Writing in Markdown
I really like writing in Markdown. I started using it more regularly when I started using Slack at work in ~2017. At that time, my job mainly consisted of helping troubleshoot technical issues in Slack. I spent a lot time writing, integrating code examples, etc. Written communication was very important, and it was important to strike a balance between clear and quick. Later, I would still spend a lot of time writing documentation for work. Eventually I drifted onto notetaking apps like Bear and Obsidian (currently using Bear, but who knows maybe Iāll flip again soon).
With a standard widely-accepted format, it feels like no matter where I go on the web, I can still assert myself there.
Speaking of confidence, itās not lost on me that generative AI also really likes Markdown. Similar to the emdashā¦ using a Markdown heading is one of those ātellsā that you might be copy-pasting from a generative AI. Alas! The AI is not wrong that itās fun to write in Markdown.
Someone who I recently started following that inspired me to start blogging is Cassidy Williams. One of the main things I love about her blog is that the posts are pretty variable in length, subject matter, and cadence. It feels like it goes against the grain of repeatable/consistent/built-to-be-sold kinda content (right, content).
Anyways, I happened upon a post of hers that really gave me some relief. You can make a line break in Markdown with the small but mighty backslash: \
If you want the full explainer: Making a single line break in markdown
So now when I double space at the end of a line, I donāt have to deal with the period that gets automatically placed there. I guess I spent the accumulated seconds of time saved writing this post about it!
Also: just a note that nothing on this site is written using any kind of generative AI. To borrow another note from Cassidy Williams: if I canāt be bothered to write it, why would you be bothered to read it?