Franklin wrote many things during his lifetime: articles for his newspaper, the Pennsylvania Gazette, letters about his life (later published as his Autobiography), letters on an amazingly wide range of subjects, including politics, science, libraries, even fire stations.

He also helped with changes to the Declaration of Independence. Some things he wrote using his own name, others he wrote using pseudonyms like Silence Dogood. Sometimes he was humorous, and other times serious, but he always followed his own rule for writing: make it "smooth, clear and short."