@DavidPerellChannel

Michael shared highlights from the episode: 

1. You can’t develop good taste without knowing the fundamentals of your genre. Michael thinks 27 patterns exist across all essays, but they’re not rules, they’re questions. Only once you understand the constraints and why they exist can you defy them in a way that’s unique to you.

2. The best way to get good at writing is to change how you read. Read great literature to expose yourself to the potentials of prose. Don’t just read for content, read for style and structure. First, highlight the parts that resonate, and then re-read those parts to deconstruct them.

3. Write your first draft for yourself, and write your second draft for your reader. Don’t start with a template. Embrace the unknown and feel out each idea, but then use specific editing lenses to make sure it’s legible to strangers without context.

4. Paragraphs are the atomic unit of composition. We are traumatized by The Five Paragraph Essay and need better heuristics. Each paragraph should be a distinct idea that follows a tiny dramatic arc: it starts with a frame to hook the reader, and it ends with a reward or punchline. Doing this right over and over helps create reader’s trance.

5. Storytelling is stretching the unknown across time. You can build tension through characters or ideas. For characters, you want to model their intentions, obstacles, and consequences, in that order—tension emerges when we know what a character wants but their fate is uncertain. For ideas, organize your structure around a few big questions. You don’t even have to say these questions out loud; plant them in the subtext and the reader will always feel like they’re at the edge of understanding the unknown.

6. A good hook is a fractal. It isn’t just a clever way to get the reader to start, but it captures the core dilemma of your whole essay. First, read your draft to understand what questions it’s answering. Then, try to write an opening line that has those same questions in the subtext.

7. Personal writing involves the biographical details of your life. Just because you rant on what you believe or confess how you feel, that doesn’t make it personal. Could somebody put their name on your essay and get away with it? If so, you’re not on the page. Michael says Experience has 3 criteria: biography (what happened), interiority (what you thought), and outlook (what you believe). It’s not about pushing any of these to their extremes, but synthesizing them in a way to show transformation and to support your main idea.

8. If you struggle with scope creep, “pick one volcano.” This is a term used by writer Umberto Eco. A student once told him he wanted to write a thesis on volcanos. Eco told him to zoom in. The student came back with “volcanos in Mexico.” All 48? Get as specific as possible. The student picked the Popocatépetl Volcano in Mexico, because it has some extraordinary details that reveal truths about many volcanoes. Making your thesis a “microcosm” is conceptual arbitrage. You have a single, tangible, emblematic example that explains things beyond itself. 

9. To find your voice you have to change your arena. The way we shape words is linked to the environment we create them in. Depending if you’re by yourself, with one person, with 5 friends, or with a 5,000-person audience, you’ll speak differently. You’re more likely to experiment when the stakes and visibility are low. It’s important to create spaces where you can write semi-publically without inhibition so that you can learn the boundaries of your voice. Consider an unlisted page on your website. Consider a pseudonym (Fernando Pessoa had 75 of them).

10. The ultimate goal of writing advice is to forget it. The goal of being so conscious about writing patterns is so that you can make them automatic. People romanticize the  Grateful Dead as a prime example of free-spirited intuition, but they were insanely committed to practice. Young Jerry Garcia practiced banjo scales for 10 hours a day. Young Phil Lesh studied classical music theory for trumpet. When the band got together, they practiced 6-7 hours a day, every day. At one point Bob Weir was kicked out for not being rigorous enough. Now, they are legends of improv, but only from superhuman work ethic.

11. By learning to write essays, you become a writing generalist. Most genres focus on some patterns over others. They specialize. The essay however seems to be a medium of fusion. It combines the soul of a memoirist, the rigor of a philosopher, the pen of a poet, the persuasion of a marketer, the research of a journalist, and the creativity of a novelist. Depending on the context, you might not want to have every cylinder f

12. We should prepare for AI to get better than we can imagine. It’s easy to focus on limitations and doubt technology, but every few months a new product comes out that causes an existential crisis. What if we accepted this? We should ask ourselves: If AI gets “extraterrestrially good,” becomes hyper relevant, and can replicate us to uncanny degrees—will you still write your own sentences? If the answer is yes, you have nothing to worry about. By imagining the extremes, it helps you understand the timeless parts of writing that technology won’t change (writing to document your memories, refine your beliefs, and challenge yourself).

13. ChatGPT should be banned for school writing assignments. Software is always evolving and getting easier to learn, but school is one of the last places we can protect the fundamentals. In architecture school, they often prohibit computers for the first 1-3 years. Students work 5x slower, but by drawing through every line, they learn the fundamentals. Slow immersion is actually a feature of learning, and it will breed thinkers who will become much more powerful when you eventually give them software.

14. Everyone thinks AI will kill the craft, but it might lead to a golden age in writing. There will always be people who value the process of writing their own sentences, but are discouraged by how hard it is. Many love writing, but hate editing. So much of the friction comes from not knowing where to begin after a first draft is on the page. An AI-powered writing coach could help unblock you and publish your best work.

@chrismahadeo2361

I thought the Harry Dry episode was never going to be topped but this one is up there now. Thank you David.

@fanpandatastic

This dude NEEDS to publish a book with these visual schematics

@timdemoss

was about to watch this late at night but decided to put it on hold & plan to watch it saturday when I can sit still, fullscreen it, and use a pen and paper to take notes. looking forward to this. thanks guys in advance for the fantastic work

@camilomorenosala

Top three episode. I'm already on my second watch/listen. These are the kind of episodes that make this podcast singular. Bravo!

@Riad-J

Just 5 min watched and basically this guy is a great thinker , he combined architecture with writing , it's like building an article , and using daring , it's so cool , thanks David for this episode,,

@mykhaylokashyn9949

It is one of the best-structured materials applicable to writers and people who use writing for work in general.

@TheDigitalLearningConsultant

Love it! Thanks for such in-depth and insightful content. I've summarised the convo here - hope that's OK?

Core Concept: Writing Quality Can Be Objective
Great writing isn't just taste — it rests on structural foundations.

Like architecture, strong writing has repeatable design principles, not rigid formulas.

You can diagnose and improve your writing using patterns—just like cutting cross-sections in buildings to understand their design.

The Three Dimensions of Essay Architecture
1. Idea (Material, Thesis, Title)
Material: The stories, data, and references you bring in.

Thesis: The central idea your material orbits around.

Title: A distilled version of your thesis that sparks curiosity and makes people want to read.

Action Point: Reverse-engineer your draft. Identify your thesis and ask, "What’s the real question I'm answering?"

2. Form (Paragraphs, Structure, Tension)
Paragraphs: Each should start with a hook and end with a punchline (a surprise, twist, or implication).

Structure: The middle layer – how paragraphs flow together to support your argument or narrative.

Tension: What keeps readers turning the page — not just plot, but intellectual or emotional questions.

Action Point: For each paragraph:

Does it start with a micro-hook?

Does it end with a punch or twist?

Is it clear what question it's answering?

3. Voice (Spirit, Sound, Sight)
Spirit: Your unique perspective, tone, and emotional undercurrent.

Sound: Rhythm, rhyme, and how your writing feels when read aloud.

Sight: Concrete imagery that builds mental movies for the reader.

Action Point: Highlight the voice in your writing. Where does it sound like you? Where does it fall flat or feel generic?

Key Patterns and Principles
Specificity Wins
Zoom in on one vivid example that represents a bigger idea — like writing about the 2002 Maine Lobster Festival instead of animal ethics in general.

Action Point: Apply the “Pick One Volcano” rule: shrink your scope to one sharply defined object or event that reveals a deeper truth.

Pattern-Based Editing
Michael scores writing using 27 objective patterns (and even 81 at times).

Patterns are not solutions — they’re questions to explore in your own voice.

Action Point: Use a "pattern lens" while editing:

One pass for voice.

One pass for imagery.

One pass for paragraph transitions.

Highlight what works in colour codes (green = great, red = weak).

Practice Analytically, Perform Intuitively
Like jazz musicians or Steph Curry, elite performance is built on deep, structured practice.

First drafts are for discovery. Second drafts are for clarity.

Don’t apply patterns too early — let your ideas emerge organically first.

Action Point: In your next draft, ask:

Am I writing this draft for me (exploration) or for the reader (clarity)?

Use AI to pressure-test structure, not generate prose.

What Makes Personal Writing Actually Feel Personal?
Dean’s three components:

Biography – Specific, observable details from your life.

Interiority – Your private thoughts and inner logic.

Outlook – The worldview or belief you arrive at.

Action Point: Don’t just say how you feel — show the reader what shaped those feelings.

Voice Tip: Edit Like a Comedian
Give feedback readers a clean copy.

Ask them to highlight what’s funny, clear, or confusing.

Collect data: lots of green = keep it; no reactions = cut or compress it.

Using AI in Writing — Michael’s Method
Use ChatGPT to compress or expand drafts (e.g., “Explain this in 100 words”).

Great for exploring possibilities, not final prose.

Let AI act as a sounding board, not a ghostwriter.

Future of Writing and AI
AI writing may become extraordinarily good — eventually better than even master writers.

Writing still matters because the act changes you: “Editing rewires your synapses.”

Protect the slow, manual process of writing — it builds identity and thought.

Key Actions to Implement Right Now
While Writing:
Start with a clear question — keep refining it.

Zoom in on one vivid microcosm.

Let your first draft be wild and emergent.

While Editing:
Use the 27 pattern lens (start with hook/punchline in paragraphs).

Scan your writing one layer at a time: voice, imagery, structure.

Use AI to explore structural alternatives and surface clarity.

While Learning:
Reverse outline your favourite essays and find the invisible questions.

Create a system of logging ideas daily (without an audience).

Copy out great writing to absorb rhythm and style (like Hunter S. Thompson).

@chrisjordan1178

Appreciate the effort of adding the graphics throughout. So good.

@AnikGhosh

I read Christopher Alexander's s in A Pattern Language and The Nature of Order as an architecture student, and always wondered why no one applied them to writing and music. Michael's approach excites me a great deal!

@ZahZah571

Dude your channel is seriously gold for someone who is working on their writing craft. Thank you for doing what you do

@luisadoamaral

I am an architect and writer as well, I have just hit play but I haven't been this excited for something in a LONG time, I love meeting people who get what I mean

@SelloutSmbero

This is an amazing episode. I love when we get super nerdy technical writing stuff.

@JonathanRandle-zb8me

This conversation blew my mind!!!😮

@relentless-io

Books mentioned in the video:

- How to Write a Thesis by Umberto Eco
- Consider the Lobster by David Foster Wallace
- Shooting an Elephant by George Orwell
- In the Cause of Architecture by Frank Lloyd Wright

@love83forever

I absolutely loved this. I am watching this again. I have been looking for a universal framework for yonks. Thank you for sharing ❤

@Justin-z4v

Thank you for the visuals around 40:00

@dimnikolov

I rarely, rarely leave comments. Thank you so much, David, for introducing me to Michael.

@i.am.arcana

paragraphs thing just changed my life

@thedailyheat

So awesome! I’m inspired to focus more on my writing. Also, I picked up what he put down in the end. BRILLIANT! I’ve never heard an AI visionary until this show. Buying the books he mentioned too. Thank you David for not going full AI on us!