Reflections on Write of Passage

Hey y’all. Thank you for joining and reading. I really do appreciate it. I love telling stories and I hope you love hearing them. This is a review/love letter to Write of Passage.

I spent more money on an online writing course than on my car.

Why?

It was simply too good of an opportunity to pass up. 

I’ve been writing online for a few months and I’ve already seen how it has connected me in ways that I had never expected. I’ve talked with personal heroes of mine, like Jack Raines, Lawrence Yeoh, and Zachary Crockett because of my writing. 

At first, I started writing to get out of my head. Because I’ve always had trouble communicating, writing was my avenue to share ideas with the world. 

Once I did so, I started floating around ideas about the best Mother’s Day gift, the argument against taking PTO, and why trains crash. While having fun exploring these ideas, it was often lonely writing into the void.

Coming across other online writers was comforting, but transient at best. They were either too big to be relatable, or too small to be discovered. David Perell began to pop up here and there as a name in the online writing world. He was known as the “writing guy”, whatever that meant. 

Soon, I came across his video, You Were Made for More Than This.

As someone who works an aggressively mediocre job, I’m all too familiar with the dread of Monday mornings. The opening of the laptop, the staring at the clock, the sigh of relief at the end of the day, finally getting some comfort at the other end. It’s a soul-sucking experience. 

I felt mentally naked after watching the video. 

It spoke to the parts of my head that had been hardened under the calloused, day-to-day work. Sure, doing work I loved didn’t mean being on cloud 9 every day. But it meant a sense of fulfillment and satisfaction in contributing to a calling that inspired me every morning. 

In the quietness of my bedroom, I pulled the trigger - I purchased Write of Passage. 

I felt a sense of giddiness and fear wash over me. I was excited at the prospect of being able to write with the internet’s premier writing teacher, and afraid that I’d made a mistake in making such a large purchase. 

At first, I wasn’t sure I would participate in this cohort. It was a five-week course, with a minimum requirement of five hours a week to make the most of it. I had made plans to propose to my girlfriend (link essay) during the middle of the cohort. My other commitments to work, family, and my church made it impossible to contribute any meaningful time. Yet, somewhat unconsciously, I had made the decision to join. 

October 2nd, 2023 - I sat on a Zoom call for the first live session with hundreds of other faces and music blasting. Immediately, I was taken aback by the level of polish - David’s energy was electric, his slides felt like a homecooked meal, made with love, complimented by a studio designed for impressing online attendees. 

As he broke down the thought process behind writing online, my fears began to ease. This is why I’m here. 

Shortly after, the live session was over and I was returned to the comfort of my desk. I was floored. I’m glad I got to join. This was only the first of many such moments.

The Idea Colosseum

October 26th, 2023 - I get this mysterious message from one of the mentors of the cohort, Steven Foster. 

What in the world is an Idea Colosseum? What am I supposed to learn?

I joined, hesitantly. I sat in a small group of eight people, waiting for the so-called “Idea Colosseum”.

I was already behind on my writing for the week. I tried to keep a regular schedule, but this week’s essay felt like such a slog. I was supposed to be writing about my journey to proposing to my girlfriend. But, it was so vulnerable and messy, that I didn’t even know where to start!

Steven introduced us to the Idea Colosseum. A place to refine and expand our writing ideas. Uh oh. 

People slowly volunteered themselves to defend their ideas. What started as a seemingly normal Zoom call had suddenly turned into a thesis dissertation. Everyone who volunteered was grilled by Steven, “Well, why do you think that?” “What prompted you to share this?”. He began to catch flustered writers like flies in a spider-web.

Eventually, I volunteered.

I had a vague idea of what I wanted to share. 

I wanna write about modern dating and proposing to my girlfriend. 

Gulp. As I shared my story, questions such as, “What did you give up when you proposed to your girlfriend?” “How did you know she was the one for you?” began to pop up. I knew I would be grilled, but I still wasn’t prepared for these questions. 

Panic slowly set in as I felt the proverbial Zoom walls close in. I felt mentally naked again, except this time, I had an audience. 

Five minutes later, I had poured out my soul to a group of internet strangers. I caught my breath as someone else volunteered to have their idea eviscerated in front of a crowd. Once I slowed down, I felt confident. While I had never been challenged in such a way, I knew I had come away with a meaningful and personal essay. 

Since finishing the course, I’ve longed for the energy that Write of Passage brought. Where else on the internet can you find 400+ people all set on the same mission to publish quality writing?

It reignited the spark within me, the childlike curiosity and wonder to explore novel ideas and make new friends. The spark that’s been buried under the monotony of soul-sucking work. And what’s the price tag you can put on that?

Thank you to CansaFis Foote, Alex Exum, Anthony D’Apolito III, and Georg Bulmer for their feedback on this essay

If you made it this far down, I want to hear from you! When was the last time you had the childlike spark? And what would it take for you to get it back?

Until next time,

Derek