Have you looked at static page generators? Wonder if that provides the simplicity you're looking for along with optional customization. One example: https://gohugo.io
Got distracted by problems with Markdown (an8d Asciidoc).
Get distracted every time I want to write.
After I got my html "template" up and running I just copy that and write whatever I want to write.
Conclusion: for me, when writing, finding the correct tools prevented me from just writing.
(I have however spend some time on my developer tooling and feel I get a good return on investment there. Currently (for 5+ years) Netbeans and Maven, and later also VSCode + Yarn.)
I've spent more time than I dare to admit trying to rebuild my person web site which I ran successfully from 2000-2012. Which coding framework should I use, CSS, database, hosting platform, the list goes on. I should have just spent the time writing it all in plain vanilla html (which I've now started doing).
Ironically if I'd start posting my content on a social network where I had no control over how it looked/functioned I would have spent my time actually putting together something useful.
Server side includes. It does everything required and doesn't bloat and doesn't change. I've been using them since the geocities era with hand-written static html content. Easy to mix and match.
Got distracted by choosing one.
Got distracted by choosing a template.
Got distracted by problems with Markdown (an8d Asciidoc).
Get distracted every time I want to write.
After I got my html "template" up and running I just copy that and write whatever I want to write.
Conclusion: for me, when writing, finding the correct tools prevented me from just writing.
(I have however spend some time on my developer tooling and feel I get a good return on investment there. Currently (for 5+ years) Netbeans and Maven, and later also VSCode + Yarn.)