I’m not a LaTeX expert, but after a few papers and too many deadlines, here’s the system I’ve been using to stay sane, and stay synced.

TeX was created by Donald Knuth, the legendary computer scientist, while writing the legendary The Art of Computer Programming (He wasn’t happy with the typesetting quality, so he built TeX in 1978). The beauty is that LaTeX’s elegance lies in its logic + automation — like once the stage is set up, the rest is “the creation of beautiful books”. So it’s definitely worth the investment to set it up and manage it well.

Sync Overleaf with Local Editing

Overleaf is great, but git integration gives me flexibility and peace of mind:

  • Edit anywhere: VS Code, Vim, or Overleaf’s editor.
  • Backups: Even if Overleaf dies during a NeurIPS deadline rush, you have local copies.
  • Better control: Branches, versioning, and full local compilation.

Quick start:

  1. Clone Overleaf project Get your Overleaf Git URL (Menu → Git) and:

    git clone https://git.overleaf.com/<your-project-id>

  2. Install a LaTeX distribution

  3. Pick your editor

    • VS Code + LaTeX Workshop
    • Vim/Neovim with plugins
    • Or just stick with Overleaf’s browser editor.

  4. Compile locally

    • In VS Code: Cmd+Shift+P → “Build LaTeX project” → pick your recipe.

    • Or via terminal:

      latexmk -pdf ArXiv/main.tex

Project Organization

  • One paper = one research project
    Keep each project in its own folder, with subfolders for different submissions, modules, and archived experiments.
    This makes syncing, compiling, and collaborating a lot easier.

Example project structure:

my-research-project/
├── ArXiv/                # arXiv submission version
│   ├── main.tex
│   ├── figures/
│   ├── sections/
│   ├── bibFiles/
│   └── necessary_files/
├── NeurIPS/              # NeurIPS version
│   ├── main.tex
│   ├── figures/
│   ├── sections/
│   └── neurips_2025.sty
├── IJCAI/                # IJCAI version
│   ├── main.tex
│   └── ijcai25.sty
├── shared/               # Shared resources
│   ├── bibFiles/
│   ├── macros.tex
│   └── packages.tex
└── README.md

This keeps shared assets (macros, .bib files, figures) centralized, while letting each submission stay independent.