WordPress and DIVI: a primer
WORDPRESS + DIVI
PERSONAL PUBLICATION SYSTEM MANUAL
(Operating Guide for Future Writings)
Author: Victor John Yannacone Website
Purpose: Permanent reference explaining how I now publish writings on my website.
I. WHAT THE WEBSITE ACTUALLY IS
My website is not a collection of webpages. It is a public intellectual archive — essentially a digital collected works. The mistake I previously made was treating each article as a designed page.
WordPress is not a page compositor. It is a cataloging and publishing system.
Correct understanding:
Pages = permanent institutional information
Posts = published writings
Pages contain: Home, About, Services, Contact, Litigation Chronicle, Media references, and Publications list.
Posts contain essays, analyses, legal commentary, historical writing, opinion writing, and long-form thought.
Posts are not blogs. Comments, replies, and discussions can be disabled permanently. A Post is simply a publication entry in an indexed archive.
II. WHY THIS CHANGE IS NECESSARY
Previously I had to manually decide where each article belonged, build navigation, maintain hierarchy, create cross-links for survival, design layout, and worry about mobile viewing. I was performing the work of editor, printer, and archivist.
WordPress already performs the archivist function automatically if writings are published as Posts.
The new system allows: Write → Paste → Publish.
The system handles organization, discovery, navigation, and display.
III. THE NEW WRITING MODEL
The central principle is that I no longer design webpages. I publish documents. I provide meaning (structure) and the site provides appearance (typesetting). This follows the LaTeX model: the author identifies structure and the typesetting engine controls layout. Therefore I stop formatting visually and instead mark logical structure.
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IV. STRUCTURAL IDENTIFICATION (THE MOST IMPORTANT RULE)
I do not write HTML for appearance anymore. I identify the logical parts of the argument.
Standard structural markers:
Article Title
— used once per article only
H2 Major Section
— main divisions of argument
H3 Subsection
— sub-parts within a section
H4 Sub-subsection
— used only when necessary
These are not font size instructions. They are meaning instructions. The template uses them to automatically build navigation, generate a table of contents, allow reader jumping, organize indexing, and improve search recognition. This replaces the former left sidebar chapter list.
V. FRONT MATTER (ARTICLE BEGINNING INFORMATION)
The article title goes in the WordPress Post Title field, not typed into the body.
Optional subtitle: first line of the article in italics.
Author line (if desired): normal paragraph.
Abstract or opening statement: first introductory paragraph.
The system typesets these automatically. I do not manually center, enlarge, or space them.
VI. TEXT ELEMENTS I MAY STILL USE
While drafting in Word I may freely include bold for emphasis, italics for emphasis or citation, bullet lists, numbered lists, and block quotations.
Valid semantic elements are emphasis, lists, and quotations. I do not manually control font size, spacing, indentation, margins, or alignment.
PARAGRAPHS AND READABILITY
We are adopting book-style reading, not blog-style reading.
Rules:
Left aligned text only
No centered paragraphs
No manual spacing between paragraphs
Paragraph structure uses indented paragraphs (approximately 1.2–1.5 em). The first paragraph after a heading is not indented, and the text then flows continuously.
Reason: indented paragraphs maintain reading rhythm and reduce scrolling fatigue, especially on mobile devices. Blank-line paragraph spacing is blog formatting and interrupts reading comprehension in long arguments.
LINE SPACING (LEADING)
My legal brief standard is approximately 15 on 28 leading (about a 1.85 ratio). The website approximates this using responsive line-height scaling.
Screens do not use points. Instead the site uses relative sizing so readability remains consistent across phones, tablets, laptops, and large monitors. The system automatically preserves comfortable reading density.
TYPOGRAPHY
Body text font: Source Serif 4.
Reason: it preserves the readability advantages of Century Schoolbook but is optimized for screens and small devices.
Important facts: it is open-source licensed, not dependent on an Adobe subscription, hosted directly on the site, automatically downloaded by the reader’s browser, and displays consistently on all devices. The reader does not need to have the font installed.
X. THE END OF THE TWO-COLUMN ARTICLE
The former left navigation column is discontinued.
Phones and tablets display a vertical reading window. Side columns disappear during scrolling and interfere with comprehension. The replacement is an automatic table of contents generated from headings. Readers navigate by section headings rather than sidebars, improving phone readability, tablet usability, and desktop reading comfort.
XI. NAVIGATION AND DISCOVERY
The site now functions like a library catalog.
Readers can reach writings through newest writing first, subject categories, internal cross-references, and search indexing. My manual links remain valuable but now serve as intellectual citations rather than necessary navigation.
The navigation menu will include “Writings,” which becomes the entry to the archive.
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XII. CATEGORIES (REPLACING HIERARCHY)
I no longer place an article in a single folder. Instead I classify what the article is about. An article may belong to multiple subjects simultaneously (for example Administrative Law, Environmental Law, and Public Policy). This is similar to legal research subject indexing.
XIII. OLD ARTICLES
Existing 100+ pages remain unchanged. We do not convert them immediately. We gradually restructure older articles only when they become relevant again. This protects citations, links, and stability.
- XIV. PRACTICAL WORKFLOW
1. Draft article in Word for Mac
2. Use headings and normal paragraphs (no manual layout)
3. Copy text
4. Create new Post
5. Paste into content area
6. Assign subject categories
7. Publish
There is no formatting phase and no layout phase.
XV. THE CONCEPTUAL SHIFT
Old mindset: I construct a webpage.
New mindset: I publish a work.
The template is now the compositor. WordPress is the catalog. Divi is the typesetter. My only job is to write and identify structure.