Milieu is a pre-built Obsidian vault for daily writing and noticing. It names, dates and files every entry automatically. The only thing left to do is write.
Who it is for
Milieu is for people who have seen the value of keeping a journal or notes practice, then lost the habit when configuration became another job. The system is already built.
What is Obsidian
Obsidian is a free desktop notes app. Open a folder and it becomes your notes. Every note is a plain-text Markdown file that stays on your machine and opens in any text editor.
Out of the box, Obsidian is a blank room. Milieu furnishes it with folders, templates, daily-page buttons and method guides so you can start writing.
Three practices, already set up
Morning Pages
Adapted from Julia Cameron's The Artist's Way: three pages of writing first thing. One button opens today's page, dated and filed. A word-count ring shows your progress.
Four Squares
Adapted from Lynda Barry's Syllabus: a four-part daily diary covering what you did, saw and heard, plus a rough drawing. The method takes about five minutes and pulls the day back into focus.
Notes
A quick capture for an overheard line, a question or something you read. One shortcut opens the entry and files it automatically. It takes about ten seconds on days when a longer practice feels out of reach.
Milieu also includes a home dashboard, a pre-built graph view, six short method guides and an optional browser clipper.
Why keep the record
A year of dated, tagged entries becomes a searchable record of where your attention went. Obsidian's graph view shows which ideas returned and which notes became connected. The structure accumulates while you write, without a separate filing session.
Milieu has no streak counter. It does not record missed days or ask you to choose a filename, folder or date. Open it, press the button and the page is ready.
How to start
- Download Obsidian and install it.
- Download Milieu and unzip it somewhere permanent.
- In Obsidian, choose Open folder as vault and select the Milieu folder.
- Follow the Read Me First guide to turn on the writing tools.
- Open today's daily note or use the Four Squares or Notes shortcut, then write the first entry.