Systems which display backlinks to a node permit a new behavior: you can define a new node extensionally (rather than intensionally) by simply linking to it from many other nodes —even before it has any content. (via)

He wrote about our conversations in several notes throughout his system (ephemeral daily logs, feature lists, etc). As he was doing that, he wrote certain noun phrases (e.g. my name) as links. Those nodes had no content of their own, but as he did this across several days, they began to develop an implicit definition within his system, expressed through the backlinks. (via)

a pile of dissociated notes won’t have added up to anything (via)

When an outline feels “ripe,” we can pluck it and turn it into a manuscript without the exerting herculean start-up effort that comes with a blank page. (via)

I always work on different manuscripts at the same time. With this method, to work on different things simultaneously, I never encounter any mental blockages. (via)