How to Write Mini Essays (in Obsidian) - YouTube
Nick Milo talks about how to write short mini-essays that are:
- 1 idea
- 1 page
- 100-300 pages
Different approaches
Experience: “This happened to me”
- Sparks
- What’s the experience that sparks this idea
- Freewrite to insight
- Write down what comes to mind to discover the hook
- Rewrite with a Kickstarter
Opinion: “Here’s a strongly stated thing”
- Sparks
- Remarks
- Garden Master
- Revisits notes and cultivates them
- Collect ideas, notes, references to let the idea marinate
- Link to ignite
- Link idea to other ideas to ignite the idea when connections lead to discovery
- Rewrite with a Kickstarter
This thing happened
- Sparks
- Research
- Name it to frame it
- Rewrite with a Kickstarter
How to write a mini-essay by Odysseas
Odysseas also talks about this in How to Write a Mini-Essay - YouTube
Mini-Essays are a style of note that blends speed and novelty with the depth you need to understand ideas.
They’re an invaluable tool not only for exploring your curiosity, but also for putting in the reps for your writing habit. Write just one or two every day, and in a year, you’ll be unrecognizable from the writer you once were.
But how do you get started?
Mini-Essays are a unique format, so it can be tricky to get stuck in. This video offers some rough direction for writing your own, for whatever goals you have. We’re all different, and mini-essays have to reflect this by staying flexible, fun and tailor-fit to your approach.
Here I cover:
- Four rules to keep your mini-essays useful (and not a pain in the ass to manage).
- Techniques to write an enticing intro.
- Tips for writing the body text in a clear and logical way.
- How you can wrap it up with a punchy conclusion.
- How you can use storytelling to write mini-essays that make you feel.
Four rules
- Keep each mini-essay one idea only
Mini-essays are not a place for deep interconnected pieces. Keep each mini about one idea and rather link entire essays with each other.
- Keep them short
He refers to On writing well by Willian Zinser that has a lot of good ideas to talk about. If he wrote a full essay of all the ideas, that would be a lot. Mini-essays are good to keep short instead of “complete”. Short enough to write them in 10-20 minutes but long enough to flesh out the ideas. 100-500 words.
Prompt (from How to Take Smart Notes): Keep mini-essays short enough to fit one screen.
- Stay organized
With good organization, they become easier to find later when writing other pieces like blog posts, newsletters, articles and so on.
- Link related mini-essays
Three-part structure
Introduction
Introduction is the place to set the hook for the reader and capture their interest. It also sets up the setting.
Goals of the intro:
- Make the premise clear
- Spark curiosity
Even though intros should be clear, they can still leave something as mystery to spark curiosity of the reader. Everything is a balance.
Hooks:
Option 1: Make a strong statement
Slap the user into their face straight from the start.
Option 2: Inspire emotions
Good writers use emotion to keep reader engaged in every turn.
Option 3: Start with a question
It combines clarity and curiosity because the reader knows they can expect an answer but they don’t yet know which it will be.
Option 4: Start with a story
Throw your reader right in the middle of story to keep them reading
Body
Talk about the main point in the way you understand it.
Conclusion
Writing a powerful conclusion is priceless. For your mini-essays, the conclusion doesn’t have to be magnificent but wrap up the main point at the end in sentence or two pinning it at the end.