Is more minimal more excellent?
Me: If I say something is a "minimalist writing application" what do you think that is?
My Mom: Like Twitter?
Me: Um, no. What else do you think it might mean?
My mom: Something without verbs?
Me: No, it's something like Word but without all the options.
My mom: Like Notepad.
Me: Yeah but with, like, a few more options than Notepad.
My mom: Why? Who would use that?
Me: I own two minimalist writing applications.
My mom: Well that makes sense. You always had a hard time focusing.
If you have a better attention span/childhood than I do, then maybe a minimalist writing application isn't something you need. But if sitting down to write gives you an overwhelming urge to clean your apartment, a distraction-free writing environment may be the key to your productivity. How minimalist is minimalist enough? Is the one that does the least worth the most? And, like, how minimalist is too minimalist? Well, Goldilocks, let's find out.
