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Explainer template

For "What is X and why does it matter", a concept, a controversy or a system explained for a curious reader. Origin: The long-form explainer as practised by Vox, Wait But Why and Stratechery, and Diátaxis's "explanation" type: understanding rather than instruction.

Start from this templateFree, no account needed. The blank is written with guidance in each section, ready to fill in.

Structure

  1. Why this matters now
  2. The simplest true version
  3. The mental model, with an analogy
  4. Where the simple version breaks
  5. The debate or the trade-off
  6. What to watch

How a tough reader scores it

When you score a draft against this format, the Critic evaluates this explainer. The weights add up to 100; the fixes for the weakest criteria arrive as cards in the editor.

CriterionWeight
The opening gives a reason to care now, with a concrete stake15
The simplest version is both simple and true20
The mental model and analogy hold up and are extended in layers20
Complications and disagreements are given fairly15
Every term is defined at first use and no knowledge is assumed15
Ends with what to watch rather than a summary5
Length fits the subject10

How it works in SecondPen.ai

Open the template and the editor writes the blank once, with a line of guidance under each heading that you delete as you fill it in. Write your abstract and the editor names the format it reads like. Ask for a document with a slash command and it offers to start from the matching format. When the draft is ready, the Critic scores it against the criteria above, the way this format's toughest reader would, and the three highest-leverage fixes become Editor cards.

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