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Interesting idea about book writing - write a "reverse outline" _after_ you have a draft, to figure out what you've actually said, and where the structure needs work.

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Julie Park

@JulieLong18thC

· Jul 8, 2021

Amazed by how much reverse outlining my book manuscript is revealing to me what I'm arguing and _how_ I'm arguing it.

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Andy Matuschak

@andy_matuschak

Replying to

@michael_nielsen

Reminds me of an amusing strategy

@patio11

shared a while ago for helping colleagues: after reviewing a draft, ask, "So what are you really trying to say here?" They'll often answer much more plainly and directly than the prose, then then you can say: "Great, write that!"

11:30 PM · Jul 8, 2021TweetDeck

Replying to

and

I do this regularly as I'm notemaking and drafting pieces! Read it over, ask "what am I saying?", then, often, delete and rewrite - honestly works wonders.

Replying to

and

A hack I like: tell myself that I'm writing _the kind of thing_ that I intend to write, just as a quick sketch, and not the thing itself. Frees me up somehow to be plain and direct because it doesn't "count".