How David Perell writes an essay.
Harnessing the power of surprise to build writing that spreads. article 
I use live conversation to cull and test out ideas
Before I write my essays, I talk through them live in conversation. As I talk, I pay attention to how people react. Are they confused? Bored? Or am I saying something insightful, or surprising?
I use Twitter to validate ideas too
I’m more playful and experimental with my tweets. I throw out all kinds of tidbits that I or other people have thought up to see what resonates. It can be a quick chart, a drawing, or a simple writing tip I discover while sitting at the computer. The ideas behind the tweets may seem small or incomplete, but there is always a thread of insight that fits into my tapestry of ideas.
I write for 90 minutes every morning, before doing anything else
I start my essays by sorting my notes into building blocks to create logical flow
I break my writing into finite chunks that make my essays feel more manageable. Sometimes, I’ll start by creating an outline that I can dump all my notes into. I create sections based on themes I pull from scanning all the information I’ve collected. I think of these sections as LEGO blocks.
When the blocks are all done I figure out how they fit together. Not all of them do. I think of this process as a little bit like playing sudoku. When you change one piece of the puzzle, you usually have to change the rest too. The whole puzzle needs to work together.
Usually I end up with blocks of text at the bottom of my outline that don’t fit the narrative. If I’m wedded to those blocks, I’ll take mental note of the structure I used and go back to talking it out with people. If the blocks still don’t fit when I test them out in conversation, I’ll often save them in Evernote for future use in another essay.
Knowing that the ideas in my first draft don’t need to fit together perfectly helps me put ideas on paper. Once they’re on the page, no matter how messy they are, I can shape them into something I’m proud of.
I use drawings to help distinguish my essays
When I write, my goal is to synthesize complex thoughts simply and elegantly
Sharing my ideas creates a virtuous cycle of new connections and opportunities
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See Commonplace Book and Zettelkasten
Compare General Inductive Analysis and Leonardo's Method