Back to Work Monday Issue 2
There’s nothing quite like staring at a blank page. It’s one of those quiet existential threats that sneaks up on every writer. It whispers, “You’ve got nothing.” Now, what does any of this have to do with Intermediate Packets? Well, as I was listening to Empty Pages, that made me think about how often I would listen to Traffic when I was an undergraduate at Stony Brook. It also made me think that I needed to write something for the blog. And that’s how I got to Steve Cohen.
First: Who’s Steve Cohen?
Steve lived down the hall from me at Stony Brook University. One semester, he read straight through the entire Lord of the Rings trilogy. I believe he also ate and used the bathroom during that time. Showering? Questionable. Illegal substances? Possible.
What I remember most isn’t the Tolkien marathon—it’s the quiet realization I had while watching Steve power through it: Anyone who can do that can do whatever they want. What they will do, well, that’s up to Steve. Still is. But the capacity was clearly there.
So is this the story about Intermediate Packets? Not quite. But we're getting closer.
Why Steve Messaged Me
Recently, Steve texted me about one of my blog posts. Said he liked it. Then he asked the question I’ve heard more than once lately:
“How do you have the time to do this? Don’t you still have your day job?”
I do. And thank you for asking. What’s my answer? Two words: Intermediate Packets.
What Are Intermediate Packets?
According to Tiago Forte, author of Building a Second Brain:
“Intermediate packets are the tangible, intermediate work artifacts created along the way to a larger outcome.”
In other words, don’t wait until the final product is done before you save your work. Store the highlights, the drafts, the diagrams, the quotes, the random good ideas you jot down on the back of a receipt. Anything that might help future you.
What It Looks Like
I find a great quote? I write it down.
I make a list of books about Stoicism? I save it.
I spot a good cartoon that illustrates something I’m writing about? It goes in the vault.
All of it becomes material I can draw from later. I don’t wait for the perfect sentence to arrive fully formed. I chip away, note by note.
So Where Do You Keep All This?
Short answer: You do you. Store them where it makes sense to you.
Some folks use simple folders and search by keyword.
Ryan Holiday famously uses physical 4x6 index cards, sorted by theme.
I use Obsidian.
Obsidian is a markdown-based note-taking app that treats your notes as a network instead of a static list. It’s like having a digital brain. Your thoughts, insights, and drafts all live in one place—connected, searchable, and ready when you need them.
It runs locally (no cloud lock-in), stores everything in plain text files, and allows me to see surprising connections between ideas I’ve saved months—or even years—apart.
When I start an essay, I’m not staring at an empty page. I’m diving into a system filled with notes, quotes, images, and half-written drafts. Sometimes what pops up isn’t what I expected—but it’s usually what I need.
So What's the Real Secret?
The real secret to writing isn’t magic. It’s momentum.
Intermediate Packets let you build that momentum before the writing even starts. You’re not writing from scratch. You’re assembling from the raw materials you’ve already captured.
So no, I don’t have more hours in the day than you do.
But I do have an army of notes—and a system that makes them easy to find.
You’ll need a system—and maybe a Steve Cohen. But this one’s taken.