these 3️⃣ things change EVERYTHING

let's get going, once and for all

Hello hello,

As an up-and-coming writer, your ability to write skillfully and meaningfully—whether that’s Substack posts, essays, or books—is… honestly what it’s all about. It’s the lifeblood of what I care about when I write these letters to you.

I want you to succeed.

However…

…you may be on the struggle bus when it comes to cracking the code on what ACTUALLY works to get there. 😵‍💫

After nearly twenty years in the trenches, & mentoring students who have nabbed six-figure book deals and written pieces for some of our most top-tier publications, I’ve identified 3 key pillars to being a skillful and successful writer:

1️⃣: Getting the fundamentals down.

• Learn everything you can, from pre-writing to writing to publication, from a place like The Unexpected Shape Writing Academy.

2️⃣: Writing. The whole “ten thousand hours” thing might have been debunked, but I do think that it’s often backed up by outcomes.

• Practice writing over and over again, because practice is what is going to make your writing smoother and better.

3️⃣: Reading. And reading. And Reading.

• Read as much as you can. Being a writer is as much about reading as it is about writing. You’ll learn from figuring out what you like and what you don’t. You’ll get to try different voices. And a truly marvelous book can expand your mental parameters when it comes to your own writing.

Here’s the problem.

Most writers-in-training only hone in on ONE of those—if any.

But it’s a trifecta. A trio. A web. And when these 3 things are working in harmony? Oh yeah: THAT’S when you become the writer that you want to be.

Fun fact: I cover all of these in detail in my new mentorship programs, Magic Sessions and The Hummingbird Project. It’s a special time for us to work together, one-on-one, so that we can level up your writing.

IN A MAGIC SESSION…

Talk to me for an hour about your project or your project-to-be, whether fiction or nonfiction. You get the chance to get my insight on it all: big and small, crucial or finicky. Impostor syndrome? Don't know how to get started? Stuck on your short story or essay? Application required to make sure I can be of help.

○   1 HOUR ZOOM CALL
○   DISCUSS ANY WRITING-RELATED TOPICS
○   DOWNLOADABLE RECORDING
○.  TRANSCRIPTION AVAILABLE
○   LETTER FROM ME WITH ACTION STEPS

IN A HUMMINGBIRD PROJECT…

A hummingbird project is when we spend time over three months to get one big thing on your writing wish list done. Your hummingbird project can range from writing an e-book memoir to sell on your website to preparing, outlining, and writing the core pieces of your book proposal to writing and revising a short story. Application required to make sure I can be of help.

○   1 KICKOFF ZOOM CALL WITH DOWNLOADABLE RECORDING AND TRANSCRIPTION
○   3 VIP VOXER DAYS (24/7 VOICE MEMO COMMUNICATION 1X EACH MONTH)
○   FEEDBACK ON 3000 WORDS PER MONTH WITH ACTION STEPS
○   1 FOLLOW-UP CALL ON ZOOM

"I joined the Unexpected Shape Academy searching for community. I was looking for a supportive environment to nurture my growing writing ambitions. Esmé and the community she cultivates is just what I was looking for. She gave me access to authors and industry experts I had never thought I would interact with. This work of breaking down barriers made me believe that my ambition could materialize into actual essays and maybe even an actual book.

Working with Esmé 1-on-1 has only cemented my resolve to continue investing in my writerly ambitions. I know my work will be received with care. Her insight has always pushed my writing to a new level. I have also gained a champion for my work. Esme has connected me to other members of the literary community. She’s provided recommendations on where my work can live on. Moreover, she talks about my book as something that will exist in the future. That kind of support pushes me to keep writing so that this book does eventually see the light of day. And when it does, Esmé will be in the acknowledgments."

ALEX CLEMENTE

"Esmé is a brilliant writer who cares intensely about community, with a deeply generous approach to sharing knowledge and uplifting others' voices. She helps make our literary communities a better and more expansive place, and anyone being mentored by Esmé will surely learn a great deal about writing practices, paths toward and through publishing, and what can often be an opaque and confusing industry. We should all be so lucky as to be guided along the way by someone as astute as Esmé."

R.O. KWON, author of EXHIBIT

I’m so excited to share this with you. If you have any questions after checking it out here, just email me at info@esmewang.com, and I’ll happily answer them.