What is “writing”?

The more I see all these apps being released that talk about “distraction free writing” the more I realize I don’t know what kind of writing they’re talking about.

Why on earth would I want to clutter up my creative writing with hashtags and asterisks? How is that remotely helpful?

Oh and I love how the screenshot used in this product listing to illustrate “Maximum Focus” shows a few paragraphs litered with markup symbols and text in a multiitude of colors. Really? That’s distraction free? Or is this app so forward thinking that for the first time in human history it’s been decided that a paragraph of text should be presented in a rainbow of colors, with a few hastags and asterisks thrown in.

These markdown apps need to stop pretending to be serene, utoppian “distraction free” apps. They’re technical tools for bloggers or those writing for what, Medium or something? CSS? I don’t know —all I know is this is absolutely not geared for creative writing.

You know what gets in the way of writing? Contrived paradigms, abstract formatting “tools” and a pricetag that feels about three times what it should be.

Champion.#2 about iA Writer