The markdown package makes it possible to use markdown in LaTeX documents. Now here's an example to show how markdown can be used to create beamer presentations.
\documentclass{beamer}
\usepackage[utf8]{inputenc}
\usepackage[T1]{fontenc}
\usepackage{mathabx}
\usepackage{mathpazo}
\usepackage{eulervm}
\usepackage{natbib}
%% Load the markdown package
\usepackage[citations,footnotes,definitionLists,hashEnumerators,smartEllipses,tightLists=false,pipeTables,tableCaptions,hybrid]{markdown}
%%begin novalidate
\markdownSetup{rendererPrototypes={
link = {\href{#2}{#1}},
headingOne = {\section{#1}},
headingTwo = {\subsection{#1}},
headingThree = {\begin{frame}\frametitle{#1}},
headingFour = {\begin{block}{#1}},
horizontalRule = {\end{block}}
}}
%%end novalidate
\usetheme{Dresden}
\usefonttheme{serif}
\usecolortheme{rose}
\title{Writing Beamer Slides with Markdown}
\author{LianTze Lim}
\institute{Overleaf}
\begin{document}
\maketitle
\frame{\tableofcontents}
\begin{markdown}
%%begin novalidate
# How?
### We can do that?
- Yeah to some extent, with \texttt{markdown} package :-)
- __$\hash$__ and __$\hash\hash$__ for section and subsection headers (in ToC)
- Redefine __$\hash\hash\hash$__ to start a frame and frametitle
- (Nested) bullet and numbered lists
- Text formatting (*italic*, **bold becomes italic + alerted**)
- Redefine __$\hash\hash\hash\hash$__ to start a block with title \linebreak
and __\texttt{-{}-{}-{}-}__ to end the block
- ___Compile with \texttt{-{}-shell-escape}___ (Overleaf does this already)
- (Alternative approaches: Pandoc, wikitobeamer)
\end{frame}
%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%
### Caveats
- Nothing too complicated!
- No verbatim or fragile stuff!
- No $\hash$ and \textunderscore{} characters!\linebreak
(I used `$\hash$` and `\textunderscore`)
- Can't pass options to frames
- __Need to write \texttt{\textbackslash end\string{frame\string}} manually!__
\end{frame}
%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%
%%% # and ## can still be used as sections and subsections if you prefer
# Example
## Proposed Menus
%%% ### starts a frame + frametitle
### Breakfast Menu
%%% bulleted lists as usual
- Eggs
* scrambled
* sunny-side-up
- Coffee
* Americano
* Long black
- Tea
* Darjeeling
* English Breakfast
%%% Due to the complicatedness of beamer frames, \end{frame} MUST appear in the source code itself and cannot be "hidden" in another command
\end{frame}
%%%%%%%%%%%
### Lunch Menu
- Spaghetti
* Bolognese
* Aglio olio
- Sandwiches
* Egg
* Ham
* Tuna
\end{frame}
%%%%%%%%%%%
## Budgeting
### Projected Profit
1. And the answer is...
2. $f(x)=\sum_{n=0}^\infty\frac{f^{(n)}(a)}{n!}(x-a)^n$
#. How do we _know_ that?
#. __Maths!__
\end{frame}
### Testing blocks
#### This is a block!
- Here is some content.
- Here's more contents.
---
\end{frame}
### Citations
- This is a citation [@novotny:2017]
- Works like `natbib` syntax [see @novotny:2019 p.26]
\end{frame}
### Pipe Tables
- Use `pipeTables` and `tableCaptions` options
- Available since `markdown` v2.8.0
| Right | Left | Default | Center |
|------:|:-----|---------|:------:|
| 12 | 12 | 12 | 12 |
| 123 | 123 | 123 | 123 |
| 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 |
: Demonstration of pipe table syntax.
\end{frame}
%%novalidate
\end{markdown}
\begin{frame}
\renewcommand{\bibfont}{\footnotesize}
\frametitle{Bibliography}
\bibliographystyle{apalike}
\bibliography{refs}
\end{frame}
\end{document}