This story started out to be about how I use Drafts app. It has ended up being about how to do Drafts right.
Drafts is an iOS app that’s all about text and automation. Anything that starts with text starts in Drafts. Whether it’s a new event in Fantastical, a new message in iMessage, a new todo in Todoist, a web search, or whatever. The tiny text boxes in browsers and apps are not where I want to start text. I want a big window in an application that’s made for text.
While researching this story one article in particular grabbed my attention. Gabe Weatherhead over at Macdrifter’s article Getting Drafts Right for 2016. I spent several hours digesting how Gabe uses Drafts in his daily workflow. One thing we had in common was anything that involved text starts in Drafts and then moves out of Drafts.
Gabe’s workflow made so much since to me that I decided to follow his lead and make changes to the way I’m using Drafts. Here are a few of the things I gleaned from Gabe and want to share with you:
Important Point
My trick is to not overload Drafts with actions. Now that iOS 9 has terrific sharing sheet options, I don’t need as many actions in Drafts.
General Tips
The majority of my actions in Drafts delete the draft after they run. I just don’t want to manage these little scraps and if they had long term value I probably sent them to my note collection.
Keyboard Actions
The Drafts keyboard is pretty standard but the power behind the Drafts custom row keeps me coming back to the app. Many of the custom buttons are simple navigation and editing controls but some of mine are just magical.
Menu Actions
My menu actions are conduits for words. It’s how I get everything out of Drafts. I don’t use the Drafts archive. I don’t sync my Drafts documents. I write and then do stuff with that writing.
Part of the problem I created for myself was an overwhelming number of conduits. My solution was to cut way back to only the actions I use regularly or that do things that the iOS 9 share sheet doesn’t do. Here are the broad categories my actions pile up in.
The way I’m using Drafts now is so much better. I look forward to each opportunity I have to use Drafts. If you are like me you’ll also learn a few new tricks. Folks, there’s some good stuff here. Go check it out. Getting Drafts Right For 2016
You can get the Drafts app here.
ldstephens 