[the-mitr]

> I can't tell you how many times an idea, that was crystal clear in my mind, fell apart the moment I started writing and I realize there were major contradictions I needed to resolve.

perhaps because writing is a third order exercise.

first order being in thinking in one's mind, one has to talk with oneself. second order is talking to someone else we are directing thoughts towards that person, but in writing we have to imagine the reader and then write.

https://alandix.com/academic/papers/writing-third-order-2006...

[galaxyLogic]

I think writing is writing to an audience which includes yourself.

When you're thinking you are speaking in your mind which means you can not really listen to yourself at that same time. You don't hear yourself from yourself. You are too busy talking (in your head to yourself) that you can not really think about what you just said to yourself. You are producing language, not consuming it

But when you read what you have written, you can pause reading and do some thinking about what you just read. That makes it easier to understand what you are saying, and more easily see logical errors or omissions in it.

[alsetmusic]

I think this is correct. I told a coworker that when I edit my email drafts they get shorter. He was surprised and said that his get longer. I trim and refine. Sure, I add details that I missed at first. But I also create better structure and remove ambiguity or unnecessary words.

Yesterday, I was working on an email for someone who I was trying very hard not to overwhelm with technical details. I cut it roughly in half in terms of words, but I also turned paragraphs in single lines of sequenced steps or concise statements without decorating the text with unneeded aphorisms / commentary.

I was pretty pleased with the end result. This is only possible because of careful rereading and reflection (including knowing my intended audience). I imagine an LLM can approximate this, but I don't trust one to craft with the same level of care. Then again, we all think we're better than the robots at the things we care about most.

I understand the urge to throw mechanical writing at the bots. But a human will grasp the need to add a detail explaining the why of something when (the current) bots gloss over it. There's still nuance worth preserving.

[galaxyLogic]

https://www.reddit.com/r/todayilearned/comments/1196bgx/til_...

:-)

[zimpenfish]

> That makes it easier to understand what you are saying, and more easily see logical errors or omissions in it.

Rubber ducking with a pencil, kinda.