aaronvanston Creating Presentations
Build bold, minimal presentations designed for live impact or standalone reading.
Workflow
Determine which phase applies and load the relevant reference:
- Outline - structure the narrative arc and section flow: references/outline.md
- Write - bold headlines and minimal slide copy: references/content.md
- Design - visual layout, typography, and composition: references/design.md
- Notes - speaker notes for natural delivery: references/notes.md
For investor pitch decks (standalone, async): follow references/pitch-deck.md instead. Uses the 10-slide framework with denser copy optimized for reading without a presenter.
Principles
- One message per slide - if it takes more than 5 seconds to read, cut it
- Headlines do the work - bold statements ("AI has no memory"), not explanations ("Discussion of AI context limitations")
- Scale over weight - big text at light weight (400-500), not small text in bold
- Section colors - each major section gets its own accent color for visual rhythm
- High contrast - dark (#000 bg, white text) or light (#fafafa bg, dark text) with colored accents
- Notes prompt, not script - scannable bullet cues for riffing, not paragraphs to read
Standard Flow
1. Opening (teal) - Title + goals (3 takeaways max)
2. Context (red) - Current state, the tension to resolve
3-5. Core (varies) - 3-5 slides per section, dividers between
6. Closing (teal) - Recap + resources + Q&A
Context Adjustments
- Internal: assume shared context, be direct, reference history
- External: more setup, clearer transitions, define terms
- Recorded/async: tighter copy, stronger signposting