Letter #48: I need your help
Can you help me decide the direction 100 Naked Words takes from here?
Hi,
As of today, I’ve been running 100 Naked Words for 11 months. That means that in a month’s time, I will have been writing every day for 365 days straight. For me, that’s amazing. I haven’t been able to stick to anything for a year, so this is a big deal for me.
I didn’t know what 100 Naked Words was when I first started it. I only meant for it to be a repository for my thoughts on life and writing.
Now 11 months later, more than 30,000 of you are following 100 Naked Words.
In the first month, I was pumped that I had 100 followers. Now with 300 times more, I don’t know what to think. I just feel blessed that I accidentally started something so many people care about.
I don’t know what I did to get so many people to subscribe to the publication but clearly, something about the publication has clicked with thousands and thousands of readers all over the world.
So firstly, thank you. I’d thank each and every one of you for following, reading and sharing if I could.
I’d also like to thank the writers of 100 Naked Words. Over the months, I’ve had hundreds of people request to become writers. I apologise for not being able to get to all of you.
For those I chose to contribute, you have added your individual thread to the fabric that makes 100 Naked Words unique. It’s a blanket of stories that wraps us all together, embraced by our collective vulnerabilities.
There are days I’ve wanted to quit. If it weren’t for the readers and the writers, I would have thrown in the towel by now. So thank you. I can’t express my gratitude enough.
This is what I’ll be doing this month…
I’m not going to blindly make a choice as to what’s best for the readers and writers of 100 Naked Words. You have chosen to support it, so it’s only right that you also get to influence its direction.
I do have some ideas but I need your help to decide which is the better one. So to make it easier what I’ll do every week this month is hold a fight.
It’ll be one idea versus the other. All you have to do is choose one or the other. You can highlight your choice, or you can write your choice in the comments section below, I don’t mind.
By the end of the week, I’ll tally up the votes, expel the loser and bring in a new challenger. By the end of the month, I’ll see which gladiator is the last man/woman standing.
That gladiator — that idea — will be the focus that 100 Naked Words takes moving into its second year.
So when’s it going to start? Well, right now! Without further ado, here are your two choices for this week:
Newsletter
I’m thinking of writing a newsletter where I talk about ways to improve writing skills, such as:
- writing for impact,
- story telling,
- how to create a headline/book title that gets attention, etc
I know how busy you are, but I also know that you are keen on building powerful daily habits that stick, so it will be a daily newsletter. but to make it useful, I envision that it will be solid, actionable tips that you can use in your writing right away, not long, rambling emails.
E-course
I’m also considering creating a course on Udemy where I can interact with students passionate about improving their writing. I’ll record lectures that you can learn from in your own time. There will be exercises and an online classroom where you can interact with other students.
So which will it be?
Newsletter vs. E-course?
Highlight your selection above and share your thoughts in the comment section below.
Please give a warm welcome to:
We’ll see how well this works. Hopefully enough of you care to participate to make the results meaningful! Looking forward to seeing what you all have to say.
-J.
