Feed

Ask the AI to generate an Atom feed for your blog. Use this prompt:

“Create an Atom feed for a blog with multiple posts, each with its own link and publication date.”

Update the feed as needed when you add new posts.

Step 8: Host Your Blog

Now that you have your files, it’s time to put them online.

  1. GitHub Pages: If you’re using GitHub, create a new repository and upload your files. Go to the repository settings and enable GitHub Pages. Your blog will be live at https://yourusername.github.io/your-repo-name/.
  2. Netlify: Drag and drop your files into Netlify, and it will instantly publish your site.

Step 9: Update Your Blog

Every time you write a new post, you’ll need to:

  1. Add a new HTML file for the post in the blog folder.
  2. Link it to the blog.html page under the "Recent Posts" section.
  3. Update the atom.xml feed with the new post details.
  4. Upload the updated files to your hosting service.

Final Thoughts

Building a static blog doesn’t have to be complicated. With AI tools to generate code and free hosting platforms to get your site online, you can create a functional blog. Once it’s live, you’ll have your space to share your thoughts with the world.

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