ljg-plain

ljg-plain: Plain language (白)

Let people grok it.

It doesn't dictate how to write. It dictates what not to write. The floor is locked down, the ceiling is open. Different topics have different best ways of writing — analogies, stories, Q&A, progressive examples, one long scene — content determines form.

Format constraints

Org-mode syntax

Bold uses *bold*(single asterisk); **bold**
Heading levels start from * , no skipping levels

ASCII Art

All diagrams use pure ASCII characters. Allowed:+ - | / \ > < v ^ * = ~ . : # [ ] ( ) _ , ; ! ' " and spaces. Unicode drawing symbols are forbidden.

Denote file conventions

Timestamp:date +%Y%m%dT%H%M%S
Human-readable time:date "+%Y-%m-%d %a %H:%M"
Filename:{時間戳}--plain-{簡短標題}__plain.org
Output directory:~/Documents/notes/

Org file header

#+title:      plain-{簡短標題}
#+date:       [{YYYY-MM-DD Day HH:MM}]
#+filetags:   :plain:atom:
#+identifier: {YYYYMMDDTHHMMSS}
#+source:     {URL 或來源描述}

Report the path after the file is written.

Red lines (every one must pass; order is priority)

Spoken-language test — the highest law. Read it aloud, would you talk to a smart friend this way? If not → change it until you would. Conjunctions are not the enemy — "but" and "so" are the sound of a thought turning; only cut mechanical conjunctions ("moreover", "it is worth noting that")
Zero jargon — a smart 12-year-old can repeat it. When a technical term must appear, first land the meaning in plain speech, then mention the term in passing
Short words first — if it can be said in two characters, don't use four. "進行分析" → "look". Big words don't make you look smart, they only make reading tiring
One thing per sentence — each sentence advances only one step. Split long sentences short
Concrete — nouns are visible, verbs have force. "Someone felt the situation wasn't great" → "Zhang San said the project is about to fail". Cut adjectives whenever possible
Give the reason at the start — the first sentence makes people want to read the next. No setup, no background, no "since ancient times"
No padding — delete openings, crutch words, exaggerated symbols. Every sentence is doing work
Trust the reader — skip softening, excuses, hand-holding. Saying it once is enough
Honest — if you can't think it through, say you can't think it through. "About 70%" is more honest than "possibly"

Toolbox (optional, don't have to use it all)

When writing you can take tools from here; none is mandatory:

Analogy — find everyday experience whose structure matches. A good analogy bears load (remove it and the article collapses), has layers (dig one layer and it still holds), is self-evident (doesn't need the analogy itself explained). When a verb extends to a new object, check whether the Chinese verb-object collocation is natural
Good question — find the reader's sticking point and turn it into a question. Only when the reader is stuck do they want to read on
Crack — where is the model/analogy not enough? That point is often the most valuable. Don't announce it; let the reader feel it themselves
Image — a scene you can see with your eyes closed. A forced image is worse than none
Story — a specific person meets a specific problem. The reader follows along
Enter the chain with a rhetorical question — when encountering an implicit premise, open with a question, then answer it
Skeleton diagram — when the concept involves spatial relationships, embed an ASCII diagram (#+begin_example block)

Execution

1. Obtain content

URL → WebFetch | Text → use directly | File path → Read | Concept → explain directly | Book title/Paper title → WebSearch

2. Write

Form is free. Choose from the toolbox the approach best suited to this topic, or choose none — if there's a better way to write it, use that.

The output is a coherent article flowing from the first line to the last. The whole text has only the file title; the body has no subheadings.

Prohibited:

Structural labels (* 類比 / * 裂縫 etc.)
Meta-commentary pointing to the writing process ("let's make an analogy" "next we'll discuss")

3. Pass the red lines

Scan the red-line checklist item by item. Additional checks:

Break formulas — negative parallelism no more than two occurrences in the whole text; three-part structures change to two or four items
Vary rhythm — alternate long and short sentences, diversify paragraph endings
Kill golden lines — anything that sounds quotable, rewrite
Check jumps — is every logical step traceable? Previous sentence says A, next jumps to B → add a bridge
Check translationese — are verb-object collocations natural in Chinese? If unnatural → change the verb or change the sentence pattern

After scanning, list the revisions (which sentence triggered what, before → after). The list is not written into the file.

4. Generate the Org file

Obtain the timestamp per Denote conventions, write the file header + body, save to ~/Documents/notes/。

Acceptance

Grok: after reading, can restate the core in one's own words
Zero jargon: a 12-year-old can follow
Memorable: what's left in your mind after reading — an image, a question, a turn, anything
Want to finish: from beginning to end there is no paragraph you want to skip