Adding more restrictions is a good thing.
Seeing Paul Graham only using vim and email for writing his blogs and getting feedback it got me thinking that all these Google Docs and easy-to-comment documents make it easier to give feedback, a comment that might not be well thought through. But giving more work to the author makes him more insecure.
Versus Email, where the friction to edit is very high, making the reader more restricted to give too much feedback, but only the most important one. Also, too many edits can and will change the flow and the initial intent of the writer. Maybe even the heart message, the anger, if it was written in some sort of flow state.
It reminds me of DHH and Jason Fried where they say their calendar cannot just be booked; they need to ask someone when they have time. It’s a way of having fewer meetings, to make some restrictions on purpose, for a better outcome. Bsky/ Twitter
# Collaboration
The question might be, how much collaboration is needed? As Paul said, he is not collaborating. As an author, we don’t collaborate per se; we are open to ideas and improvements, but not to change the whole article and remove the soul and character of it.
# The flow of Writing an Essay
When you first write part of an essay it tends to flow very well. Then you notice things you overlooked, and you have to go back and insert them. This usually ruins the flow. Fixing this — recreating the old flow with the new ideas — is one of the hardest parts of writing. Paul Graham (x.com)
How it looks like when Paul writes:
What it looks like writing an essay. I use vim and run the text through fmt. Instead of a single wallpaper, I use individual images for decoration. Sometimes this yields interesting combinations. x.com
# Paul Graham timelapse video
Writing is rewriting. Here’s me writing the essay “Startups in 13 Sentences.” Characters in yellow will ultimately be deleted. Notice how few characters I type make it into the final version. x.com
Time-lapse: Watch Me Make Mistakes
The finished: Startups in 13 Sentences
Origin:
References: The Obstacle Is the Way - Ryan Holidays
Created 2024-11-27
