Write of Passage Weekly

Hello writers,

Welcome back to Write of Passage Weekly. Last week, you learned how to bring out the flavor. Today, we’re talking about what it means to “write what you wish you could read.”

Join Our Affiliate Program

First, an opportunity: In our five-week Bootcamp, we help our students attract readers, accelerate their careers, and improve their craft by publishing and distributing their Core Idea.

You can share this life-changing opportunity with your audience — and make money as you do it. Affiliates earn 30% commission on every sale. The Write of Passage Bootcamp sells from $3,995 to $6,995, which means you could earn more than $2,000 with one sale. 

The promotion period for Cohort 12 runs from February 1 through April 1. If you’re ready to empower your audience to share their Core Ideas, join the Write of Passage Affiliate Program. 

Create What's Missing

Everyone is stirred by something — your challenge is to understand what that is in you. And chances are, what stirs you is something you wish there were more of in the world. So, ask yourself, "What do I want to see in the world that is missing at the moment?"

As Nobel Prize–winning novelist Toni Morrison remarked, “If there’s a book that you want to read but it hasn’t been written yet, then you must write it.” By creating something unique, you press your unique fingerprint onto the world. When you create, you fill the you-shaped hole in the world. You invite your ideas to take up space, to exist outside your mind. And when you write what you wish you could read, you bring more of what stirs you into the world.

Couturier Gabrielle Chanel pioneered her world-renowned minimal and elegant style by first making clothes that she, a tomboyish woman who wore silk ties and rode horses with legs astride on the equine, would wear herself. Liberated from corsets and Victorian rigidity, her defiance of early 1900s conventions began with the desire to wear what she couldn’t find. This led to a fashion revolution: comfortable jerseys replaced stiff corsets; tanned skin became vogue over pale complexions; simple hats outshone ornate headpieces; and the color black, once reserved for mourning, turned iconic with Chanel's little black dress.

Reflect deeply: What stirs your heart every time you encounter its absence? The void is more than an empty space; it’s an invitation to imprint the world with your values, your passion, and your philosophy. That absence is an opportunity to make the intangible tangible. 

Writing, for example, is not merely playing with words — it’s using your voice to fill the silence. Your words become the living embodiments of your ideals. It's through your writing that your philosophy resonates throughout the collective consciousness, inspiring others and redefining what's possible. So take the helm with conviction and turn your "what if?"s into "why not?"s. If there is something you see missing in the world, it’s you who must create it.

How I Write Podcast

Chris Dixon exemplifies how learning in public can catapult you to success. One of David’s favorite things about Chris’s writing is his ability to create Internet lore. He’s skilled at compressing difficult topics into one-sentence zingers (e.g., “What the smartest people do on the weekend is what everyone else will do during the week in ten years”). Not to mention, he has a rich understanding of how the Internet actually works, and he’s used that to his advantage. And you can, too. 

In this episode, Chris and David discuss how writing online is the fast-track to building a reputation and jumping ahead in your career. They dissect how hundreds of blog posts can lead to a book. They talk about the democratization of the Internet, and how there are “millions of profitable niches” just waiting to be discovered. Ultimately, you’ll learn how blogging could be your secret to becoming not just a high-profile writer, but a high-profile person.

Listen Now: YouTube | Spotify | Apple

Thank you for reading Write of Passage Weekly. This week, browse a bookstore and look for what’s missing.

Happy writing,

The Write of Passage Team

P.S. We’re hiring for a Head of Student Experience, which is a mission-critical role. This person will be responsible for the writing journey of every student who comes through our bootcamps. This role is fully remote and the salary range is $120,000–150,000 per year. Apply here.