All posts

Draft Better Emails with Markdown

Write emails in markdown first to separate content from formatting. Learn templates, workflows, and tools to convert markdown to email—then send with confidence.

Draft Better Emails with Markdown

I spend a lot of time writing emails. Some are quick replies; some are carefully considered multi-paragraph messages to stakeholders, collaborators, or customers. For years, I drafted them directly in email clients, fighting with formatting, second-guessing structure, and often regretting tone after hitting send.

Then I started writing emails in markdown first.

It sounds simple, almost silly. But the separation of content from formatting changes how you think about writing. You focus on what you're saying, not how it looks. And you can iterate faster.

Why Draft in Markdown

When you open your email client, you're primed to send. Your finger hovers over the send button. You're ready to dispatch. This creates pressure.

But when you write in a plain-text editor with markdown, you're in draft mode. You're thinking about structure, clarity, tone. There's no send button staring at you. You can:

  • Write a complete draft without committing
  • Read it back as rendered markdown to see how it flows
  • Iterate on tone and content
  • Come back to it later if you need distance
  • Easily share drafts for review before sending

This is especially valuable for emails that matter: investor pitches, job offer negotiations, important customer communications, or sensitive feedback.

A Simple Markdown Email Template

Here's a starting structure:

Subject: Quick update on the project timeline

---

Hi [Name],

I wanted to give you a quick update on where we stand with the X project.

## Status

- Design phase: Complete
- Development: 60% done, on track for Feb 28
- QA: Starts next week

## Next Steps

1. Share designs with stakeholder review on Feb 27
2. Complete dev by Feb 28
3. QA cycle: 2 weeks

## Blockers

None at the moment, but we're watching cloud infrastructure costs.

---

Let me know if you have questions.

Thanks,
Ryan

The markdown version:

  • Is scannable (headers break it into sections)
  • Is readable as plain text
  • Can be previewed before converting
  • Makes structure explicit

Converting Markdown to Email

Here's where it gets practical. You've written your markdown draft. Now you need to convert it to HTML for email.

Option 1: Pandoc

Pandoc is a universal document converter. Install it, and you can convert markdown to HTML in seconds:

pandoc email-draft.md -t html -o email-draft.html

Open the HTML file in a browser, copy the rendered content, and paste into Gmail, Outlook, or your mail client. The formatting carries over.

Option 2: Simple Markdown Converter Tools

Online tools like Markdownify or Markdown to HTML let you paste markdown and get HTML instantly. Copy the HTML, paste into your email.

Option 3: Markdown Email Services

Some platforms are building for this specific workflow:

  • Markdown Here (browser extension): Compose emails in your mail client, format them with markdown, and render on send.
  • Hey Email (email service): Built on markdown-native email authoring.
  • Apple Mail + Scripts: MacOS users can create automation scripts to convert markdown to HTML and insert into drafts.

Option 4: Your Own Workflow

If you're technical, you can build a simple Python or Node script:

import markdown
import sys

with open(sys.argv[1], 'r') as f:
    md = f.read()
html = markdown.markdown(md, extensions=['tables', 'fenced_code'])
print(html)

Run it, copy the output, paste into email.

Template Library for Email

Once you start drafting emails in markdown, you'll find patterns. Build a template library:

Status Update Template

This template is perfect for meeting notes and team updates:

Subject: Weekly status - [Week of Feb 24]

---

Hi team,

Here's the weekly summary.

## Completed

- [ ] Item 1
- [ ] Item 2

## In Progress

- [ ] Item 1
- [ ] Item 2

## Blocked

- [ ] Item 1

## Next Week

1. Priority 1
2. Priority 2

Proposal Email

Subject: Proposal: [Title]

---

Hi [Name],

I wanted to propose [idea] because [rationale].

## Overview

[Brief description]

## Benefits

- Benefit 1
- Benefit 2
- Benefit 3

## Timeline

- Phase 1 (Week X): [Description]
- Phase 2 (Week Y): [Description]

## Investment

[Cost, time, resources]

## Next Steps

[What you need from them]

---

Happy to discuss further.

Thanks,
[Name]

Feedback Email

Subject: Feedback on [Document/Project]

---

Hi [Name],

I reviewed [document] and wanted to share some feedback.

## Overall Impression

[Your take]

## Strengths

- Strength 1
- Strength 2

## Areas for Refinement

**Section 1:** [Comment]

**Section 2:** [Comment]

## Questions

1. Have you considered [question]?
2. What's the reasoning behind [choice]?

---

Great work overall. Looking forward to the next draft.

Thanks,
[Name]

Store these in a email-templates/ folder. When you need to write a similar email, copy the template, fill in the blanks, and adapt.

Benefits That Emerge

Once you adopt this workflow, several things happen:

Consistency

Emails follow a structure. Headers for sections, lists for items, emphasis for key phrases. Recipients notice and appreciate clarity.

Reusability

Did you write a great explanation of your process? Copy-paste it into the next email. Build your own "template" library over time.

Tone Control

Read your markdown draft aloud before converting. Notice where tone is off, where you're being unclear, where you can be more direct.

Archive and Search

Keep your markdown email drafts in a folder. Later, grep for patterns. "What did I say about feature X in past emails?" Find it in seconds.

Sharing Drafts

Need review from a colleague before sending? Share the markdown file. They can suggest edits in a text editor or via git diffs. Much easier than forwarding around email previews.

Workflow Example

Here's how a typical email-writing session might go:

  1. Create: New file emails/2026-02-25-project-update.md
  2. Draft: Write in markdown using your favorite editor (OpenMark, VS Code, etc.) and learn keyboard shortcuts to speed up writing
  3. Preview: Open the markdown file in OpenMark to see how it reads when rendered
  4. Refine: Tweak tone, structure, clarity
  5. Convert: Run pandoc email.md -t html (from Pandoc) or use an online converter
  6. Paste: Copy HTML, paste into email client
  7. Send: Hit send with confidence
  8. Archive: Keep the markdown file for future reference

Total time: 10-15 minutes for an important email, vs. 20+ minutes fighting formatting in an email client.

When This Matters Most

Markdown email drafting pays dividends when:

  • Emails are long (more than a few paragraphs)
  • Stakes are high (investor, job offer, performance feedback)
  • You want to reuse content (status updates, templates)
  • You iterate (write, revise, share, refine)
  • You archive (build a searchable library of important messages)

For quick "Are we still on for 3pm?" emails, it's overkill. But for substantive communication, markdown wins.

Getting Started Today

  1. Pick an important email you need to write this week.
  2. Write it in markdown using OpenMark or your editor of choice.
  3. Convert to HTML using Pandoc or an online tool.
  4. Paste into your email client and send.
  5. Keep the markdown file for your records.

Notice the difference? You'll probably keep drafting in markdown.

Download OpenMark to draft, preview, and refine your markdown emails beautifully. $9.99, one-time purchase.